How to play the two official "PUBG" mobile games and how to install them
No sooner had I played my way through a mountain of "PUBG" clones than the official offshoots for smartphones suddenly appeared. Only in China for the time being, but that didn't stop me from trying them out. Find out whether it was worth it and how you can do the same here.
Not even a year old and "PUBG" has already landed on Android and iOS. And this time not in the form of a loveless clone, but highly officially from Tencent. The Chinese mega-company has secured the marketing rights in the Middle Kingdom. Why two mobile games are being released at the same time is a mystery to me. Especially as they are practically identical, at least at first glance.
They are called "PUBG: Army Attack" and "PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield". The former is being developed by Timi Studio and the latter by Lightspeed and Quantum Studios. Both the original and the mobile versions are based on Unreal Engine 4, which should have made porting easier.
Currently, the games are only available in China. However, you can also play them here via detours. The question is whether it's worth it.
There's even a really cool live-action trailer. Unfortunately, it's completely unrealistic. I didn't understand a word. But I can guarantee that nobody shouted "China numbaa Ooone", played deafening oriental pop songs or insulted any mothers. I don't feel picked up enough.
"PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield"
"PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield" is practically a 1:1 port. The game not only comes surprisingly close to the PC version in terms of graphics (with a few compromises). The map, the weapons and the gameplay are unmistakable. Only the room layouts in the houses have been reduced somewhat, so that two rooms have become one. There is also usually less furniture. This is probably to make it easier to navigate on the small screen. Otherwise, everything is there that the full version has to offer: Equipment, vehicles, aircraft drop. The interface is a little cluttered, but the controls work surprisingly well overall. Climbing, aiming, running, everything is just a click away. Because the buttons are so close together, I always miss a shot from time to time. A practical feature is that objects are automatically picked up when you are nearby. If a better helmet is lying on the ground, it is automatically replaced. Only when both weapon slots are full do you have to manually equip new weapons.
Despite the lack of translation, you can play "PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield" without any problems. Most of the time, it's the yellow glowing button that takes you to the next screen. I played a few rounds and with a ping of 100ms I was able to keep up without any problems. The first time, I accidentally ended up in a squad and immediately died a lonely death - not without having dragged an opponent to their doom first. My team members must have rightly thought to themselves, what is this 老外 (laowai/foreigner) doing here? I could have disguised myself with a Chinese name, of course, but it's just more fun this way when I shout "China numba oooone" into the microphone for a change.
Thanks to generous auto-aim, you can even hit something on the small mobile phone screen and I had to really control myself not to cheer too loudly in the office when I had a decent run. "PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield" is free, but you're regularly hit with adverts. Since, like me, you probably can't read it, that's not so bad.
"PUBG: Army Attack"
The second mobile "PUBG" is supposed to be the slightly more arcadey version of the two. At first glance, it looks identical to "Exhilarating Battlefield". But you notice the first difference as soon as you create your character. You can only select the gender and no hairstyles etc. You will be able to buy/unlock new outfits and the like later on. After all, "Army Attack" is also a free-to-play title. Apart from that, it looks just like "Exhilarating Battlefield" or the original "PUBG". You get a little more pop-ups explaining how to pull the parachute, for example, but that should be self-explanatory, and not just for "PUBG" veterans.
As I head for one of my favourite spots, the shooting range, on my first round, I notice a small but crucial difference: There is no shooting range. Various other locations and buildings are also missing from the map. Everything has been moved a little closer together, probably to ensure that players can find each other more quickly. Games take a similar amount of time as on PC/Xbox One and this quickly becomes exhausting on a smartphone. The interiors of the buildings have been streamlined even more than in "Exhilarating Battlefield".
Other than that, loot is also collected and equipped automatically in "Army Attack". Even the doors open automatically. The interface differs only minimally from "Exhilarating Battlefield". Pulling your thumb all the way up with the directional pad activates automatic running and holding down the eye symbol enables a clear all-round view.
Where "Army Attack" differs from "Exhilarating Battlefield" is in the combat with helicopters and boats. However, I have only seen this in the trailer so far
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How to get PUBG on your mobile
As both games are only available in China for the time being, you can't simply download them from Google Play or the App Store. But you can still do it in a roundabout way.
Android
You can either download the APK files for the two games from somewhere online and install them that way or you can get them from a Chinese app store. Both options are associated with certain risks, as you never know exactly what you are downloading. I opted for the "official" option and installed the TapTap App Store. You can find both "PUBG" versions there under the top downloads or with this search term 绝地求生. You will also need a Wechat or QQ account, otherwise you will not be able to log into the game. Both are hugely popular chat apps in China. I then uninstalled TapTap again. After the installation, I also removed all permissions from both games except for memory access and they continue to work without any problems.
Install at your own risk
"PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield"
iOS
Since I don't have an iPhone, I couldn't try this method, but it should work as well.
As there is no sideloading of apps on the iPhone, you must be able to log in to the Chinese App Store. You need a Chinese Apple account to do this. Apparently this works more reliably if you don't create a new Chinese account directly, but convert an existing one. If you don't want to use your primary account for this, you can simply create a fresh account first and then change it to China. This is how it works
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- Log out your iCloud account in the settings (back up your data first)
- When logging in: "You don't have an Apple ID or have forgotten it?"
- Create a new account with details for the desired country (either China directly or another country first) Use Chinese characters for better chances of success
- Download games
"PUBG: Exhilarating Battlefield"
Conclusion
As a big fan of the original, I find it extremely fun to have a pocket version of "PUBG" with me. Personally, I like "Exhilarating Battlefield" a little more, as it is closer to the original. However, both games take too long for my taste for a mobile game and eat through the strongest battery in no time. As the usual tension arises immediately, I become tense far too quickly to be able to enjoy several rounds. The wild swiping is just not for old men like me. I will certainly try it out on the tablet, as you cover half the screen with both thumbs on the smartphone anyway. Hopefully the games will be officially available soon. If you could then use the same account as in the original, then it's a done deal.
Being the game and gadget geek that I am, working at digitec and Galaxus makes me feel like a kid in a candy shop – but it does take its toll on my wallet. I enjoy tinkering with my PC in Tim Taylor fashion and talking about games on my podcast http://www.onemorelevel.ch. To satisfy my need for speed, I get on my full suspension mountain bike and set out to find some nice trails. My thirst for culture is quenched by deep conversations over a couple of cold ones at the mostly frustrating games of FC Winterthur.