KRAFTON was preparing to enter the extraction shooter space with Black Budget, an innovative enough concept that fused the traditional extraction loop with PUBG’s classic battle royale mechanics. It was never set to move mountains, but in early playtests, it didn’t do too badly, racking up a peak concurrent player count of almost 10,000 users and getting up there in the wishlist charts.
That isn’t enough for KRAFTON, and the team stressed that after an internal review, the budding extraction title has been slashed from the pipeline. They ‘concluded that its current direction would not allow (them) to deliver an experience players could enjoy over the long term.’
Which is weird, because I really enjoyed Black Budget…
Black Budget Represents Another Dead Extraction Game
The extraction shooter space is one of the trickiest pieces of gaming terrain to navigate these days, it seems. Even the biggest players in the space, like Escape from Tarkov and ARC Raiders, have had more than their fair share of issues when it comes to overall sentiment and player retention.
All the time, more games pop up in the extraction shooter space, but painfully few make it big.
It doesn’t matter if you’re PvE-exclusive, hardcore PvP, single-player, or some amalgamation of everything; it’s a very complex place to thrive in.
RELATED: PUBG Black Budget First Impressions
That concept has now hit PUBG: Black Budget, a developing and genuinely intriguing first-person extraction shooter that was being pieced together by the team at KRAFTON. It’s now dead after the team decided to cancel it.
Here’s what they said on Steam:
After reviewing the project’s development status and future direction, we concluded that its current direction would not allow us to deliver an experience players could enjoy over the long term.
We have therefore made the difficult decision to end development of PUBG: Black Budget.
We sincerely thank everyone who took the time to participate in our Closed Alpha tests and share their feedback.
PUBG STUDIOS will carry what we learned from development and testing into future projects, continuing to listen to players as we explore new gameplay experiences.
Earlier this year, PUBG’s teams also cancelled PUBG: Blindspot, another stab at something innovative that failed after just two months in early access. In August, KRAFTON unveiled PUBG: DED.NET, a roguelike shooter with a bizarre aesthetic that turned heads at Gamescom.
When I sat down with the game’s creative director, I had to ask what he’s doing to make sure this game doesn’t wind up like Blindspot. And now, I guess, like Black Budget.
Are you shocked to see the back of PUBG: Black Budget? Let us know your thoughts on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that Gears E-Day ranked is coming on October 13, and make sure you sign up for our newsletter
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
More from Grant Taylor-Hill
Comments