PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds is getting its first major esports tournament this summer. The PUBG Global Invitational 2018 will take place in Berlin from July 25 to July 29, with a prize pot of $2m waiting to be snatched up. 20 teams from around the world will take part in the tournament, with qualifying tournaments held across North America, Europe and Asia. As well as the cash prizes, there will be two World Champion titles being contested; one for playing in third-person view, the other for first-person players.
The tournament is being organized by PUBG Corp, and will reportedly make extensive use of the game's server side camera control and robust replay options for its streaming presentation. That means commentators will be able to rewind and explore critical moments from whatever angle they want, without interrupting gameplay.
This isn't technically the first official PUBG tournament, as there was the Gamescom Invitational last year. That only had a prize pot of $350,000 however, and wasn't officially hosted by PUBG Corp. It was clearly a warm-up for what seems likely to become an annual event, and with streaming audiences in the millions it seems a shrewd way to cement the game's reputation as the godfather of Battle Royale games.
Details on the venues and rules for regional qualifiers are expected to be announced soon.
