Aug 12, 2019

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - McClutch

Hello players,

I'm Kyungwon Park from PUBG Sound Team.

One of the most important aspects of PUBG is the sound play. The various sound effects you may hear are an extremely important factor in gameplay, as they give you key information about your enemies and the environment. Over the next several months, we'll be improving sound across the board in PUBG. Today, I would like to give you an update on those plans and what specific areas are going to be the focus in upcoming patches.

It has been around 2 years since PUBG was introduced, and there have been many changes and improvements in players' gameplay styles and patterns. Our sound team thought it was a good time to evolve our sound play along with these trends, which will focus on sound effects in 6 main areas.

1. Improve player QoL regarding sound
2. Adjust sound balance related to gameplay
3. Improve various character animation sounds
4. Improve gun firing sounds
5. Improve vehicle sounds
6. Improve indoor reverb sounds

What's in the August Update?

To start this improvement project, we are introducing two updates which will be available in August.

Instant volume reducer feature

Some of the game's sounds are quite a bit louder than others, such as the starting plane and red zone explosions, which can make it difficult to communicate with teammates over voice chat. Until now, players have had to use the CTRL+M mute function during these times, which cuts the sound completely. To help remedy these loud sounds without cutting off your auditory information completely, we've added a new feature that allows you to temporarily reduce sound volume at the push of a button.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-X6NNdyGHiI
By pressing F7 while in a match, your game's volume will be uniformly reduced by a certain percentage, allowing you to freely voice chat with teammates and still hear what is going on around you at the same time. Pressing F7 again will return the volume to the normal level. We hope this feature provides you with a more effective option for reducing sound when you need to.

Volume adjustment guide feature

Many PUBG players set their overall volume to very loud in order to catch even the slightest sounds, such as footsteps, made by another player as these sounds are very important in PUBG gameplay. However, this also means that loud sounds like gunfire are played even louder and can hurt a player's ears.

In order to help players prepare for different volumes of sounds, we've added a "volume adjustment guide" feature. This new feature allows you to listen to the loudest sounds in the game by pressing the play button. You can then adjust the overall volume to one that best suits your own preferances. For example, you may use it to listen to the sound effects of a nearby explosion or of loud gunfire. We hope this feature helps players better prepare for dramatic spikes in volume.

The two sound-related QoL improvements mentioned above will be available with update 4.2

What we're targeting for the September Update

While August is more focused around convenience, September will see an adjustment to character motion sounds, such as landing and ledge-grab, along with a balance of footstep and red zone sounds, which are important factors in gameplay.

Footstep sound rebalance

The current volume of footsteps and distance they can be heard was established while keeping realism in mind. One aspect of that was ensuring that different stances and types of movement, such as slow walking while crouching were varied enough to have substantial audible differences to feel intuitive to players. To achieve this, we were utilizing low, subtle volume ranges which often couldn't be heard – but players turning their volume up to extreme levels could hear these subtle sounds.

We want to ensure players can hear critical sounds such as footsteps, without having to turn their volume up to extreme levels. Whilst achieving this, we're also going to maintain current footstep audible ranges as much as possible, to remain similar to what players are used to and provide a familiar, yet improved experience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yT2qcUjQQTs

So, we're working to rebalance footstep volume as shown in the graph below to reduce how gradually footstep volume falls-off over distance. Rather than footstep volume falling off very gradually, with players being able to hear footsteps extremely quietly over far distances, the volume will fall-off more sharply once the volume reaches a level in-which it's difficult to be heard by players.

Our purpose is to prevent players from having to deal with vastly different sound levels due to raising their volume too much to focus on the sounds of footsteps. However, we will maintain the audible range of movement sounds as much as possible to keep them close to what players are familiar with.

Red zone sound rebalance

We understand that many players think the red zone sounds are too loud, so we are planning to lower overall red zone volume. However, we still have to consider the strategical importance of the red zone and keep it sounding realistic, so we may not be able to adjust it too extremely.

Landing sound improvement

Until now, landing sound effects from after a character jumped or parkoured were the same, regardless of the type of terrain they landed on. In September, we will add different sounds for each type of ground the character is landing. Moreover, we are planning to make sounds travel a further distance depending on the strength of the impact. For example, if the character jumped from a higher location, the sound will travel farther than when the character jumped from a lower location.

