Earlier this week, Epic Games announced that the Battle Royale version of Fortnite is going live on September 26. This is a co-op sandbox survival game that will be free to play across all platforms.
However, shortly after the Epic Games’ announcement players drew a parallel between the Fortnite: Battle Royale and the early access megahit PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.
These comparisons did not go unnoticed, and earlier today the PUBG developer Bluehole published a press release on the matter. According to the information, the press release contains, the Bluehole team is contemplating “further actions” against Epic Games’ Battle Royale mode.
To make matters worse, the PUBG devs use the Epic Games’ Unreal Engine to power the shooter.
In the Battle Royale version announcement, the Epic’s creative director Ronald Mustard referenced both PUBG and H1Z1 as a source of inspiration.
In the press release, the Battlegrounds producer Chang Han Kim said that based on the community feedback, the Bluehole team was concerned about the similarities the two games sport. He also expressed his fears that the Fortnite might replicate the experience PUBG was known for.
Another worrisome fact Mr Kim pointed was the reference to PUBG Epic Games made in the Fortnite promotion. He confirmed that this has never been a subject of discussion between the two parties and “we [Bluehole — Ed] don’t feel that it’s right.”
In the blog post, announcing the Fortnite: Battle Royale, the Epic Games team wrote that battle royale games such as the PUBG make a great foundation for the Fortnite version.
At the time of writing, Epic Games representatives have not released a statement related to Bluehole’s harsh statement.
Meanwhile, both Epic Games and Bluehole have attracted a lot of proponents and opponents. Some players say that it is all Epic’s fault and they must have predicted such an issue, especially after mentioning the PUBG as an area of inspiration. Others believe that Bluehole’s claims are just a tempest in a teapot as the Battle Royale modes are not something new.
In all cases, players will be happy if the two parties reach a compromise and the games coexist peacefully.
