Highly anticipated: Following months of rumors and speculation, South Korean publisher Krafton has finally confirmed that the next entry in the PUBG franchise – PUBG: Black Budget – is nearing completion. First teased in 2023 as a "PvPvE open-world experience," the game is now headed into closed alpha testing on PC this December.
While the original PUBG helped ignite the battle royale craze nearly a decade ago, Black Budget is charting a different path. This time, Krafton is building a tactical extraction shooter centered on "exploration and discovery" instead of pure survival and combat. The game takes place on the mysterious island of Coli, which is stuck in a time loop thanks to a supernatural force known as the Anomaly.
Players will be tasked with finding top-secret technology and uncovering the truth behind a black-budget initiative called Sapiens. During their missions, they'll have to fight off other players while dealing with unpredictable threats that grow more dangerous as the game progresses, making survival increasingly harder.
Sign up for the Closed Alpha: https://t.co/6TvBdaSkuE
– PUBG: Black Budget (@PUBGBlackBudget) November 21, 2025
Designed as an FPP-first experience, PUBG: Black Budget is a tactical extraction shooter built around tension, survival, and the unknown.
Dec 12 – 14 & Dec 19 – 21 PST
Region: NA / EU / ASIA
No NDA#PUBG #BLACKBUDGET pic.twitter.com/IARqgzPQPy
The public alpha will be held across two weekends: December 12 – 14 and December 19 – 21, and interested players can sign up via Steam. The test will only be available to players in North America, Europe, and Asia, with support for English, Korean, Russian, and Chinese. All participating testers will be able to freely stream, capture, and share gameplay without restriction.
Players who aren't selected for the initial round will still be able to earn access keys through Twitch Drops from participating streamers. Krafton says the open approach will encourage players and creators to provide feedback on key gameplay elements, helping the team fine-tune the experience, improve performance, and fix critical bugs.
Interested players can request access to the closed alpha on Steam by visiting the PUBG: Black Budget site on Steam and clicking the "Request Access" button. Those who are selected will receive a confirmation email from Steam notifying them of their enrollment.
PUBG: Black Budget is yet another high-profile entrant in the extraction shooter genre, which has been popularized in recent years by games like Escape from Tarkov and Arc Raiders. There's no confirmed release date yet, but if development stays on track, we could get our hands on the final product sometime next year.
New PUBG spin-off game is a tactical extraction shooter, and you can try it next month
