Sep 24, 2018

Steam Charts: Flibble Glibble Pants Edition

Counter-Strike 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (John Walker)

Daddy: Hey Toby, can I get your help with some work please?

Toby: OK, but they might be disappointed I’m a cat.

This week on Steam Charts, my three-year-old son tells us all about the top ten grossing games on Steam. (more…)

Sep 24, 2018

Here s a list of every game that s going to look amazing on the Nvidia RTX 2080 and 2080Ti

Serious Sam 4 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Katharine Castle)

Last week, the first of three shiny new Nvidia Turing cards finally pitched up on shop shelves – the RTX 2080. You can head over to my Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 review to find out more on what I thought of the card as a general pixel pusher, but the long and short of it is that you’re probably not looking at much of a raw performance increase over the current Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080Ti.

That’s probably not the most ringing endorsement you’ve ever seen – especially when the RTX 2080 is currently more expensive than the GTX 1080Ti – but the main attraction of Nvidia’s new RTX 2080 graphics card is something I haven’t actually been able to test yet. Namely, its nifty real-time ray-tracing reflection tech and its clever AI-driven bits and bobs like DLSS (deep learning super sampling), which you can also read more about by clicking that there Nvidia Turing link above. This may well turn the tables in the RTX 2080’s favour once said ray-tracing and DLSS games actually come out or are updated to support said nifty and clever features, but right now all we have is a list of confirmed games that will, at some point, receive ray-tracing and DLSS updates in the future – which thankfully has just got a bit longer and, more importantly, more specific about exactly which features they’ll be taking advantage of.

(more…)

Sep 20, 2018

Playerunknown s Battlegrounds adding flare guns and ranking system

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Alice O'Connor)

It’s Plunk a go-go today with many titbits of Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds news. To summarise:

1) A new event gives the opportunity to earn a fantastic giant hat, the sort of enticing hat that tourists on a stag or hen weekend would instantly buy.

2) The flare gun seen in the Metal Rain event, which can call in a special huge airdrop or an armoured vehicle, is headed to regular modes too.

3) A ranking system is coming.

4) Proper individual map selection is coming back.

5) God, that hat is beautiful ladbait.

(more…)

Sep 20, 2018

PUBG's latest update finally adds a ranking system to the game

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds will soon be getting a ranking system with Update #22. The system is currently on the Test Servers and is hoped to go live in early October.

There will be eight ranks which will be assigned based on Rank Points earned and you'll need to play ten provisional matches to earn your first rank. You can check out the chart below for details on the rankings.

Other updates will include the return of map selection, allowing you to choose which maps you'd like to play on, as well as a "Skin Trade Up System" which gives you the option to "trade up multiple same-tier items and BP into one next-tier skin item."

Various other updates and fixes will be added, thanks, in part to the launch of FIX PUBG, a website dedicated to, well, fixing PUBG. These additions include wheel menus, higher mini-map magnification, and improved Friend UI. A number of bug fixes will also be implemented that deal with some character movement issues, invisible weapons,

You can read the full patch notes here.

Sep 20, 2018

PUBG for PC is getting a ranking system

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS

Hot on the heels of PC update 21, PUBG Corp is rolling out another patch. This time, the company is adding the long-requested ranking system, simplified inventory UI, a skin trade-up system, and the ability to select specific maps. It's the update of dreams.

PUBG mobile already has a ranking system, and it looks like the PC version will be similar. According to the patch notes, there will be eight ranks in total, ranging from bronze to grandmaster. You can level up based on rank points earned - although we don't yet know exactly how these are calculated. You should at least be able to earn some for trying (or if you're me, dying), as the first rank can be earned by playing 10 provisional matches.

Many PUBG players will also be relieved to hear individual map selection is returning. Gone are the days of choosing playlists and inevitably ending up on Miramar. That place really is going to be deserted now.

Sep 19, 2018

PC 1.0 Update #22

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - Valor

________________________

These patch notes have been updated.
Update 3 - 10/02/2018
Update 2 - 10/02/2018
Update 1 - 10/01/2018
Read the changes at the bottom of this post.
________________________

Strap on that level 3 helmet, cause the competition on the battlegrounds just got a little more fierce. Update 22 is bringing a long-awaited Ranking system to PUBG, allowing you to put everything you've learned to the test as you climb the ranks. More information on this new system is coming soon!

