PUBG: DED.NET Developer Argues Making a Game for the Mass Market Where 'Nobody's Too Offended and Everybody Kind of Likes It' Has Become 'Box Office Poison'

PUBG, the battle royale that popularized the genre, has spawned numerous spinoffs. However, none has garnered as much love or hatred as DED.NET. While PUBG is available on consoles, DED.NET is exclusively built for consoles. Set in a 1996 world inspired by the Pacific Northwest of the 1990s, DED.NET offers a reimagined PUBG formula beyond battle royale.

Creative director Dave Curd told IGN that making a game for the mass market has become "box office poison." Curd argues that DED.NET aims to be a "love it or hate it" experience, evoking Twin Peaks, X-Files, David Cronenberg, and body horror. The game's Grunge House aesthetic is inspired by grunge bands like Nirvana and movies like Grindhouse and Tarantino.

Curd insists that if DED.NET proves successful, other battle royale developers may adopt the "rogue multi-match journey" mechanic. Curd emphasizes that he wants DED.NET to provoke reactions, good or bad, as apathy is a death sentence for any video game's prospects.