Krafton shuts down PUBG spin-off Black Budget nine months after closed alpha test

GamesIndustry.biz reports Krafton has ended development on PUBG spin-off Black Budget, closing the book on the extraction shooter nine months after its closed alpha test on Steam. The project mixed time-loop structure with squad-based survival, aiming for teams to extract together rather than chase a last-player-standing finish.

Krafton said it reviewed the project’s development status and future direction before deciding the current direction would not support a long-term player experience. The studio also thanked alpha testers and community participants, saying PUBG Studios will carry lessons from Black Budget into future projects.

The cancellation lands after a year of repeated PUBG spin-off experimentation. Black Budget had multiple alpha and community tests, but it now joins Blindspot, which Krafton shut down in March after a short Early Access run. That makes Black Budget the second PUBG offshoot cancelled in 2025.

For developers, the bigger signal is Krafton’s continued push to turn PUBG into a broader content platform while still pruning projects that don’t fit its long-term plan. Even with these cancellations, the company has another spin-off in the pipeline: PUBG: Ded.Net, announced at Gamescom as a multiplayer shooter with roguelike progression.