Krafton announced on August 8 that the first closed test for the new title PUBG: DED.NET, developed by PUBG Studios, is underway. The test is scheduled to run from noon Central Time on August 9 through August 12, targeting PS5 and Xbox Series X/S players in North America.

This closed test marks the very first opportunity for players to experience PUBG: DED.NET firsthand since its reveal at Gamescom 2026. Krafton plans to evaluate gameplay and technical performance through the test, while verifying the stability of servers and matchmaking under heavy concurrent player traffic.

PUBG: DED.NET is a multiplayer first-person shooter (FPS) that reinterprets the survival and competitive experiences accumulated through PUBG in a fresh way. Built as a console-focused, free-to-play new release, it is set in 'Cascadia in 1996,' inspired by the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The game features gunplay combined with roguelike progression systems. Players must develop characters across a single 'run' spanning multiple matches, adapt strategies to changing conditions, and survive.

Participants for the test are North American players aged 17 and older with a PSN or Xbox account. Applications are open via the official DED.NET website, and participants are selected from the applicant pool. Selected participants can invite friends to form a squad and play together. Participants can provide direct feedback to the development team through in-game surveys and the official DED.NET Discord channel, and the development team plans to incorporate these insights into future development to enhance the game's polish.