PUBG Mobile has become a household name - for both good and bad reasons. On one hand, the popular battle-royale game gives players an extreme adrenaline rush with its intense gameplay and gripping visuals and effects, on the other hand, it is a controversial topic with reports of addiction that even led to bans.
Tencent Games is working tirelessly to appear on the good side of everyone, especially the law to prevent bans, which costs millions each day. In its continued efforts to promote healthy gaming habits, a new feature is rolling out to all PUBG Mobile players that will interrupt you with pop-ups reminding you to take a break from gaming.
Dubbed as Gameplay Management system, the in-game pop-up notifications will remind players to rest or stop playing PUBG Mobile if they've been gaming for a long time. There's no clarity at what time intervals PUBG Mobile players will get pop-ups, but it does mention that it will be applied for people under the age of 18. This means, the system can be fooled easily if the player chooses to give the wrong age, but that's where parents and guardians must intervene.
"PUBG MOBILE is committed to being a responsible interactive entertainment provider. With experts worldwide examining the impacts of technology and videogames on players of all ages, our team wants to ensure our community is equipped to make informed choices when it comes to PUBG MOBILE. Today's announcement is a proactive step in ensuring that hundreds of millions of players worldwide can continue to enjoy PUBG MOBILE in a sustainable manner," Vincent Wang, General Manager of Global Publishing Department at Tencent Games, said in a statement.
PUBG Mobile's new Gameplay Management system is currently live in select markets, including Indonesia, India, Nepal, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. Other markets are expected to receive the game later and the developer says it will assess user feedback and experience to adjust and improve the new feature after a global rollout.
In addition to this, PUBG Mobile is launching initiatives to educate players on the benefits of using Gameplay Management system. This is a new step in the right direction for PUBG Mobile, which is fighting hard to keep the negative press at bay. The game has already been banned in some countries, including China and Nepal, due to addiction fears, and only recently India lifted the ban on the game.
The game's popularity has even breached the CRPF, so much so that commanding officers are instructed to enforce a ban on troops playing PUBG Mobile.
"Many of them have stopped socialising with their fellow jawans. It has also led to sleep deprivation because of reduced physical activity. It has been reportedly learned that CRPF troops, young personnel are addicted to PUBG. It's getting these men addicted to it and getting them engaged to a great extent which is affecting their ops performance, aggressive and attitudinal issues," said the May 6 order issued by the Bihar unit.
Several cases of suicide have also been linked to PUBG Mobile. Such sensitive matters need to be handled with care and Tencent seems to be doing its bit in working its way up.
