Krafton issued an apology on September 20 regarding its operation of 'PUBG Asia Stars.' Admitting to hastily communicating unverified information and having inadequate operational standards, the company decided not to proceed with the Day 3 schedule.
In an announcement, Krafton stated, "We sincerely apologize once again to the participants and players for causing concerns about fairness and confusion by hastily communicating unverified information during the issues that arose in tournament operation and the initial response." The company then categorized the confirmed facts, ongoing investigations, and actions taken so far line by line.
Regarding the decision not to hold Day 3, Krafton explained, "Although we carried out available measures such as participant replacements and score adjustments, we judged that under the current situation, it is difficult for all participants to normally proceed with the remaining schedule under the same trust and conditions."
As the remaining schedule will not take place, the final standings will not be finalized. Prize money will not be distributed differentially based on rankings; instead, it will be awarded equally across all participating regions under the same standard. The Drops event scheduled alongside Day 3 was also canceled. Krafton added that it will announce a separate event to replace the corresponding rewards.
Krafton wrote, "When the issue first arose, without sufficient verification and despite the use of outside information not being properly confirmed, we delivered incorrect information." The company explained that ahead of Day 2, despite not having enough time to review all videos and materials, it focused prematurely on wrapping up the situation quickly.
It continued, "As a result, we failed to fully consider the positions of the partners who suffered damage and inconvenience from these actions, and as additional facts were subsequently confirmed, it resulted in undermining trust in PUBG's explanations," stating, "This was unequivocally our flawed judgment."
It offered a similar self-assessment regarding its subsequent response. Citing the prioritization of accurate verification, Krafton failed to share progress updates, and because confirmed facts were not clearly distinguished from ongoing investigations, confusion mounted. Krafton stated, "Initially, we judged too quickly, and afterward, necessary explanations came too late."
As for facts confirmed so far, Krafton specified "the fact that participants Himass and TanVuu of TEAM VIE checked game-external information through personal broadcast content during the Day 1 event."
Additional allegations were categorized under matters under investigation. These include whether they directly watched other participants' personal broadcasts, whether external information was actually used in play, and whether additional transmission and receipt of external information took place. Krafton said it is securing and reviewing event footage, personal broadcast POVs, and team voice communications to verify these points.
Regarding its approach to the investigation, Krafton stated, "We will not treat unverified claims as facts, while at the same time, we will not downplay matters that require verification or halt the investigation." Addressing criticisms that it attempted to shield a specific region, Krafton stated, "There is no truth to the claim that we attempted to close this matter to protect a specific region or participant."
Krafton listed five measures it has taken so far.
It removed participants Himass and TanVuu from the remaining schedule and brought in substitute participants, while adjusting the scores of certain events where involvement was confirmed. For subsequent events, a broadcast delay was applied, operational standards were re-briefed to participants, and monitoring was strengthened. In addition, the two participants were stripped of their PUBG Vietnam partner status.
In the section on stripping partner status, Krafton referred to the two participants as having "committed violations." This marked a change in phrasing from previous announcements, which described the situation merely as a "matter related to the use of outside information" without declaring whether a violation had occurred.
Krafton also specifically acknowledged gaps in its operational standards. The company explained that PUBG Asia Stars was designed around UGC modes and real-time communication between streamers as key entertainment elements, stating, "We did not mandate a broadcast delay in order to maintain real-time interaction." It followed with the explanation that it failed to adequately assess the potential for external information leaks and the associated competitive integrity risks in an environment where participants from multiple countries were conducting individual live streams.
It also pointed out limitations in the rulebook. While the rules included obligations regarding fairness and sportsmanship, participant responsibility for disadvantages arising from personal broadcasts, and the organizers' authority to conduct additional investigations and rulings, the contents were too broad. Citing three specific examples—checking outside information via live chat during events, watching other participants' personal broadcasts, and receiving or utilizing game-external information—Krafton explained, "We failed to define potential actions more specifically and insufficiently granularized penalty criteria for each action."
Krafton stated that in future similar events, it will clearly define broadcast delays, prohibitions on using outside information, monitoring methods, and penalty standards for violations in advance.
Krafton listed items subject to additional verification, including event footage of the participants involved, personal broadcast POVs, team voice logs, whether external information was transmitted and received, whether it was utilized in actual play, whether other participants' live streams were watched, additional issues raised regarding other participants, and whether participants violated duties of fairness and sportsmanship. It stated that if additional violations are confirmed, it will review the actions alongside applicable regulations to take follow-up measures and announce the results separately once finalized.
Krafton also noted that it is aware of malicious attacks and secondary harm targeting participants, streamers, and personnel. Krafton requested that people refrain from slander and attacks against participants or specific regions, stating, "PUBG will responsibly handle all fact-finding and operational measures regarding the event."
The apology extended to streamers who had prepared for the tournament. Krafton apologized, stating, "Although some streamers had no direct involvement in this matter, they suffered unexpected criticism and inconvenience, and were unable to proceed normally with the schedule they had prepared," adding, "We fell short in many areas, including advance operational standards, risk management, initial judgments, and subsequent communication."
Krafton stated, "We will take responsible measures regarding confirmed wrongdoings, and regarding unverified details, we will judge based on facts after thorough investigation," adding that it will announce investigation results and measures to prevent recurrence as soon as the investigation is complete.
