PUBG will allow mods in search of ‘the next PlayerUnknown’

The team behind the viral online shooter PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is gearing up to allow players to mod the game in order to find “the next PlayerUnknown.”

Brendan “PlayerUnknown” Greene’s Arma 3 mod has launched him into success by spawning the crazy popular PUBG, and now he wants the same thing to happen with a modder of his game.

In an interview with CNET, Greene revealed the in-progress mod system, a push back on the new maps, and even more plans for future development. Read on for details on all the big news.

Who will be the next PlayerUnknown?

In the pursuit of some really awesome modders/ game developers, PUBG’s team wants to allow players creative freedom with modding the game while also preventing piracy.

“We have to do it carefully because because we’re very protective of our server files,” Green said. “Allowing people to run their own dedicated servers would mean releasing the server files, and that could lead to piracy. It’s something we want to do, but it might take us a bit of time to actually implement it, because we really have to figure out the best way to do it so the game still stays secure.”

So is PlayerUnknown looking for a partner? A new team of developers? Not quite.

The ultimate goal of the mod system is to allow other players to create spin-off games in the same way that Greene did with his Arma 3 “Battle Royale” mod that turned in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.

“I want to try to find someone who creates a game mode or a mod for my game that propels them to fame, and gets them to make their own game too. I want to find the next PlayerUnknown.”

Don’t expect the two new maps before launch.

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is still in Early Access — though you wouldn’t know it by how many people are playing and how many more are talking about it. A full launch is planned for late 2017, and although two new maps have been revealed recently, Greene admitted they might not make it into the game for its release.

“I’m not sure about the two new maps being ready, one of them may be… we’re going to do a blog post about the current state of the new maps,” said Greene. “The images we released a few weeks ago, they were what we call a beautiful corner, where the artist spends a lot of time creating a small patch to give a sense of what the overall map looks like, and it gives a false impression that these maps are really far along. I’ll be going into that a bit in my dev blog so we can temper people’s expectations.”

The maps in question are a desert town and another set in the Adriatic. Though they might not be playable when PUBG releases, the team is still planning some welcome additions in the coming months, as well as a decade down the road.

A service, not a game.

Greene told CNET the PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds development team has big plans for the long term.

“We’re not looking at this as a short term game,” said Green. “We’re looking at this as something we want to do for the next 10 years.”

“My boss says, we’re building this as a service, not as a game,” he continued. “Over the coming years, we’re just going to keep upgrading and keep improving and keep adding to the game, much like what Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has done.”

If you’re more worried about the short term for now, you can look forward to a few new upgrades. They’re optimizing several performance aspects to make the game as realistic and hassle-free as possible. Vaulting is the first feature on the docket, and then they’ll move onto making the gunplay better with penetration and air drag.

Killcams are also in the works, so you can see just exactly how that guy sniped you and learn from your mistakes. Or just laugh at how hilariously you died.

There are also more plans for the zombie mode, drivable vehicles, new servers, weapons, and more. Read the full interview on CNET for every last detail.