We're also squashing another collection of FIX PUBG bugs, adding a convenient new wheel menu to health and throwable inventories, adding a way for you to upgrade your duplicate or unwanted skins, and by very popular demand, bringing back map selection.

Let's dive in!

Note: Replay version has been updated, replays from previous updates are no longer playable.

New Anti-Cheat Tech

As part of our ongoing efforts to combat cheating, we’ve developed a new anti-cheat system in-house at PUBG Corp. which we're now bringing to live servers, after an extensive period on our test servers. This system is being used in addition to our existing anti-cheat solutions.

Expect to see a new popup when you start the client. To help us refine our anti-cheat service it would be helpful for us if you play with the "Enable Anti-cheat" box checked, if you experience issues you can disable this.

We've fixed previous compatibility issues experienced by some players, although we've kept the option to disable the new anti-cheat system while we go through the final stages of testing in the live server environment. Once testing is complete, you will be unable to disable this system.

FIX PUBG Update

QoL

WHEEL MENUS: Added UI that allows players to access a quick-select wheel (similar UI with the Emote system) for the quick selection of items without opening the inventory or pressing individual hotkeys.
MINIMAP: Players can now further magnify the minimap.
PLAYER ORDER CONSISTENCY: Player order between the lobby and in-game is now consistent so that players will have fixed numbers and colors based on lobby order when they enter a game.
FRIEND UI: Friend UI has been improved to show logged out / disconnected teammates.

Bug Fixes

CHARACTER MOVEMENT #01: Fixed the issue where players could sometimes climb stairs much faster while moving diagonally next to the wall.
DBNO PLAYER WALL PENETRATION: Fixed the issue where sometimes a downed players' character model would penetrate walls.
SLIDING FIX #01: Fixed the issue where characters would look like they were sliding while standing up if they took out a weapon and stood up at the same time.
SLIDING FIX #02: Fixed the issue where a player appeared to slide when standing up or moving while going prone before landing from a certain height.
STUN AND ONFIRE ANIMATION: Fixed the issue where Flashbang and Molotov stun and on fire animations could be cancelled when repeatedly crouching/standing up/prone/or equipping a weapon.
ARMED ANIMATION: Fixed the issue where characters occasionally appeared to be unarmed when they were actually armed.
PLAYER UI: Fixed an issue where the player UI would sometimes disappear in the observer's view.
ADS BUG #02: Fixed the issue where ADS worked unreliably when ADSing right after equipping a weapon.
VEHICLE INTERACTION: Fixed the issue where a player sometimes received collision damage from a motorcycle when another player picked up the motorcycle.
CHARACTER POSITION #03: Fixed an issue where a character sometimes rotated even though its feet were fixed when the screen was rotated more than 180 degrees left or right.
CHARACTER MOTION #01: Fixed the issue where a player was sometimes shown as scoping when taking steps next to a wall.
VAULTING: Fixed the issue where characters could vault over other characters when positioned at certain heights.
CHARACTER MOTION #02: Fixed the issue where a player would sometimes clip through the floor of a building when disembarking a motorcycle.
REPORT SPAMMING: Fixed the issue where a player could be reported multiple times by playing the replay over and over.
LOBBY HP BAR DISPLAY: Fixed the issue where a character's HP bar was sometimes shown in the lobby after exiting the server replay.
POPPING #01: Fixed the issue where a character's animation popped upward when getting close to the wheels of a buggy.
POPPING #02: Fixed the issue of where a character's animation popped upward when crouching and standing up near a vehicle.
I SEE DEAD PEOPLE: Fixed the issue of seeing headless characters when using healing items in FPP mode in prone position or when entering a vehicle.
SEEING THROUGH WALLS: Fixed the issue where you can sometimes see through walls and rock surfaces while riding the motorcycle.
CAMERA #01: Fixed the issue where your camera sometimes goes through the vehicle when the vehicle is leaning on an object.