Ledge grab sound improvement

The newly added ledge grab sounds will be improved and fine-tuned with the September update. This will allow for more realistic sounds, such as characters bumping into the building, or clothes brushing the wall as the player climbs. These won't be to the extent that they interfere with gameplay, but will improve the realism of the action.

Long-term goals of the Sound Improvement Plan

I would like to also briefly talk about this year's long-term plan and direction concerning sound, starting with the sound environment and balance overhaul in August and September.

Improved gun firing sounds

We want to improve the sound of old guns from the early stages of development to provide more realistic and immersive gunplay. For players who are already familiar with existing gun sounds, we are planning to let you choose between new or existing sounds.

Also, gun sounds will change slightly depending on your perspective. This will allow you to hear gun sounds that are relatively more aggressive in FPP than in TPP.

We also plan to make outdoor gunfire reverb sounds more realistic than the current sounds.

Improved vehicle sounds

Vehicle collision and road noise sounds will be updated to a more realistic level. In addition, we will add door closing sounds when players get in and out of the car, which we hope will provide users with another valuable piece of tactical information.

We will further improve the vehicle-related sounds that change with the in-game weather. For example, when driving in the rain, we will make more realistic wet road sounds.

Improved indoor reverb sounds

Interior sound effects will be improved. For example, underground bunkers, steel warehouses, and concrete buildings will all have different indoor sound reverb that matches their building type and provides realistic, immersive reverb sounds that vary depending on the material and size of the building.

Improved character animation sounds

We plan to improve character animation sound effects by dividing them into more detailed categories. In September, with the landing and ledge grab sound improvement, we will create sound effects that are appropriate that type of movement, without interfering with gameplay whenever possible.

Improved overall sound volume rebalance

The PUBG Sound Team is also planning to improve sound effects in other elements of the game and address player concerns such as loud vehicle sounds, ocean sounds, flies, etc. while still maintaining a focus on realism and immersion

In conclusion...

The ultimate goal of the plan is to deliver a better sounding environment that is in line with how players enjoy the game today. As always, we'll continue to constantly research new ways to improve the sound experience in the game and are always listening for your valuable feedback on this and other systems. Be on the lookout for more details on the work the Sound Team is doing through patch notes and announcements in our future updates.

Thank you.

Kyungwon Park from PUBG Sound Team

Aug 8, 2019

Grading the best and worst schools in PC gaming

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS

You tear home from school, barge through the front door, sprint upstairs to your desktop and…you’re back at school again. The classroom has proved a popular setting for PC games through the years, flipping what’s usually—let’s face it—a dull place into one full of drama.

Some of the schools and universities from videogames are magical, and we'd have given our favorite yo-yo to study at them (we really loved that thing), while others are murderous nests of vipers that you’ll be lucky to make it out of alive. We’ve sat through lessons at all of them all to bring you this list: here are the best and worst schools in PC gaming.

Wade Elementary School – F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

In my primary school, we had a spooky basement that nobody dared to go into. Looking back, it was probably just where teachers kept the spare foam footballs—the ones that weighed a tonne when it rained—and the rounders bats (English baseball, basically). The rooms under F.E.A.R. 2's Wade Elementary School are genuine hell. A twisted test facility where kids are sedated, genetically-modified and experimented upon, before the scientists wipe their memories and send them back above ground for their math exam.

The underground facility also houses Abominations, humans injected with chemicals until they turn violent, which are kept in cells of their own filth. It's not fully clear what part those monsters play in the experiments with children, but whatever happens, you can bet it's a lot worse than detention.

Grade: F

Suffolk County Charter School – Fallout 4

Think your school dinners were bad? Try attending Fallout 4's Suffolk County charter school, where the only food is blobs of bright pink goo that dye your skin salmon.

To secure funding from the government, principal Jackie Hudson entered the Nutrition Alternative Paste Program (NAPP), which is about as appetizing as it sounds. Any outside food is confiscated, so the Glee Club's annual bake sale offers not warm cookies and muffins, but different-colored cups for your daily gloop. Yay.

