XBOX
PUBG Xbox One Interview: Microsoft talks matching PC game, Keyboard/Mouse support and more
Today, Microsoft has announced that PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds (PUBG) will exit the Xbox Game Preview program on September 4, 2018.
The game will finally make it to that 1.0 version on the date, and will see some pretty big updates to celebrate the game's graduation from Preview to Full Release.
Version 1.0 will introduce the Xbox One debut of the Sanhok map, the arrival of War Mode on Xbox One (it's a deathmatch-style battle royale gaming experience where players hunt each other in a static zone, respawning you back in with a parachute and weapons if youre killed), Achievements in the game (carried over from the Game Preview version) and the introduction of in-game currency to purchase cosmetics via Event Pass: Sanhok.
We caught up with PUBG Executive Producer, Nico Bihary, to talk about how Microsoft works with PUBG Corp to keep the Xbox version of the game in line with the PC build, how Microsoft will continue to support PUBG Xbox One post-release, and the game's evolution over the last year.
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It must be validating coming to full release after a year's worth of work on PUBG in Game Preview?
Nico Bihary: We came into Game Preview on December 17, and we entered into it making a consumer promise: we knew it was early, we knew there were going to be issues, but we wanted fans to join us and we wanted them to know we were going to make it better and listen to them.
From the start, we were optimising the internal development of the Xbox One and PC versions of the game, bringing these things closer together and improving the game along the way.
Weve been consistently updating the title, weve launched over 18 patches and now were at this point where a full product launch is something we can represent in September.
That doesnt mean were pencils down – were not going to optimising, or stop facing down bugs or turn off our PUBG Subreddit. It means we have a date and deadline and we feel confident were delivering against the full product promise we had in mind when we entered Xbox Games Preview.
PUBG Sanhok: DMR and Rony, new vehicles and weapons REVEALED
NEW items have been confirmed for PUBG – here's what we know about them so far. 
The release of 1.0 marks a step forward for PUBG Xbox One, and youre closing in on where the PC version is. Do you think the two titles are ever going to be 1:1?
Nico Bihary: I think 1:1 is always going to be challenging. No matter who the developer is, pushing a button and making two platforms games [the same] is extremely challenging, and theres a variety of different reasons. With a PC, you have unlimited physical resources you can commit over time to rely on. On console, you have to be mindful of the constraints.
Our goal, in partnership with PUBG, is to get within a window. To get within a [timeframe] that means we can optimise things, makes sure it runs smoothly on our platform, that we can certify things, that we can provide quality assurance on our specific version of a game. We want to be confident in drafting off the PC version.
I think were in a two-to-three month window now, for a while though there was a six-month range… I think as PUBG gets more mature as a developer, were getting better in our partnership working with each other. Release management and certification is getting tighter, too.
I think our North Star aspiration is to get to right around a month.
Moving forward, will PC maps close the gap with releases too?
Nico Bihary: I dont really have a lot of evidence to point to say yes for sure. Aspirationally, its the goal, though. When [PUBG Corp] started working on Erengel and Miramar, the constraints they were working with and their maturation as a developer was all played into [development time], so they werent fully developed.
Now, the team can look at the levels holistically and think where is this environment going and that makes porting much easier, right? We saw a little bit of that benefit in Sanhok, but I imagine going forward were going to see that improve – and the porting process get quicker – too. I dont want to make any promises, though, because I havent got a lot of data to work with.
The team is getting better, and were getting more efficient with our development, too.
Cross-platform is something thats not really in your sights then?
Nico Bihary: No, cross-platform is not something were focussing on. Its not something weve spoken about conversationally outside of the studio.
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Its interesting for the Xbox One 1.0 launch to happen now as opposed to in, say, 3 months time when the Fix PUBG initiative would be concluded. It shows you're taking the reigns on the Xbox version…
Nico Bihary: You need a goal, right? Our goal for the content offering wed be delivering landed in September. Its when, for us, Sanhook feels good, War Mode feels good, opportunities for Custom Matches coming online feel good. Our roadmap was coming together really well [in the timeline we set out].
The upside in working with PUBGs campaign is that anything they do to improve the PC experience, at some point, has some material benefit to the Xbox version. Everything works well for us: we maintain our date and our focus in shipping a boxed product, but because its a living product we continue to see the benefits as they come.
A little while back there was mention of mouse/keyboard support for the game on Xbox One – is there any update on that as a target?
Nico Bihary: Mouse and keyboard is a great goal for us, but right now we have other preceding, higher-priority items. Right now, I want to make sure frame rate is 100% stabilised in all areas. I think weve done well at keeping game critical moments at 30FPS, but theres still some slip here and there… and I dont think mouse and keyboard should be presented in that experience.
In a future world where mouse and keyboard support is a thing, matchmaking pools are something we have to be very sensitive to. Say we get a perfect frame rate for mouse and keyboard, we then have to consider the density of players [using that input] to ensure they get a good matchmaking experience.
The Sanhok (Previously Codename: Savage) – NEW Screenshots
PUBG's 4x4km Island map is the smallest map to date and will create a more intense much faster paced Battle Royale experience. 
War Mode is a much more traditional PvP experience – do you expect to see the players pools shift to 50/50, or do you think therell be a slower migration?
Nico Bihary: What people really play PUBG for is 1v99 Battle Royale – thats the draw right? I think the thing thats going to get players coming into War Mode is that its a good place to get to the variety of different weapon types that are coming, a good place to familiarise yourself with the game of youre not too familiar with it.
Also, if you havent got time for the protracted sometimes hour-long experience PUBG games can be, you can kind of just jump into War Mode. Its also going to be mostly event-based – a weekend-based sort-of thing – so thats going to be a destination mode, rather than a drop-down menu item, so we think itll draw people because of that, too.
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