Rank System, Leaderboard, Region Renewal

Server/region will now be decided automatically depending on the player’s local region
- If you group with a player from another region, matchmaking will automatically decide the best region to play on
Implemented Rank System
- There are 8 total ranks
- Rank will be assigned based on Rank Points earned
- To earn your first rank, you will need to play 10 provisional matches
- Rank promotion / demotion will be decided by total rank points as indicated in the chart above
Statistics Page Renewal
- Improved the UI of the Career and Leaderboard screens
- Career
  - Improved UI to show rank, KDA, Avg. damage, etc. more clearly.
- Leaderboard

Map Selection

Map selection is back once again, allowing you to select which maps you want to play on
- You can select Quick Join or select a map individually
- Quick Join function puts you in the first available game, regardless of map

Skin Trade Up System

We’ve added a Skin Trade Up system where you can trade in items for those of a higher tier
- You can trade up multiple same-tier items and BP into one next-tier skin item
- Trade up requires ten items, and the maximum tier you can get is up to rare(blue) while the system is in testing. We’ll look to open up the system further once we’re satisfied with the balance of the system but please note that any BP costs associated with this system may change.
- The required BP amount is different depending on the tier of items being traded up. You will not be able to initiate the trade without all required items

UI/UX

Added a wheel menu for quick access to healing and throwable items
- These are the default keybindings to use each function
  - G / F1: Throwables
  - ~ / F2: Heal/booster items
  - F4: Emote
- Emote activation hotkey was changed from ` to F4
- You can cancel the wheel by clicking the right mouse button
Added an option to hide the nicknames of players in the killfeed who downed/killed you or your teammates
Added alert icons to the network statistics function
- Three new icons represent High latency, Latency variation, Packet loss
  - High latency: Alerts you if your ping/latency is getting too high
  - Latency variation: Alerts you if your latency variation changes are too high
  - Packet loss: Alerts you if your ratio of packet loss is too high
- Added an icon to check teammate’s log out / disconnected status
- Player order between the lobby and in-game is now consistent so that players will have fixed numbers and colors based on lobby order when they enter a game.
- Added an option to manage the maximum ratio of minimap zooming
- Added auto-reload option
  - When enabled, you will reload weapons automatically when you try to fire while your magazine is empty
  - By default, this is set to “Off” but can be changed in the Gameplay menu
- Changed the official name of ping system to “Quick Marker”
- Increased the display time of quick marker from 5 to 10 seconds

Performance

Improved the client performance by optimizing the creation of character materials

Replay

Replay version has been updated, replays from previous updates are no longer playable.

Skin & Items

Added new “FALL 2018 CRATE”
- This crate can be purchased with BP
- Will be separate from the Weekly Random Crate
- No key is required to open this crate.
- Below are the drop rates for each item included in the new “FALL 2018 CRATE”
  - Bomber Jacket (Mustard): 0.08%
  - Suit Coat (Gray): 0.08%
  - Jungle Leggings: 0.32%
  - Woven Sun Hat: 0.32%
  - Born to Survive Shorts: 0.60%
  - Pochinki Fellas Jersey: 1.30%
  - Tweed Vest (Gray): 1.30%
  - Striped Slippers (Pink): 4%
  - Kicks (Red): 6%
  - Suit Pants (Gray): 6%
  - Long Sleeved Turtleneck (Burgundy) : 20%
  - Loafers (Brown): 20%
  - Slip-ons (Gray): 20%
  - Slippers (Black): 20%
The chances of getting each crate as a Weekly Random Crate are as follows.

Crate

Chance

Aviator

10%

Equinox

10%

Triumph

10%

Raider

20%

Fever

5%

Militia

10%

Desperado

5%

Biker

10%

Survivor

10%

Wanderer

10%

Custom Match

Improved the calculation of participants in the session waiting room
- Players in OBSERVER or UNASSIGNED status will not be calculated in playable participants