The school is abandoned during Fallout 4, but you can hear about the nightmare meals in audio logs, and see their effects firsthand. All the feral ghouls guarding the school are the colour of lobsters, poor things.

Grade: D-

School – PlayerUnknown's BattleGrounds

In PUBG dropping the kids off at school would be the worst decision a parent could make. Dead centre of Erangel, PUBG's original map, School is a guaranteed clusterfuck. Dozens of parachutes spring open in the airspace above it as players scramble for loot on the roof and then dive into the corridors of death below.

The building itself doesn't give you much idea of what it would've been like to study there, and everything is worn down by the bullets of millions of chicken dinner hunters, but it looks like a fairly grim building, and one I doubt will ever open its doors to students again.

Grade: D

Hope's Peak Academy – Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Imagine thinking you've been accepted to the most prestigious school in the country only to find out the whole thing is an elaborate, violent hoax orchestrated by a mechanical bear. At Hope's Peak Academy, you follow the villain's rules. The only way to 'graduate' is to kill another student and get away with it. Every death launches a courtroom-style trial during which your brilliant peers try to catch the murderer.

Those students are a fascinating group of oddballs, with weird senses of humor and extravagant backstories, and getting to know them is a joy. In trials, you interrogate a subject and then fire 'truth bullets' (literally, bullets of truth) at their dialogue on-screen, blasting holes in their argument. It's some of the most fun you can have in a classroom—if you can get over being a plaything for an evil animal.

Grade: C

Bullworth Academy – Bully

The students at Bullworth Academy are split into exaggerated cliques—jocks, nerds, preppies, and greasers—and students are pelted with eggs or sprayed with fire extinguishers on a daily basis. But as Samuel noted when describing how much he loves the game, part of Bully's charm is how it captures an idealised version of teenage life.

Lessons are short minigames that don't outstay their welcome, and all anyone cares about is petty rivalries, awkward romances, and going to the funfair. "It's like school life without the shit bits," Samuel wrote, and if you can put up with being pigeonholed into a clique for your whole life, it might be a fun place. If you want to learn anything you might struggle, but the upside is you get to see hero Jimmy beat up every bully in class. And what kid doesn’t want to see that?

Grade: C+

The College of Winterhold – Skyrim

I still remember the first time I saw the College of Winterhold, nearly eight years ago. I was trudging up the road from the south, huddling against a blizzard, when its stony outline loomed up through the whiteout, an island of dark rock in a sea of snow.

The slender bridge connecting the town to the college, perched atop a pillar of icy rock, is gorgeous, and if you look south the whole of Skyrim stretches as far as your draw distance will allow. The life of an aspiring mage isn't easy and scurrying around after magical artifacts at the behest of your elders is a bore, but it's worth it to study in this isolated, beautiful corner of Skyrim.

Grade: B+

Hogwarts – Various Harry Potter games

Harry Potter is a PC gamer, apparently. Aside from a trio of mobile games and a couple of forgettable console releases, all of the franchise's games have come to PC, including all the main games accompanying the books and a couple of solid LEGO adventures.

All those different games mean everybody that's played one will have a different memory of Hogwarts. For me, it's trying to sneak by Argus Filch in the Philosopher's Stone, my sister and I taking turns on the keyboard and cowering behind our desk chair when Filch inevitably catches us. "Oh dear, we are in trouble," he says—I still shudder at those words.

For others, it's the joy of exploring Hogwarts in the LEGO games, where the school is a lavish, detailed hub, and a design that would influence later games in the series. Whatever your memory, the wizarding school is no less magic on PC than it was in the books.

Grade: A-

University – The Sims 2: University

One of the best expansions in The Sims' history, University added a whole new age group, young adults, and let you follow them to college. They attended class (sometimes), pulled pranks, and started pillow fights in their student digs. Swooping from the sleepy rows of houses in your chosen neighbourhood to a vibrant college campus felt like entering an entirely new and more exciting game.

There, you could join secret societies that let you hack straight As into your school record, graduate into four new careers and, most importantly, streak across the university quad. It wasn't all fun and games, and you had to work to pay for tuition by training other sims or filling shifts in the local coffee shop, but it was a welcome break from the real world.

