In today's episode of TheDecidedGamer podcast I'm talking about the recent controversy surrounding Fortnite's new battle royale mode and how Bluehole, the creator of PUBG, responded to the announcement of the new game type. There also might be something in there about a battle royale style Star Wars game. I'll leave a transcript of the episode down below for you guys as well.

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Transcript: 

Hey what’s up gamers. On today’s episode of TheDecideGamer podcast we will be discussing the controversy surrounding Fortnite’s new battle royale mode and the response from Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds creator Bluehole. There’s a lot to unpack here, and somewhere in this episode I might talk about Darth Vader parachuting in looking to win a chicken dinner. So there’s that. Alright, let’s talk about gaming.

So there is a whole bunch of crap wrapped up in this story that we have to untangle. Eww…that’s kind of gross. Anyway, Epic Games, the creators of Fortnite, just released a new game mode. Battle Royale. If you don’t know what fortnite is, it’s literally you building a massive fort to try and survive endless hordes of zombies. It’s a builder-survival game. However, as an additional FREE add on, that’s right gamers Free.99, AND its on console. Epic Games has included a battle royale mode. A game mode strikingly similar to Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds. Besides the art style and being able to build bridges and walls mid-combat, it is literally a replica of PUBG and H1Z1. Epic Games, while promoting this new mode in fortnite, named PUBG as an inspiration to the game. This did not sit well with Bluehole, the creator of PUBG, as they made a statement saying that they did not like Epic Games making references to PUBG during their promotions, and then ominously saying that they are considering quote unquote, further action. Complicating the situation even more is the fact that Bluehole is licensing the game engine, Unreal Engine 4, from Epic Games. Just to clear this up: Bluehole created a battle royale game called Playerunknown’s battle grounds. To do this, they used the game engine that Epic Games owns. Bluehole pays royalties to Epic Games for the use of this game engine. Epic Games then input a battle royale mode into Fortnite, a game that they created, essentially replicating the game mode that has been made most popular by PUBG. Jesus. Everybody with me still?

So let’s first decide if Bluehole has an argument. We can only assume that by “further action” that they mean legal action. Do they have a legal case against Epic Games? aaaaaaa not really. They do not have copyright over an entire genre, which is what battle royale is. But, there is still something that feels off in this situation. Epic Games released a game that is incredibly similar to PUBG. They gave Bluehole the license to use Unreal Engine 4, and then built a game on the same engine and promoted that game by stating how much their brand new awesome spectacular game--is just like that other battle royale game that is destroying records on Steam, and on many days, the number one viewed game on Twitch. There may not be a legal case, but it certainly feels a little dirty. Which leads to how Bluehole probably should have reacted.

PUBG is wildly successful. Much has been made of the game breaking the concurrent player record on steam. The press release threatening further action seemed kind of petty, even if it actually wasn’t. Most gamers don’t really care about the behind the scenes workings of how games are produced. By releasing the statement that Bluehole did, they demonstrated how the sausage was made. And nobody wants to see how the sausage is made. Besides that, Bluehole is still carrying itself like an Indie studio. While it certainly is that, it is also evolving. PUBG’s success has been incredible, especially for a game that is not fully released yet. Fortnite might be a good game eventually, but it will have to differentiate itself to compete with PUBG, or even H1Z1. For now, Bluehole should be concentrated on improving their game and getting it transitioned to console properly. If they were offended by Epic Games promoting Fortnite and using PUBG’s name while doing so, contact them behind the scenes. Communicate properly, presenting the dirty laundry for the world to see brings up arguments that I don’t Bluehole is ready to have. Bluehole is clearly not going to sue the company that is licensing them their game engine, so don’t issue a veiled threat like it’s an actual possibility. Act like the monster you are. Whoever is in charge of PR for Bluehole should have said something to the effect of: Fortnite is cute with its cartoon characters and treasure chests. PUBG is where real competition is, and we’re going to continue to deliver great content to keep our game fresh. We wish Fortnite the best, but if you want a real chicken dinner, we’ll see you at the School near Rozhok.

Because here is the simple fact: there will be more of these replicas.

In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if we start seeing ridiculous reincarnations of PUBG. A Star Wars Battlefront Battle Royale. You’re Darth Vader falling from the sky in a parachute, looking for a Scar and a 4x attachment, all black cape flowing beautifully in the wind. You pass by some soviet propaganda, even though the map is of Tatooine, EA just wanted to piss off Bluehole. Attempting to chase down Yoda, who clearly has an advantage via his size and natural camouflage. Only to be killed by a zooming speeder bike, that taunts you by honking 20 times as you cartwheel endlessly through the air. Shit. This is actually starting to sound badass. Someone contact EA and pitch them the idea…just don’t tell Bluehole.

Clearly I’m having a little bit of fun, but Fortnite is simply the most recent example. With the amount of success PUBG has had, there will be many more to follow, and Bluehole has to be prepared to shrug off the competition and push forward. If not, they will look continue to look petty, even though they raise some valid concerns.

Alright gamers, thanks for tuning in. What do you think of Fortnite’s Battle Royale mode. Do you think Bluehole has a legal argument? Let me know, you can send me comments on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, and Gmail by looking up TheDecidedGamer. If you would like to support the podcast please visit my patreon page, which I’ll link in the show description along with all of my social media. You can also visit www.thedecidedvoter.com to see all of the content I produce. Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you guys Thursday for Streamer Spotlight. Peace.