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As more live service games use splashy music events to attract players, PUBG Mobile is taking things a step further with its new Beat Drop label.
PUBG Mobile’s latest major addition isn’t a new weapon, map, or crossover but an entire music label made just for the game. The new label is called “Beat Drop,” and while that’s an admittedly clever pun, we still don’t know much about what it will actually mean for artists or players.
Big live service games are increasingly using in-game music to encourage players to hop in. PUBG Mobile hosted its first virtual concert this year with the K-pop girl group Blackpink. Roblox has hosted concerts with artists like Royal Blood and Lil Nas X. Fortnite is famous for its elaborate in-game shows featuring people as big as Marshmello and Ariana Grande, and the game even lets you listen to real-world music when you hop in a car and flip on the radio. In-game music tie-ins aren’t just concerts; Riot Games has virtual bands for League of Legends, and I just learned that PUBG Mobile has one called Power4 as well.
It’s unclear exactly how the music from Beat Drop will show up in PUBG Mobile, but the game’s press team made some vague promises in an email. “The new PUBG Mobile music label aims to shine a spotlight on amazing up-and-coming artists across the world, produce industry defining tracks with established icons, and provide players with epic songs to heighten their PUBG Mobile experience,” the email says.
The email notes that the Beat Drop name “evokes sensations of the heart-pumping climax of an EDM song,” so the label’s music may largely end up being EDM. I’m also getting strong EDM vibes from the Beat Drop reveal video.
I’ve asked for more information about which artists are signed to Beat Drop and how the music will be featured in the game. But a timeline shared in the press email notes that a “DJ collaboration release” will be revealed on December 20th (that’s today!), and a “new theme song” is coming on December 30th, so we might be hearing more from Beat Drop soon.
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PUBG Mobile has proven to be a massive hit, surpassing 1 billion downloads in March 2021, meaning a lot of people could end up hearing music from Beat Drop. If it’s successful, perhaps other live service games will launch music labels of their own. I’m guessing Fortnite developer Epic Games will be keeping a close eye on this one; the company has already taken a small step into the music business with its recent purchase of the music platform Bandcamp, after all.