Krafton has announced PUBG: Ded.net, a new multiplayer first-person shooter that deviates from the traditional battle royale formula. The game, revealed at Gamescom, embraces a '90s grunge aesthetic and incorporates roguelite elements, promising a unique twist on the PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds franchise. "PUBG: Ded.net is a new multiplayer FPS that combines shooter gameplay with roguelite progression across runs, giving players new ways to experiment, adapt and build their own approach in the strange and unpredictable world of 1990’s Cascadia," publisher Krafton stated.
This new direction suggests a potential blend of battle royale and extraction shooter gameplay. Krafton indicated that player progression is persistent across multiple runs, with the tagline "A match lost is never a run wasted. Every drop of blood writes the next chapter—what you scavenge in the world changes you, and that changes how you fight." Players can expect to "mix and match dozens of abilities to build your own custom approach to combat," with examples given such as using car doors as shields, cannibalizing enemies for health, feigning death, or hacking payphones for rival currency.
The game's announcement trailer was set to Ministry's "Jesus Built My Hotrod," a track leaning towards industrial music rather than grunge. The Steam page for PUBG: Ded.net also includes a statement regarding AI content development, noting, "Our team uses AI tools to help develop some in-game content." Registration for a closed beta test is now open for players eager to try the new title.