How PUBG Producer Yuliya Peshkova Helps Keep the Game Fresh
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, a video game better known by its acronym PUBG, was an immediate sensation when it went into early access in 2017. Over the course of its life, it's sold more than 500 million copies—and resulted in a boom of popular online games imitating, but never quite duplicating, its online battle royale format.
Even years later, the game is still thriving due to its strong core gameplay mechanics as well as frequent in-game updates and new content. For the PUBG development team, the job is never really done.
With video game expo E3 canceled this year, we wanted to take the opportunity to highlight incredible women in game development who've made our favorite games possible. We had the chance to chat with Yuliya Peshkova, a senior producer at PUBG who works from their New York/Saratoga Springs dev studio, to find out about her unique position and what makes it so special to her.
(Photo credit: Julia Zave)
Sweety High: What is your role on the PUBG team, and what does it entail?
Yuliya Peshkova: I am a project manager at PUBG on the Retention Dev Unit, based out of New York. Our particular unit is a cross-functional team, focusing on both in- and out- game features. We're in charge of building and maintaining an evergreen progression system, social features and ranked mode. My role as project manager includes many things from running daily meetings, keeping track of schedules and deliverables, to maintaining roadmaps and various relationships with external partners.
(PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds via PUBG Corporation)
What would you say is the biggest misconception about what project managers in games do?
YP: Project management isn't all spreadsheets and timelines. It's about people. Projects can't begin or be completed without them. There are people behind every line of code, every color choice and every interaction players have with the game and outside of it. Working with people is a huge part of project management. Plus, our team is working on a product that affects people's lives.
SH: What is the most rewarding part of your job?
YP: It's rewarding to wake up to players sharing their memorable moments from the game all over the internet. When someone's day turns out more delightful because they played the game I work on and that helped them create something memorable—that's when you know it's all worth it. My hope is that players around the world keep sharing their epic achievements and funny moments for years to come.
Every feature, small or large, built and shipped by my team makes me feel proud. Developing for a live service game is a complicated process, so seeing any project from start to finish is a win in itself.
(PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds via PUBG Corporation)
SH: What's it like working on a game that's constantly changing, updating and getting feedback from players in real time?
YP: It sure keeps things interesting and exciting. It's important for me to challenge myself every day, to step outside of my comfort zone in order to grow as a professional and as a human being. Since we are moving so fast, it creates an opportunity to seek out new information and to learn new things every day.
I work with several different teams. They all have a distinct set of tasks and processes, but at the end of the day, we all have the same goal of listening to our players and building features and the game they want to play.
SH: Any tips or tricks for playing the game that might not be super obvious to anyone on the outside looking in?
YP: Honestly, in PUBG, just like in real life, it's important to make a choice about how you want to play this game. Are you a solo player? Do you have someone to partner up with for duos? Or have you found the right squad you can trust? Then it's all about getting on that plane and dropping in. The rest is all about coming up with the right strategy.
(PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds via PUBG Corporation)
SH: What have this job, and this team, brought to your life that you hadn't anticipated before you took on the role?
YP: For me, it's the opportunity to work with people and to make friends from all over the world, to have a chance to immerse myself in a whole new culture, to learn a new foreign language (Korean), to discover my love for Korean cuisine and many other wonderful things that help me broaden my horizons.
One of my friends told me recently how cool it was that a company I work for brings joy to people, especially right now. I hope that people can always find comfort, alleviate stress and feel invigorated while they are on the battlegrounds.
Interested in more interviews with women in gaming? Click HERE for our interview with SkateBird developer Megan Fox.