Grade: A-

Aug 2, 2019

PUBG update 4.3: Match summaries, PUBG IDs, and a brand new shotgun

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds has settled into a regular update cadence. Every month there's a new PUBG update and a new set of patch notes to look over, detailing new season details, balance changes and bugfixes. We're picking out the important details and compiling them here.

Survival Mastery

We are excited to introduce the Survival Mastery system, where players can develop their less-than-lethal aspects of PUBG gameplay. This companion system to Weapon Mastery, which allows players to progress their skill in gunplay, will also introduce new ways for players to express their personalities on the Battlegrounds with new rewards and PUBG ID.

Survival Mastery is a new progression system where players increase levels by gaining XP based on the players’ survival patterns. The system operates all the time without being affected by seasons. The Level cap for Survival Mastery is 500.

Players can earn XP in the following situations:

Looting
Using items during combat
Combat
Reviving a teammate

Match summary timeline

The match summary timeline recaps all survival actions performed in a match. Players can check survival actions they have performed in their previous match in a timeline sequence from Mastery > Last Match Tab. The activities below will be shown in the timeline, along with other XP earning activities:

Landing point
Location where players perform certain actions
Damage dealt and received
Distance a player travels using vehicles
Surviving Blue Zone phases

Survival Style

In Mastery > Survival tab, players can check their recent survival playstyle from the analysis of all players’ data. Survival style tracks your recent playstyle by analyzing data of all the players playing PUBG. It includes the following information (The 3 most prominent of these traits will be displayed):

Average engagement length
Average engagement distance
Items looted per game
Distance traveled per game
Hot drop rate
Damage taken per game

PUBG ID

A new system where players can express themselves while show their progression and Survival Mastery rewards. PUBG ID includes Survival Mastery Level, Player ID, Emblem, Background, and Poses. Players can view and change from Mastery > Survival tab.

Players are able to view the PUBG ID of other players who were either a teammate from the previous match, the player who killed you, or a player you killed.

EmblemsFor every 10 levels (5, 15, 25…), players are rewarded an emblem.

BackgroundsFor every 10 levels (10, 20, 30…), players are rewarded a background

PosesFor every 100 levels (100, 200, 300…), players are rewarded a pose. Poses are the highest reward in the system and players can change their pose using the Survivor tab and PUBG ID. Player poses utilize the player’s equipped clothing. Other skins such as vehicles and weapons aren’t currently utilized for poses.

BP RewardsBP will be granted for levels without other rewards

New weapon: DBS

The DBS is a double barrel pump-action bullpup shotgun that can only be initially obtained from Care Packages. DBS has two internal magazine tubes that allow the user to load up to fourteen 12-gauge rounds. Thanks to those combined firing mechanics, DBS can produce massive bursts of damage in a short time span.

Upper rail of the gun allows a Holographic, Red Dot Sight, and 2x to 6x Scopes. Maximum effective range to deal damage with the DBS is 100 m.

Gameplay

Improved shotgun consistency

Hit probability increased, especially in medium shotgun range
Damage drop-off over distance increased
Minimum per pellet damage within effective range of each shotgun increased to 4
Except the Sawed-Off, which is 3
All shotguns fire 9 pellets total per round

Adjusted shotgun balance: All shotgun pellets now use more realistic ballistic curves (speed decrease over time). All shotguns had their recoil effects updated.

Damage multiplier changes:Headshot: From 1.5 to 1.2Torso: From 1.0 to 0.9

S686:Maximum effective range set to 80 mIncreased reload speed by 20%

S1897:Maximum effective range set to 80 mPump action speed increased by 20%Pump action will no longer temporarily un-ADS the player

Sawed-Off:Maximum effective range set to 80 mMaximum increased probability range set to 50 mIncreased number of pellets fired to 9Decreased damage per pellet from 22 to 20

Duckbill attachment: Pellet spread multiplier increased from 0.8 to 1.0

Updated Weapon impact effects:Both decals and particle effects are now more directional allowing players to better understand the direction shots are coming from. Size and characteristics of the effect depend on both the surface being hit and the class of the weapon being fired.

Quality of Life improvements for healing items:Healing items can now be activated while moving and your player will be reduced to walking speed and continue using the item while you move at walking pace. Previously, you had to come to a complete stop to start healing.

