True to form, the Game Rating and Administration Committee of Korea has let slip another potential huge release for the PlayStation 4, by way of a rating for none other than Brendan Greene’s PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.
The authority has a reputation for leaking games before they are officially announced by publishers, case in point a Castlevania bundle grouping Rondo of Blood and Castlevania Symphony of the Night under the title Castlevania Requiem shimmying its way onto PlayStation 4. Other blunders include leaking the Fortnite Switch port ahead of schedule.
The rating itself is the usual fare of violence, use of weapons, and realistic blood befitting a 100 player battle royale title. Of course, the rating is exclusive to South Korea and as such there’s not guarantee the game will be carried over to the rest of the world, but is expected to do so.
The news is interesting in more ways than one, chiefly PUBG Corp. and Sony have made no mention of a PlayStation 4 release being imminent other than hinting at a possible future release way back in the closing weeks of last year, citing the success of the Xbox version as a guiding factor.
Secondly, a PlayStation 4 release sounds bad news for Xbox, which holds the mantle of PUBG console exclusivity, one of the very few exclusives Microsoft was able to muster up in its ongoing battle with Sony. Version 1.0 has only just released on Xbox, effectively marking the end of a long stint in Game Preview and though the game has sold well, reviews remain mixed.
Knowing that Sony don’t offer an early access feature and are notoriously stringent when it comes to game certification, the Korean Board rating suggests the port is in a near enough fully formed state to warrant review. Is it within the realm of possibility that a polished PUBG experience on PlayStation 4 is on its way?
As for the commercial implications of a PlayStation 4 port, if it is indeed genuine, the release seems too late to fully benefit from the tide of interest and hype surrounding PUBG, which has subsided due to the meteoric rise of Fortnite. Furthermore, the resounding success of the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Blackout Beta suggests a likely contender is primed to enter the BR fray. Going by player reaction and press sentiment, Blackout will be the next big thing, further eating into PUBG’s share of the battle royale pie.
If today’s news is anything to go by, we can expect an official announcement fairly soon.
