PUBG is becoming a Netflix live-action series led by Donald Glover

The game that made battle royale a household term is heading to streaming. Krafton announced on 30 October that PUBG is in development as a live-action series at Netflix, according to the company's press release.

Who's making it

The headline name is Donald Glover, the Emmy and Golden Globe winner known for Atlanta and Community. Krafton says he will direct, write, executive produce and star in the series. His brother Stephen Glover, who worked with him on Atlanta, joins as a writer and executive producer.

The other executive producers are Michael Schaefer for NEON TV, Fam Udeorji for Gilga, and Taeseok Jang and Sujin Lee for LV3H, Krafton's entertainment arm, which is involved in developing and producing the show.

What we don't know

Almost everything else. The announcement doesn't give a release window, an episode count, other cast members or any hint of the story. That last point is the interesting one: PUBG has no fixed plot. A hundred players parachute onto an island, scavenge for weapons and fight until one person or team is left, so the writers will have to invent characters and a world from scratch.

Why Krafton is doing it

PUBG: Battlegrounds arrived on PC in early access in 2017 and became one of the best-selling games ever, later going free-to-play, while PUBG Mobile took the format to phones. Krafton calls PUBG "a global cultural icon with seven Guinness World Records" and says the series is part of a push to expand the franchise into original entertainment. It follows a wave of successful game adaptations on TV, from The Last of Us to Fallout, that has made studios much more willing to bet on gaming brands.

For Netflix, which has been building up its own games offering, adaptations of well-known franchises are also a way to reach new audiences.

Playing PUBG yourself while you wait? A good headset matters in a game where footsteps give enemies away; our gaming headset buying guide covers what to look for, and our guide to choosing a gaming mouse helps with aim.