Canted Sight reticle type:Can now be adjusted, along with brightness, similar to the Red Dot

Sound

Reduced the volume of the Red Zone
Footstep sounds volume and attenuation have been re-balanced
Footstep sounds will be more drastically reduced when players move to the outer limit of footstep audible range
Different sound effects are played when landing from falling, dependent to the surface material type
Made improvements to the ledge-grab sound effects
For more information on the sound improvement plans, please go to the following link: Dev Letter: Sound Improvement Plan
Added a new song to the Turntable

Survivor Pass: aftermath

The current season of both the Survivor Pass and Survivor Title System will end on October 16th KST
Survivor Pass: Starting October 2nd, two weeks before the end period of Aftermath, there will be an on-screen message, pop-up and countdown on the Survivor Pass banner in the lobby to notify players of the pass end timing
Premium Pass and Level-up items can be purchased until the Pass period ends

UI/UX

Added background blur effects to make the duo/squad team UI have better readability
Improved visibility of the fire mode indicator on the HUD to further differentiate firing modes
Decreased brightness of equipment icons
Added headphone icon to the UI right of the health HUD to indicate when the Instant Volume Reducer (F7) is enabled
A system message at the bottom of the screen has also been added when activating/deactivating this function

Performance

Minor performance optimizations that will improve FPS in areas where many players are in close proximity to one another
Made visual improvements to shadows and enhanced rendering performance
Deployed tentative change on the test server mitigating an issue which causes loot to appear late, mainly after landing from your parachute

Custom match

IMPROVED ZOMBIE MODE

Zombies now have stronger physical capabilities

Increased the running speed by 1.5 times
Increased the jumping height by 2 times
Increased the speed of attacks by 1.5 times

Zombies now have much more health and stronger healing power

Increased strength by more than 2 times
Can recover health automatically when they are not engaged in combat
No fall damage when falling from high locations
Receive less damage from guns, except for headshots

Zombies can now drive vehicles

Moreover, we are developing a virus infection feature, which is one of the core elements of PUBG Zombie (PUBZ) content. Internal tests are ongoing for various features to make the zombie mode matches more diverse and exciting. We look forward to your feedback on the improved zombie mode

PUBG PARTNER ICON

In Custom Matches, an icon will be displayed in front PUBG Partner’s nicknames. This icon will only be shown in the match information section and waiting room

Skins and items

Once Update 4.3 is released to the Live Server, you will find the following new items in the store:

Halloween themed items
12 new Twitch Broadcast Royale items
3 Pan skins and 1 set celebrating the PUBG Classic
New BP purchasable items: Beryl & S12K BattleStat skins, 2 Madsy shoes
New BattleStat skin: SCAR-L BattleStat skin
Reduced the probability of receiving a locked crate from the random crate purchase by 50%

Replay System

The replay system has been updated. Replay files from previous updates are now unavailable for use.

Bug fixes

Fixed an issue where character footsteps cannot be heard when walking backwards against corners of objects.
Fixed an issue where the smoke UI timer doesn’t sync correctly when the replay is skipped in replay mode.
Fixed an issue where the Flare Gun firing animation is obscured when in the prone position.
Fixed an issue where grenade damage in rare situations could be received through objects.
Fixed an issue where an incorrect kill distance was shown when a disconnected player is killed.
Fixed an issue where UAZ wheels wouldn’t get destroyed after being punched multiple times.
Fixed an issue where skull icons are incorrectly displayed on the minimap in Simplified Chinese language version.
Fixed an issue which caused an excessively bright light effect in the side mirror of motorcycles.
Fixed an issue where players could not be damaged by other players punching them inside vehicles.
Fixed an issue where parachutes were not displayed in training mode with a fully equipped bag.
Fixed an issue where players are forcibly removed from training mode when vaulting over a certain wall.
Fixed an issue where zombie players occasionally appear to be human in zombie mode.
Fixed an issue where the lung capacity icon does wouldn’t display correctly when holding breath while swimming
Fixed an issue which prevented footstep sounds from playing in specific situations when running through certain puddles

PUBG's update 4.2 brings a lot of adjustments and tweaks. Objects that were previously indestructible can now be destroyed, including traffic cones in Mylta. Car engines can now be toggled with "Z" which allows for some interesting silent tactical maneuvers by rolling down slopes with the engine off. There are also dynamic weather effects on Erengal that transitions overcast weather to rain, hail, and fog. A few changes to master volume controls should be helpful as well.