Bug Fixes

Fixed the issue where players could sometimes climb stairs much faster while moving diagonally next to the wall.
Fixed the issue where a downed players' character model would sometimes penetrate walls.
Fixed the issue where characters would look like they were sliding while standing up if they took out a weapon and stood up at the same time.
Fixed the issue where a player appeared to slide when standing up or moving while going prone before landing from a certain height.
Fixed the issue where Flashbang and Molotov stun and on fire animations could be cancelled when repeatedly crouching/standing up/prone/or equipping a weapon.
Fixed an issue where the player UI sometimes disappeared in the observer's view.
Fixed the issue where ADS worked unreliably when ADSing right after equipping a weapon.
Fixed the issue where a player sometimes received collision damage from a motorcycle when another player picked up the motorcycle.
Fixed an issue where a character would sometimes rotate even though its feet are fixed when the screen is rotated more than 180 degrees left or right.
Fixed the issue where a player's motion was sometimes shown as scoping when taking steps next to a wall.
Fixed the issue where characters could vault over other characters when positioned at certain heights.
Fixed the issue where a player would sometimes clip through the floor of a building when disembarking a motorcycle.
Fixed the issue where a player could be reported multiple times by playing the replay over and over.
Fixed the issue where a character's HP bar was sometimes shown in the lobby after exiting the server replay.
Fixed the issue where a character's animation would pop upward when getting close to the wheels of a buggy.
Fixed the issue of where a character's animation would pop upward when crouching and standing up near a vehicle.
Fixed an issue where player couldn’t see his teammate’s character in lobby after a match intermittently
Fixed an issue where player couldn’t loot some items such as weapon or ammo on the ground
Fixed an issue causing a character to be headless when wearing certain skins
Fixed an issue where players could shoot in an abnormal direction in free-look
Fixed an issue where In FPP when character holding throwables or ready to throw throwables is moving facing the sky, his/her hand flickers and moves around
Fixed an issue where players could get into certain terrain of Miramar which should be impossible
Fixed an issue where walk button cannot be used when sprinting after changing sprint key to toggle
Fixed an issue where player can stand up from a prone position faster than usual in certain conditions.
Fixed the issue of seeing headless characters when using healing items in FPP mode in prone position or when entering a vehicle.
Fixed the issue where you can sometimes see through walls and rock surfaces while riding the motorcycle.
Fixed the issue where your camera sometimes goes through the vehicle when the vehicle is leaning on an object.

Thanks for playing :)
- The PUBG Team

These patch notes have been updated:

________________________
Update 3 - 10/02/2018

Added the following:

FIX PUBG UPDATE

I SEE DEAD PEOPLE: Fixed the issue of seeing headless characters when using healing items in FPP mode in prone position or when entering a vehicle.
SEEING THROUGH WALLS: Fixed the issue where you can sometimes see through walls and rock surfaces while riding the motorcycle.
CAMERA #01: Fixed the issue where your camera sometimes goes through the vehicle when the vehicle is leaning on an object.

Bug Fixes

Fixed the issue of seeing headless characters when using healing items in FPP mode in prone position or when entering a vehicle.
Fixed the issue where you can sometimes see through walls and rock surfaces while riding the motorcycle.
Fixed the issue where your camera sometimes goes through the vehicle when the vehicle is leaning on an object.

________________________
Update 2 - 10/02/2018

Added Replay section
Added Skin & Items section

FIX PUBG UPDATE

UNDERWATER: Fixed the issue where players could hold weapons while moving close to rocks while underwater.

Bug Fixes

Fixed the issue where players could hold weapons while moving close to rocks while underwater.

________________________
Update 1 - 10/01/2018

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where walk button cannot be used when sprinting after changing sprint key to toggle
Fixed an issue where player can stand up from a prone position faster than usual in certain conditions.
Fixed an issue where player couldn’t see his teammate’s character in lobby after a match intermittently
Fixed an issue where player couldn’t loot some items such as weapon or ammo on the ground
Fixed an issue causing a character to be headless when wearing certain skins
Fixed an issue where players could shoot in an abnormal direction in free-look
Fixed an issue where In FPP when character holding throwables or ready to throw throwables is moving facing the sky, his/her hand flickers and moves around
Fixed an issue where players could get into certain terrain of Miramar which should be impossible

UI/UX
Changed the official name of ping system to “Quick Marker”
Increased the display time of quick marker from 5 to 10 seconds

Note: Replay version has been updated, replays from previous updates are no longer playable.

________________________

Sep 19, 2018

Event Mode: Public Beta - Flare Gun

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - Valor

Hey everyone,

Today we’re announcing something a little different for this week’s event mode. We’ve been gathering your feedback on the Flare Gun over the course of a few events and we’re finally ready to give it a proper test in a real environment to see if it fits within the normal PUBG atmosphere and make sure everything works properly. As this is a beta test, the event will run for 10 days instead of the normal weekend duration.

This event mode will mimic normal squad games, except that there will be a rare chance for the Flare Gun to spawn alongside normal loot. The goal here is to basically beta test the Flare Gun as normal PUBG loot with the intention to add it as a rare drop to normal games once the test concludes. As always, your feedback is essential to this process, so be sure to stop by our official forum thread and let us know your thoughts.

