For quite some time now, PUBG Esports has stuck to the same basic formula. This was amended slightly for last year's PCS series (less games per day, more days), but for PGI.S, things are being shaken up massively.
PGI.S Format & Prize Pool Structure
Here's a primer video explaining how it will work:
The video can be a little confusing, so we'll try to simplify things here.
In the simplest terms possible, before we get into the nitty gritty, remember this: WINNING MATCHES IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING, EVER
Okay, that's out of the way. Let's begin. This will be long, so prepare to scroll.
PGI.S Tournament Format
PGI.S will be split into three distinct sections:
- Rank Decision
- Weekly Survival
- Weekly Final
PGI.S Rank Decision
February 5-7, 2021
A preliminary tournament that happens only in Week 1, the Rank Decision segment will see the 32 teams split into four groups, with 24 deciding matches played across three days.
This event will follow the usual SUPER rules, with points awarded for the top eight finishers and a bonus added of one point per kill.
Placement is very important here — finish in the Top 16, and a team will have more chances to win big.
PGI.S Weekly Survival
This is where things get weird, so follow closely!
The aim of the Weekly Survival matches is simple — win a Chicken Dinner. There are no points, no ranking, no placements that allow for progression.
Win a Chicken Dinner, and a team makes the Weekly Final.
There are 16 Weekly Survival matches played across three days.
Remember when we said Rank Decision placement was important?
Well, if a team finishes in the Top 16, they will effectively have 16 chances to win a Chicken Dinner. In the Bottom 16, and their chances diminish significantly.
The reason for the confusion is the format of these Weekly Survival matches.
1) The Top 16 from the Rank Decision play the first match of the Week 1 Weekly Survival series.
2) The winner of this (one team) automatically qualifies for the Weekly Final, and then sits out the rest of the week. Job done!
3) They are replaced by Team #17 from the Rank Decision placements (as the next in line), and the process starts again for Match 2.
4) In Match 3, Team #18 joins, Match 4 will add Team #19, and so on and so forth until the end. Match 16 — the final match of the week — will see Team #31 join.
This means, in practical terms, that Team #32 misses out on the Weekly Survival series entirely, and therefore has zero chance of winning the Weekly Final.
As we said, Rank Decision placement is crucial.
PGI.S Maximum Chances to Win a Weekly Survival Event
This table breaks down the number of chances a team has to win a Weekly Series event based on their placement, and therefore qualify for the Weekly Final.
There's prize money on offer for the winners of the first eight Weekly Survival matches — this will be important to note later on!
Hopefully that makes things a little clearer.
PGI.S Bottom 16 Qualifier
However, all is not lost for Team #32.
Every Saturday, before the Weekly Final, the Bottom 16 teams will face off in a qualifying match to decide the next week's placements.
Ultimately, the format demands that a team is on top form, right away. There'll be no FaZe Sunday this time!
PGI.S Weekly Final
Thankfully, the Weekly Finals are easy to understand, as they follow the SUPER format. The 16 Weekly Series winners participate.
There'll be ten matches across two days, with the final ranking deciding who wins overall. Prize money is awarded to the top four teams in the Weekly Final.
Those same 16 teams make up the roster for the first Weekly Survival event of the next week, and the entire cycle begins once more.
PGI.S Overall Winner
So, if you've managed to follow this far, have a medal, because you deserve it!
However, one question remains — who wins PGI.S? After all, this is an international, World Cup-like tournament, there has to be an overall winner!
This is simple. The team with the most prize money in total wins, and can be considered the best PUBG team in the world for this year.
You'll notice there's scaling prize money as the tournament goes on, so while all victories count, reaching peak form later in the event will prove very, very useful indeed!
Half a million dollars for one victory? SIX possible weekly victories, AND prize money for individual Weekly Survival wins? Some teams are about to become very rich indeed!
Let's crunch the numbers — if one team were to prove utterly dominant, the maximum they could win is a massive $1,185,000. For this to happen, the following would need to be true:
- Team XYZ wins the first Weekly Series event each week, six times in total, for $60,000;
- Team XYZ wins every Weekly Final, for a total of $1,125,000.
PGI.S Survival Tournament
After three weeks of play, there is a break week from the Weekly Survival/Finals events. Instead, a Survival Tournament takes place from March5-7.
This is separate from the main PGI.S event, and features a tournament bracket.
The round of 32 will take place over two days, and see sixteen teams compete each day. Eight teams in total advance to the quarter-finals, with four teams making the final.
This mini-event is intended as a different experience for fans, with more details to be revealed later.
PGI.S Prize Pool & Crowdfunding
That $3.5m prize pool is guaranteed, but teams can earn even more cash!
As with previous events, sales of PGI.S-themed items in the PUBG in-game store will help bolster the prize pool even further.
30% of profits will be added, but this extra cash doesn't affect the determination of the overall winner.
Instead, it will be totalled up and divided among all the teams, with their shares depending on how they've performed across the event.
PGI.S Broadcast Talent & Streaming Details
PGI.S Teams
The PUBG Global Invitational.S will be the biggest and most ambitious PUBG tournament held to date. It will see 32 teams from around the world head to South Korea for an eight-week event, with a minimum prize pool of $3.5m on the table.