Oh, and there's been a fix to a fun old audio annoyance: "constant collision noises could be heard when a vehicle was stationary against an object or terrain."

Gameplay

Vehicle Handling Improvements

Improved vehicle handling of the Scooter, Snowmobile, Snowbike and Motorcycle with Sidecar, thus improving overall driving stability. Motorcycle with Sidecar off-road driving control and stability has been greatly improved.

Altered Blue Zone Edge Visual Effect

To improve the gameplay experience, the rolling shimmer effect seen while at the edge of the Blue Zone will no-longer be seen at the center of the screen where the player is aiming.

Improved Visibility of Reticles Against Bright Backgrounds

Visibility of all sight and scope reticles against bright backgrounds (such as Vikendi snowfields) has been slightly improved.

Throwables Friction Adjustment

Adjusted the friction force of throwables to make rolling movement more consistent and predictable.

Smoke Grenades

Friction force has been increased to slow rolling speed and cause them to roll a shorter distance after impacting surfaces.

Stun Grenades & Frag Grenades

Friction force has been decreased to speed up the rolling speed and increase distance they can travel after impacting surfaces.

Vehicle Engine Toggle

Vehicle engines can now be turned off/on by pressing ‘Z’. The engine can be turned off while driving, after gaining momentum and can be used for quiet, tactical maneuvers. Once the engine is off, pressing ‘W’ to accelerate or ‘Z’ will start the engine again. Vehicle engines will automatically be turned off if the vehicle stays at a standstill for 8 seconds, or 2 seconds after the driver disembarks.

Sound quality of life improvements

Added master volume preview

The master volume can now be previewed while in the menu, to better allow users to set their preferred maximum volume level. This can be founder under Settings – Audio – Sound – Master volume and by clicking on the ‘play’ button.

Added Instant Volume Reducer

This new feature temporary decreases the volume of games sound effects to facilitate more clear communication with teammates. Use ‘F7’ to reduce game master volume, while maintaining the volume of voice chat. Use ‘F7’ key again to return to the original volume

For the more details on PUBG’s sound improvement plans please read Dev Letter – Sound Improvement Plan.

World

Overcast Weather added to Erangel. When a match starts with overcast weather on Erangel, the weather will change dynamically over the course of the match between overcast, windy, hail, light rain, heavy rain (rain with lightning and thunder), and fog.

Destructible objects on Erangel

Additional destructible pylons and barricades have been added to Erangel. They can be destroyed by vehicles, weapons and explosions, but do provide a limited amount of cover until they are destroyed. Some existing objects which were previously indestructible are now destructible, such as the traffic cones in Mylta.

Vikendi Ambient Noise Adjustment

Volume of Vikendi’s ambient wind noise has been reduced.

Removal of PUBG Esports Signage

As MET Asia Series and PUBG Nations Cup have now concluded, in-game signage across various maps and the starting plane has been removed.

UI/UX Adjustments

In-game HUD Improvement

Helmet and vest health is now better visualized on the UI, along with Backpack capacity. Weapon firing mode is now represented visually by icons, instead of text.

To reduce unnecessary clutter, certain HUD and UI elements are no-longer displayed when waiting to start a match. Game version number, server identifier and other information is now located beneath the minimap, instead of the HP bar.

Store UI Improvement

BP purchasable items are now marked with a BP icon in Store to better differentiate BP and cash items.

Performance

Made performance improvements to mitigate client hitching/stuttering in certain situations.

Custom Match

Added Erangel Visual Update option to Custom Matches. Erangel Visual Update will be called “Erangel” and the previous version will be called “Erangel Classic”. All game modes will be playable on both Erangel variants.

Team leaderboard UI seen in observer mode has been changed to allow 4 character team tags (previously 3).

Replay

The replay system has been updated. Replay files from previous updates are now unavailable for use.

Skins & Items

New skins are available at in-game Store once PC Update 4.2 hits live servers.

