It was revealed not too long ago that PUBG Corp. was taking Epic Games to court. Basically, they filed a copyright claim stating that Fortnite is a direct copy of PUBG. To add more fuel to the bizarre feud that seems to be going on between the two game companies, this Friday PUBG will be getting an “Event Pass” – essentially a direct rip from Fornite’s “Battle Pass.” If this isn’t the most ironic move ever made by two competing gaming companies, I don’t know what is.
The Event Pass, announced via a Steam update, doesn’t even seem to attempt to differentiate itself from the source material. Here’s PUBG Corp.’s official statement regarding the logic behind the idea.
“The Event Pass is designed to reflect the opinions of players who wanted a trackable progression-related system, and at the same time allows you to unlock new content in PUBG…”
A progression system that allows you to unlock new content? It’s almost like they copied and pasted the first Battle Pass announcement.
Similar to PUBG’s existing system to unlock rewards, the “crate and key” concept, the Event Pass will provide players with rewards regardless of whether or not they’ve spent the money for it. The difference between those who pay and those who don’t is that for the latter, most of the rewards earned will only be temporarily available. Much like Fortnite’s Battle Pass, the Event Pass will also be able to be “leveled up” through completing specific missions.
Again, the Event Pass will be released on Friday coinciding perfectly with the launch of PUBG’s newest map – Sanhok. As such, the missions and rewards will largely be related to the Sanhok map thematically.
While seemingly a direct Fortnite “Battle Pass” rip, I’m eager to see if PUBG Corp. is able to put some unique spin on their “Event Pass” that helps differentiate it from the obvious source material. If they don’t, will Epic Games file its own copyright claim? The soap opera plot twists are getting old. Can’t PUBG Corp. and Epic Games just focus on making good games?
