According to a report in The Korea Times, Bluehole Inc. has filed a copyright claim against Epic Games in South Korea's Seoul Central District Court. Bluehole is the developer behind PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) which witnessed unprecedented success a few months ago. However, due to the lingering presence of numerous bugs in the Xbox One and PC versions, the player count has diminished since then.
Updated June 27, 2018: Bluehole Inc. withdrew its lawsuit against Epic Games, ending the legal battle.
PUBG is a last-man-standing shooter being developed with the help of community feedback. Starting with absolutely nothing, players must fight to locate weapons and supplies in a battle to be the only one alive. PUBG is a surprisingly realistic and high-tension title set on a massive island.
Fortnite used to be a somewhat popular base-building shooter, but ever since it introduced a PUBG-like battle royale mode a few months ago, it's popularity has soared. This is mostly due to the fact that it offers a similar experience and is a polished game. While PUBG has a hard time even running at 60 FPS on a high-end PC, Fortnite is able to achieve that on a standard Xbox One.
When Fortnite first launched its surprise battle royale mode, there were numerous accusations of plagiarism against Epic Games circling around. Back then, a Bluehole spokesperson said that the team was considering legal action because the company considered Epic Games to be a partner. It looks like the developer finally took the step and initiated legal action. However, according to the company, it sued Epic Games back in January 2018.
Bluehole didn't create the battle royale genre so it's unclear how far this lawsuit will go. However, if the court finds that there are similarities when it comes to the underlying technology as both utilize Unreal Engine 4, it could mean that Epic Games will have to pay damages. We'll keep you posted as soon as we know more or the case progresses further.
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