New BP purchasable items

Vector & SLR BattleStat skins
2 Madsy Shoes

Twitch Broadcaster Royale Group 9 skins

More information will be released via an official announcement for Group 9 of Twitch Broadcaster Royale skins will be released after Update #4.2 arrives on live servers.

Added Regional Esports Baseball Bat skins in celebration of 2019 Phase 3 of PUBG Esports. Added Rabbit Season Set items, which can be found in the Featured Page of the in-game Store.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where other players would appear to enter the ground temporarily when the network environment is poor.
Fixed an issue in which throwables appear to shake or display incorrectly when the network environment is poor.
Fixed an issue where throwables would roll a longer than intended distance on slopes.
Fixed an issue when walking backwards against the corner of objects, you couldn’t hear your own footsteps, although they were audible by other players.
Fixed an issue where the item use sound was not audible when using an Adrenaline Syringe or Med kit with the -KoreanRating launch option.
Fixed an issue where First aid kit, Adrenaline Syringe and Energy drink could sometimes not be heard from while in spectator view.
Fixed an issue where Aqua Rail’s speed while reversing was almost same as when moving forward.
Fixed an issue where constant collision noises could be heard when a vehicle was stationary against an object or terrain.
Fixed an issue where vehicles can jitter and start rolling slowly while parked on an angled slope.
Fixed an issue where weapon scope zoom was reset after performing specific actions.
Fixed an issue where character animations are skewed when using an emote while affected by a Molotov.
Fixed an issue where dropping weapons could only be heard by the player dropping the weapon.
Fixed an issue where a faintly cross-shaped line was visible when the Holographic Sight reticle is set to max brightness.
Fixed an issue where the BRDM-2 can sometimes sink if landing in water from the parachute.
Fixed an issue where an active boost gauge would display when the UI was disabled.
Fixed an issue where a placed marker’s location would change on the compass in some cases after opening the map and inventory in sequence.
Fixed an issue where the Canted Sight binding would reset if set to alt + mouse wheel.
Fixed an issue where the incorrect player name would display when spectating a disconnected player.
Fixed an issue where raindrops could pass through certain vehicle roofs.
Fixed an issue where character head models are not shown in replay or spectator when players enter the motorbike sidecar seat.
Fixed an issue where footsteps could in some situations be heard intermittently from dead players.
Fixed an issue where the key guide text was shown when spectating after dying in a squad match
Fixed an issue where throwables couldn’t be directly picked up and equipped in the item slot when the backpack was full.
Fixed an issue where the healing amount while using multiple bandages with the auto-bandage feature was less than if using them individually.

Quick analysis

PUBG 4.1 revamps a lot of weapons and crams in loads of small quality-of-life features. Some standouts include the ability to heal while moving slowly, continuously use bandages, see the trajectory arc of the crossbow, and auto accelerate with cars like you can while running.

This update also brings the first big rebalancing to vehicles, so read through that carefully to understand how they'll work going forward. There are also big changes to Erangel's blue zone that should speed up matches.

For the complete rundown, including visual updates, UI updates, and bugfixes, check here.

Weapon & Item Balance UpdatesBuffs

Increased base damage of Kar98k from 75 to 79.Increased per pellet base damage of S12K from 22 to 24.Increased per pellet base damage of Sawed-off from 20 to 22.Increased per pellet base damage of S686, S1897 from 24 to 26.Increased effective damage over distance for all SMGs.

Slightly increased damage multipliers for SMGs:Torso 1.05 (previously 1.0), Limb 1.3 (previously 1.25).

Increased damage multipliers for Crossbow:Torso 1.4 (previously 1.0), Limb 1.2 (previously 0.9).

ADS zoom for default crossbow sight increased by 3%.Laser sight attachment dispersion multiplier for pistols was decreased from 0.5 to 0.3 (non-ads shooting with pistols will now be 70% more accurate when laser is attached).

Nerfs

Reduced base damage of M24 from 79 to 75.Reduced base damage of Beryl M762 from 47 to 46.Reduced base damage of AKM and Groza from 49 to 47.Reduced base damage of M416, G36, QBZ, SCAR-L and AUG from 43 to 41.Reduced maximum bullet travel distance of all shotguns from 1000 m to 150 m.

