The PUBG Rules of Survival lawsuit continues to rage on, with PUBG Corp. hoping to issue a cease and desist on any and all battle royale clones. In the 155-page document which details the similarities between PUBG and its competitors, PUBG Corp. makes it very clear that cosmetics affect gameplay and give players different advantages when it comes to camouflage. This statement comes as a surprise, due to how PUBG Corp. CEO Chang Han Kim had said that the developer would “never add anything that affects gameplay.”
The statement below is taken from page 16 of the lawsuit statement (via TorrentFreak):
“However, clothing does affect gameplay in terms of camouflage. Clothing can be used to assist the player to blend in with the environment, making the player less visually detectable. In particular, Battlegrounds includes a Ghillie suit, a full body suit covered with camouflaging material typically used by snipers. The Ghillie suit allows the player to become nearly visually invisible depending upon the terrain.”
While the ghillie suit item described isn’t available through loot boxes or microtransactions, and only lasts for one round, the statement can still be applied to in-game clothing in general.
If you get unlucky and only unlock items that are bright yellow and red, then you’re at a distinct disadvantage to those players wearing black and green outfits. Since clothing can be bought or awarded through paid-for loot boxes, and as PUBG Corp. has now confirmed that cosmetics do indeed affect gameplay, then there’s an argument to be made for PUBG‘s cosmetic-only loot boxes being pay-to-win. Sure, it’s not as blatant as damage and health buffs for those who pay more money, but it’s still a significant advantage in a game where enemy players don’t have icons above their heads, and where being undetected can mean surviving and winning the round.
(via Newsweek)
