PUBG vs CODM

Market & User Research

Sarah Hu
 Objective
To contrast the gameplay of CODM (beta
version) with that of PUBGM in order to gain
a better understanding of users’ perceptions
of the two games

1
Regions w/ High
Pay Ability
North America, Middle
East, Asia

2
CODM vs. PUBG

3
 PUBG In India
10-15 mil. Active Users

30-40 mil. Monthly Users

5
Low ability to pay
User-Specific Hypotheses
Demographics
India: PUBG will continue to
dominate the market as CODM
has the potential to become a
pay-to-win game and India is
not a country that has high-pay
ability; CODM has better
graphics but require the user to
play on a mobile device that is
of a higher quality, which most
users in India cannot afford
China/South Korea/Japan:
PUBG will continue to dominate
the market because COD does
not have as large of an audience
in Asia
North America: CODM will
dominate the market since the
branding/presence of COD is
quite prominent amongst
gamers and even non-gamers
4 serious gamers
Player Level
Beginner: The UI of PUBG and
confusing instructions, or rather
the lackthereof, does not make
PUBG user friendly for Occupation
beginners; CODM gives players
a chance to keep on playing Student: Generally prefer the
within a single round even after social aspect of playing video
they have been shot games and may like PUBG more
because friends can play
Novice: Multiplayer aspect of together
CODM gives these players a
Employed: CODM rounds are
chance to win (thus boosting
shorter and will better suit those
satisfaction levels) as you are
with a busy lifestyle looking to
playing with a team vs solo
relax for a couple of minutes
Advanced: Those at this skill every now and then
level will prefer PUBG because
Unemployed: Depends on
CODM makes it hard for those at
gamer’s preference as those
lower skill levels to beat their
that are unemployed have more
higher-skilled counterparts due
time to dedicate to video games
to the array of weapons
if they choose
available at each skill level
Between jobs: CODM rounds
Gamer/Master: PUBG requires
are shorter, providing timely
users to utilize more skill as
breaks and will better suit those
there are no weapons to
under the stress of looking for a
purchase; PUBG has a 6 hour
new job
limit which is inconvient for
Gameplay Hypotheses
Miscellaneous:
CODM streamers will be more
popular than PUBG streamers
because there are more game play
options in CODM BR mode that are
not present in PUBG, which will
result in more diverse gameplays
and strategies for winning
Players who have played CODM in
the past on their PC will not
necessarily return to solely playing
on their PC after trying out CODM
because mobiles games are more
convenient and ubiquitous to play
4 years ago
Shooting/Recoil/Trajectory:
Aim and fire simultaneously saves time
High recoil in PUBG and low recoil in CODM
(meaning that shooting in PUBG requires the
user to factor in things such as timing, angle, etc.
for accurate shots) so PUBG is not as
user-friendly but requires the user to have more
skill → CODM is faster-paced since users can
continuously shoot while PUBG is slower-paced
Modes:
Beginner/Novice players will like CODM Battle
Royale mode better than PUBG BR mode
because CODM allows users to revive
teammates, which gives newer players a chance
to play continuously and improve faster
CODM is more user-friendly, especially towards
beginners and novice players since the final kill
cam allows users to learn from their mistakes
and improve
The BR mode in CODM is better than that of
PUBG because users have more gameplay
options to utilize such as helicopters, grapple
and hook, etc. which will allow for more
interesting gameplays and more diversity
Weapons:
Beginners new to gaming will like CODM
because they have an auto-firing function (easy
for users completely new to FPS games to get
started)
Those who have a low-ability to pay but play
frequently will feel that CODM is unfair because
those with a high ability to pay but may not have
played much will have access to the same, if not
better, array of weapons
Loadouts:
Players who enjoy using specific weapons
tailored to specific maps will not like CODM from
levels 1-4 because users cannot change their
loadouts in game until level 5
Players who do not enjoy uncertainty will not like
PUBG because the weapons acquired depend
on their luck; In CODM, users can choose which
weapons they want
Graphics:
CODM has better graphics than PUBG because
the graphics of PUBG have remained relatively
the same as when the game launched three
CODM
▫ How long, if applicable, have you played COD? (Potential follow-up:
Would you go back to playing COD on your PC?)
▫ How do you feel playing CODM? (Potential follow-up: Is playing CODM
nostalgic for you?)
▫ What are your favorite aspects of CODM?
▫ Do you believe that the final kill cam helps to mitigate your/other
players’ perceptions about the existence of bots?
▫ What other purposes do you see the final kill cam serving? (ex.
showing you your mistakes and learning from them)
▫ Do you see CODM as a pay-to-win game or potentially evolving to
become one in the future?
▫ Do you play any games you believe to be pay-to-win? How do you feel
about those games/when you play those games? Do you pay for
in-app purchases within those games?
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PUBG
▫ Do you prefer the battle royale genre over the FPS genre or vice versa?
If you have a preference, what aspects of that genre do you like?
▫ Do you follow any PUBG streamers? How large of a role do you see
streamers playing in the current game industry?
▫ What do you find enticing about PUBG? Why do you continue to play?
▫ Tell me about a time where you were frustrated when playing PUBG.
Are there any improvements PUBG need to make?
▫ Bots: why do you believe they exist?
▫ When you first started playing PUBG, what was your experience like?
▫ How many FPS games did you play prior to playing PUBG? Rate your
skill level (beginner, novice, advanced, master) at playing those games
PRIOR to starting to play PUBG.
▫ How has PUBG affected your daily life in a positive way? Negative way?

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 Tech Habits & Overlapping Questions

▫ How much money do you spend on video games per month?

▫ How long have you been playing PUBG?
▫ How many hours do you spend playing CODM?
▫ Which type of mobile device do you own?
▫ Would you say that playing PUBG and CODM is mutually exclusive?
▫ What haven’t we asked you today that you think would be valuable for us to know?
▫ If there was one thing you could change, what would it be?
▫ Why did you start playing CODM/PUBG?
▫ How does CODM/PUBG fit within your current day-to-day life?
▫ Which game is more user friendly/easier for new players to start?
▫ Which game do you believe to currently be the most popular in your country—PUBG or
CODM and why?
▫ If you play PUBG or CODM with friends, how often do you play together and in what type of
setting?
▫ How much time do you believe you should spend on mobile games per day? Do you play
more or less than this number?
▫ Do you believe that it is important for a mobile FPS game such as PUBG or CODM to give
users the option to play shorter rounds at a faster-paced mode AND longer rounds (battle
royale mode)
▫ Was there or is there anything that you find difficult when playing CODM and PUBG?
▫ How long did it take you to become comfortable with the controls in CODM and PUBG?

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Follow-up Questions

▫ Tell me more about that.

▫ Can you give me an example of that?
▫ Why do you think that?
▫ Why is that important to you?

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User Interview Outline:

docs.google.com/document/d/1GYeZn_d1D8Z
Hv8p370O9N6t77ryICLE1VbNHZ9YO108/edit?u
sp=sharing