Changes

Duckbill attachment now distributes bullets vertically instead of horizontally.Crossbow will now have a visible tracer following the trajectory of the bolt for easier aiming.Added top rail to Uzi to allow Red Dot and Holographic Sights attachments.

Vehicle Balance Update

Buffs

Improved handling of RWD vehicles (Buggy, Mirado, Rony, Motorbike, Snowbike, Snowmobile, Scooter, Tukshai).Regular and three-seater motorbikes stabilization improved.Increased maximum speed of Scooter from 90 to 105 kph.Greatly improved handling of Buggy and Increased Buggy’s wheels durability by 50%.Increased max speed of Buggy from 92/115 to 100/125 kph (no boost/boost).Increased HP of UAZ from 900 to 1200.Increased HP of Tukshai from 500 to 1000 as well as increased max speed of Tukshai from 70 to 85.

Nerfs

Decreased HP of Mirado from 1000 to 900.All motorbikes will now consume roughly 50% more fuel than before.Decreased acceleration and boost multiplier rate for Dacia. Maximum speed will stay the same.Dacia and Mirado vehicles speed will now be reduced by around 15% when driving on surfaces like sand, mud, grass, dirt.When driving on rocky surface with any vehicle, friction will be decreased by 10% making them more difficult to control.

Introduced BRDM-2 specific vehicle damage modifiers per game mode.Increased damage taken in Solo mode by 80%.Increased damage taken in Duo mode by 40%.

Changes

Implemented new Buggy and Mirado sounds.Visual effect while using boost has been removed and replaced with high RPM engine sounds.Improved aiming while inside vehicles to be more steady.Improved the FPP camera view inside most vehicles.

New Features

Added auto-acceleration to vehicles (identical to auto-run feature)Auto-Acceleration can be activated with ‘=’ key just like auto-run.

Added “locking” mechanism to BRDM-2.Only teammates will be able to enter BRDM-2.When all teammates exit the BRDM-2, it will unlock, allowing any player to enter.

Added Car Audio feature to play preset music while inside a car.Only the driver can control this feature.Car audio will stay turned on even after players exit the vehicle.Turning the audio On/Off while inside a vehicle will play random music every time.Use F5 key to play or stop the music, Use F6 to change music. The mouse wheel can be used to control music volume.Music will stop playing automatically after a full song.Music can be stopped by destroying or flooding the vehicle.

Healing and Boost Item Improvements

Healing and boost items can now be used while moving.You’ll be limited to walking speed only.Press the use or run/jump keys to cancel healing/boosting.

Bandages will now be used continuously until the player fully heals to the maximum of 75% health, or runs out of bandages, without the need to manually use bandages multiple times.Press the use or run/jump keys to cancel healing.

First Aid Kits can no longer heal additional damage you receive after the healing starts.Previously, if damage was taken after the 2-second healing period had started, any additional damage received would be healed if the total healing amount was still 75% or less.

Med Kits and Adrenaline Syringes now stack in the inventory, rather than occupying one inventory space per item held.

Visual Effects Improvements

Optimized and reworked the visuals of the Molotov Cocktail.Optimized and improved weapon and vehicle shaders.

Optimized and improved Frag Grenade explosion effects.Different effects will be used depending on the surface the Frag Grenade explodes upon.

Optimized and differentiated muzzle flash effects for each weapon.

Radio Message Marker Distance Adjustment

The maximum range of automatic marker placement using Radio Messages has been reduced from 500m to 300m.

Erangel Blue Zone Balance Changes

"We’re making changes to the Blue Zone on Erangel thanks to player feedback and changes in gameplay since the most recent Erangel rebalance. The experimental Blue Zone was trialed on the test server during the Erangel Visual Update, and based on player feedback we have applied a few more adjustments."

The size of the safe zone in early phases has been reduced.Blue Zone waiting time in early and mid-game phases has been reduced.Movement speed of the Blue Zone during some mid and late phases has been decreased.Blue Zone waiting time for the final phase has been reduced.

Turntable Added to Erangel

Added a new playable Turntable which can be found across Erangel.Turntables are spawned randomly on Erangel. Press the use key to turn the music on/off.Turntables can be destroyed.Music played on the Turntable can be heard by all nearby players.Music will stop playing automatically after one song.