You can also check out our video below to learn more about this test.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGvTUUj3F-I

EVENT SCHEDULE

STARTS: Sep 20, 7pm PDT / Sep 21, 4am CEST / Sep 21, 11am KST
ENDS: Sep 30, 7pm PDT / Oct 1, 4am CEST / Oct 1, 11am KST

AVAILABLE QUEUES

4-man squads on Erangel (All Regions)
NA/EU/AS: TPP & FPP
KR/JP/SEA/OC/SA: TPP

RULES

Squads of four players will fight on Erangel
Flare Guns will spawn randomly all over the map, but are very rare.
A plane will drop a special care package if the flare is fired inside the safe zone.
A plane will drop a special vehicle if the flare is fired outside the safe zone.
An icon on the map will show all players the location where a special care package has dropped.

OTHER EVENT RULES

4-person squads only. Auto-matching is switchable to On/Off
Weather is set to Sunny
Red zones are enabled
General care packages are enabled
Killer Spectating is enabled
Friendly fire is enabled

KNOWN ISSUES

Players can use throwables while riding in an armored UAZ

Sep 18, 2018

PUBG Sanhok map: what to look for, how to survive

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Dave Irwin)

Sanhok – the newest and tiniest map in Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds, is a very different experience compared to the other maps that are sprawling wastelands where death is a constant peril. In many ways, Sanhok is far deadlier as deep within the lush jungles, ancient ruins, and the extensive river system, there’s plenty of places for enemies to hide and kill you without a second thought! It can be tough to get a footing, but not to worry; help is at hand! In this Sanhok map guide, I will take you through what to look out for and how to survive the onslaught that’s happening all around you. (more…)

Sep 17, 2018

Mid-Autumn Festival Events and Rewards

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - Valor

Hey everyone,

As Summer winds down and the days grow shorter, many countries around the world gather for their own celebration of the seasonal change. Over the next 4 weeks, PUBG will be celebrating two of these festivals, and you can join in by playing the game and earning some free festive skins!

The Chuseok and Mid-Autumn festival celebrations take place from September 19 through October 16. Each week features new skins that can be earned by simply placing in the Top 15 in 5 games of PUBG during that week.

Below is a breakdown of the different event periods and which skins you can earn.

Event One

Period: Wednesday, September 19 6:00pm - Tuesday, September 25 5:59pm PDT
Reward: Traditional Hanbok Hat, Modern Hanbok Jacket

Event Two

Period: Tuesday, September 25 6:00pm - Tuesday, October 2 5:59pm PDT
Reward: Traditional Glasses (Round), Tang Suit Jacket

Event Three

Period: Tuesday, October 2 6:00pm - Tuesday, October 9 5:59pm PDT
Reward: Modern Hanbok Shirt + Modern Hanbok Pants + Traditional Hanbok Shoes

Event Four

Period: Tuesday, October 9 6:00pm - Tuesday, October 16 5:59pm PDT
Reward: Tang Suit Jacket + Tang Suit Pants + Zip-up Boots

Note

You must complete the requirements for each event separately to earn the reward.
You can click the crate icon in the game lobby to view event details and rewards.
You must click the “Receive” button to claim your reward before each event period ends.

Thanks and we hope you enjoy these events and rewards!

Sep 13, 2018

Limited Time Broadcaster Royale Twitch Streamer Skins: Group 1

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS - Valor

Hey everyone,

Earlier this year, PUBG and Twitch teamed up to bring you the first ever Broadcaster Royale that brought some of the biggest names on Twitch together in a worldwide clash that ended with the Season 1 Grand Finals at PAX West in Seattle, WA. Season 1 of Broadcaster Royale has come to a close, but starting tomorrow you’ll have another chance to support your favorite participants by purchasing their brand new skins on the PUBG store!

Starting tomorrow, the first set of skins from 12 of the Broadcaster Royale Twitch streamers will be available for purchase. These will only remain on the store until October 4th at 7pm Pacific, after which they’ll be swapped out for the next limited time group. Each item is priced at $4.99, with Shroud’s full set in a special crate for $14.99, and a portion of every sale will be shared with the broadcaster, giving you yet another way to support your favorite content creator.

This group’s Twitch streamers:

Ceh9 • ddolking555 • JennaJulien • KateStark • ko0416 • ShoboSuke • Shroud • SkipNhO • SPYGEA • WackyJacky101 • xChocoBars • ZeratoR

Revision 1: (Updated ending time)