Penny Arcade and ReedPoP have announced the keynote speaker for PAX East 2018. Brendan Greene, aka PlayerUnknown, aka the director of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, will give the opening keynote at PAX East. PAX East 2018 takes place April 5-8 in Boston, MA.
Greene’s meteoric rise began with developing an Arma 2 mod, DayZ, before moving to work on H1Z1. He continued to be inspired by the 2000 film Battle Royale, joining South Korean studio Bluehole in 2016 and releasing PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds last year via Steam Early Access. It officially launched on PC last December, as well as in Early Access on Xbox One via Xbox Games Preview.
To date PUBG has sold over 35 million copies, and is the third highest-grossing game of all time on Steam.
“Brendan Greene’s story is a fascinating one, and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is only the latest chapter,” said Jerry Holkins, co-founder, Penny Arcade. “At four full days, this year’s PAX East 2018 is shaping up to be the biggest one yet, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have the founder of the Battle Royale phenomenon kick off the festivities.”
Greene’s “Storytime” keynote speech will kick off the eighth annual PAX East convention. PAX events include panels from developers, publishers, streamers, and community members, an expo hall with game exhibitors, as well as concerts, free play areas, and tournaments. Read up on the full PAX East schedule.
This year marks the first time that PAX East will be expanded from three days to four, running Thursday to Sunday. PAX West in Seattle was expanded out for four days back in 2013.
PAX East 2018 will run April 5-8. Many panels and events will be livestreamed via the official PAX Twitch channel.
