"Critical Bug" Ganks PUBG's 50v50 Platoon Mode Event

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds matches on PC are about to get even crazier starting today, with the kickoff of the game's 50v50 game mode event. Dubbed Platoon Mode, it sees the usual crop of 100 players, usually set against each other to see who can be the last player or the last squad standing, into a huge gunfight. (Update: Whoops, it seems Platoon Mode has been decimated by a "critical error" and PUBG Corporation has canceled the event, but said in a tweet that the mode will return.)

Players are divided into five 10-player squads to make up each platoon--and one can only assume that the in-game voice channel completely unusable at that point. Battle royale competitor Fortnite has a similar mode that pops up periodically as a timed event.

Platoon Mode kicks off today, October 18, at 7 PM PT / 10 PM ET (and 3 AM BST on October 19) for the PC version of the game. Platoon Mode also supports both third-person perspective and first-person perspective games.

You might be fighting with an army at your back in Platoon Mode, but that's the only big change to your normal PUBG match. The usual objectives of looting buildings, finding better gear, avoiding the closing circle, dodging explosive red zones, and killing other players (or spending the whole match hiding in a bathroom) still apply. All that's different is the size and scope of the teams in the match.

You'll know the other players in your platoon in-game by the blue circle that appears over their heads. While having 50 players on a team might sound like chaos, friendly fire is disabled, so players won't have to worry about accidentally shooting other friendly squads.

This isn't the first time PUBG made an attempt at a take on the 50v50 mode. It briefly ran the mode back in May, when it was dubbed "Desert Knights," but server issues and crashes led to the mode's discontinuation within 24 hours.

Players pulled into PUBG to check out the 50v50 mode will have a surprise waiting for them if they haven't played the game in a bit, also. Developer PUBG Corporation is offering players a free in-game item, plus 20,000 Battlegrounds Points, its in-game currency, as an apology for some recent matchmaking and server issues. Players have until 5 PM PT / 8 PM ET on October 23 / 1 AM BST on October 24 to claim their items.