PUBG: Basics and how it works
Before you place your first PUBG bet, you need to understand what PUBG is and how it's played.
PUBG is a multiplayer player versus player (PvP) online battle royale game, similar to Fortnite, Rings of Elysium, and Apex Legends. In the battle royale genre, a couple of dozen players parachute or otherwise drop from a plane onto an isolated island/map where they fight it out until the last man/squad standing.
The number of players in a PUBG can vary depending on the game mode, with normal matches allowing up to 100 players. In contrast, esports tournaments usually cap at 64 participants in a bid to make the game easier to follow.
Once the players land on the map (approximately five by five miles in size), the game begins. Players can choose when and where they exit the plane, which affects the area of the map they land at the start of the game.
Upon landing, each player is without any weapons or equipment, which they can acquire by scavenging the map and eliminating other players, who drop their acquired tools upon death. While the aim of the game is simple by its nature, things get a bit more complicated when other players are looking to eliminate you with any means necessary.
While the players are looking to get their hands on deadly weapons, and other gear, the playable area slowly starts to shrink. Starting from the outer edges of the map, a circle forms which begin to lessen in its size.
Anyone caught outside of that circle starts taking damage, which eventually kills the player and eliminates him from the game. This creates a unique dynamic, leaving the player with no other choice but to funnel into the same area, which ushers more frequent confrontations and fast-paced gameplay.
Additionally, a player who gets killed by other players or otherwise loses all his health gets knocked down and can get revived by his teammate. The time in which the player can get revived is limited, which adds another dimension of teamwork that should be carefully analyzed when betting on PUBG.
PUBG Competitive scene
PUBG competitive is a bit different compared to other esports in a way that most of the official tournaments are organized by the game's publisher. While that means those tournaments see a high level of talent, professional broadcast and high prize pools, it also means there are not as many tournaments to bet on.
The PUBG competitive scene is divided into nine distinct regions, all with their own leagues that create a slate of professional tournaments and leagues that are played across the year all over the world. After the season ends, the top PUBG teams in the world come together to duke it out at the PUBG Global Championship, which takes place in autumn.
All professional PUBG matches pit together 16 squads of four players, who compete together as a team. The PUBG competitive ecosystem uses only two out of four available maps in Erangel and Miramar.
Betting on PUBG - Basics
Betting on PUBG can be both exciting and very risky since the game by its nature is very random. The success of any given team relies on the skill of the players, teamwork, and luck with finding the right weapons and equipment as they scavenge the map.
Although the randomness does make placing a wager riskier, the betting odds offered on PUBG matches are also higher to compensate for that.
PUBG bet types
Outrights are the most common markets on offer in PUBG betting, due to the format in which PUBG matches are played. While there are theoretical options to add other markets such as handicaps or totals, the unpredictability of PUBG's gameplay makes it very hard for bookmakers to do so.
While that might seem very restrictive for any aspiring PUBG bettor, you have to remember that everyone who bets on PUBG is put in the same situation. Furthermore, the addition of map winner and proposition markets provides all PUBG bettors with plenty of betting opportunities to take advantage of.
How to Bet on PUBG Moneyline
Moneyline or Outright bets is the main market in the PUBG betting world commonly used by esports bettors. With this bet type, you're predicting which PUBG team will win the match or the whole series.
As an example, we will look at Moneyline odds offered on PUBG Global Invitational 2018:
- Natus Vincere: 4.50 (+350)
- Team Liquid: 6.00 (+500)
- Knights: 7.00 (+600)
- WTSG: 9.00 (+800)
- Gen.G Gold 9.00 (+800)
As seen, even the favorites are priced as high as 4.50 (+350) to win the tournament, while the second-favorites are priced at 6.00 (+500). The most exciting thing about this example, however, is that Gen.G Gold won the tournament, earning bettors a hefty payout, which only goes to show how lucrative betting on PUBG can be to those who know how to approach it.
How to Bet on PUBG Map winner
Map winner bets will be found only in tournaments/competitions where the teams will play more than one map. With this type of bet, you're betting on a particular team to win one map out of a series of maps.
When it comes to PUBG map betting, the thought process is similar to Moneyline betting; however, the dynamic changes if you're betting on map winner in-play. Understanding the game and optimal landing positions will help you determine a team's chances to win any given map.
This goes to show that knowing only which teams are the strongest is often not enough when predicting which team has the highest chance to win the "Chicken Dinner."
How to Bet on PUBG Futures
With PUBG futures betting, you're not predicting a winner of a certain game or series, but you're instead predicting which team will win a major tournament.
The futures markets are often available long before the event begins, and just like Moneyline bets, futures bets offer very generous odds. Anyone looking to bet on PUBG should keep in mind that timing is everything - placing a bet on a PUBG team to win a certain tournament at the right time can provide you with very generous odds and consequently, a higher potential payout.
How to bet on PUBG In-Play
In-play or live betting is not only the most exciting way to bet on PUBG but also the best type of bet you can make. With in-play betting, you are placing a wager while the game is played, which often provides you with crucial information that helps you place the right bet.
The best part of in-play betting is that the odds often remain virtually the same as they did before the match started, so you will not be put in any disadvantage if you decide to place your bets while the match is played.
Battle Royale games such as PUBG are perfect for live betting since most of the action and the best betting opportunities happen long after the match has begun. Since there are 64 players dropped into the same map, the volatility of the match slows down only once there are merely a couple of dozen players left.
That significantly reduces the risk and helps you avoid gambling with your money, but instead allows you to make educated decisions based on what has happened in the game and which team is in the best position to walk away triumphant.
Where to bet on PUBG
PUBG has already earned its rightful place in esports betting. While it is still lacking behind League of Legends, DOTA 2, and CS:GO, in terms of popularity among esports bettors, there are a plethora of bookmakers who allow PUBG Betting.
Since battle royale betting is still in its infancy, many bookmakers still don't know how to approach it. For that reason, finding the right bookmaker for your PUBG betting endeavor is a crucial element that can make or break your success story. Here we will look at some of the best available betting websites that accept bets on PUBG.