PUBG Lite is a free, low-spec version of PUBG that's now in beta testing

PUBG Lite is kicking off its open beta test today.

PUBG Lite is a new free-to-play game based on the PC version of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. It was quietly revealed recently, and enters open beta today.

This early phase will see PUBG Lite available only in Thailand, but the official announcement does confirm it could expand to more locations in the future.

At present, the test is limited to select countries in Southeast Asia, but PUBG Corp. said the test will help determine if this this version is a “viable product for other regions.”

According to the website, PUBG Lite includes Erangel, Miramar, as well as the game’s training mode. The biggest change is of course the much reduced system requirements compared to the base version.

"To this end, the PUBG Lite team has focused on balancing lower hardware requirements, without compromising on our quality standards. The end result is a build that is playable even on computers and laptops utilizing integrated graphics."

This is what you'll need to play: 

Minimum system requirements: 

• OS: Windows 7/8/10, 64-bit
• CPU: Intel Core i3 2.4GHz
• RAM: 4GB
• Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4000
• HDD: 4GB

Recommended:

• OS: Windows 7/8/10, 64-bit
• CPU: Intel Core i5 2.8GHz
• RAM: 8GB
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 or AMD Radeon HD 7870
• HDD: 4GB

PUBG Lite will be a standalone game, with its own development team and content creation stream, and will support solo, duo, and squad play in third-person perspective. Beta players will do battle on Erangel, the original PUBG map, but more "maps and content familiar to PUBG players" will be added at some point down the road. For now, the beta is only available in Thailand, but assuming it goes reasonably smoothly I would expect that market to broaden in the relatively near future.  

I also expect it will lead into some interesting questions about the game's future. Will a free PUBG cannibalize the premium version? Is PUBG Corp really going to support separate development tracks for what is essentially the same game—and for how long? And if it's possible to make the game run reasonably well on an Intel HD4000 chipset, why not focus the effort on the existing version, rather than splitting into separate branches?

PUBG Corp said it will continue to analyze feedback and share updates on the beta as it progresses.