Fortnite is now more popular than PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds on the video game streaming service Twitch, continuing the match-up between the Battle Royale-inspired multiplayer shooters.
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds had all the momentum heading into 2018, as the game broke its own Steam record for concurrent players. How did Fortnite, once called out for launching a Battle Royale mode that is too similar to PUBG, catch up in popularity?
'Fortnite' Overtakes 'PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds' On Twitch
According to statistics provided by SullyGnome, Fortnite has been watched for a total time of 4,882 years and 208 days and streamed for a total of 246 years and 231 days, over the last two weeks. That is a lot of Fortnite and is double what PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds was able to accomplish over the same period. PUBG was only watched for a total of 2,521 years and 277 days and streamed for a total of 106 years and 194 days.
Fortnite rolled out its own Battle Royale mode to capitalize on the interest in the genre that was popularized by PUBG. Now, however, the tables have turned, with Fortnite finding itself in the lead.
How Did 'Fortnite' Beat 'PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds'?
A chart showing performance numbers revealed that there was a massive gap between PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite three months ago, but Fortnite has taken the lead starting mid-February and has not looked back since.
One of the factors that have contributed to Fortnite's current domination of PUBG is the availability of the two games. The Battle Royale mode of Fortnite is free-to-play and available on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, while PUBG is only playable on the Xbox One and PC, without a free-to-play-option.
Another thing that may explain the surge in popularity of Fortnite includes the stable state of the game on its release, unlike PUBG, which suffered a lot of bugs leading up to and beyond its full release. In addition, Epic Games release content updates more often compared to PUBG Corp.
Lastly, there is also the issue of rampant cheating on PUBG, leading to an exodus of players as Chinese hackers have invaded the game. This has made PUBG players call for PUBG Corp. to region lock China as the way to solve the cheating problem.
It remains to be seen whether this trend of Fortnite beating PUBG will continue. While Fortnite is currently on top, gamers can be sure that PUBG Corp. will do what it could to make PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds reclaim its throne among Battle Royale-inspired shooters.
