In the hours that I've played PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds , most of those fears have gone away from the start. That isn't to say Battlegrounds goes completely against the grain when it comes to most Early Access survival sims - there are bugs a-plenty and what's actually available in the game for players is a bit sparse at the moment (though frequent updates are regulating that). However, I find what PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds does best so far is capture what I like the most about survival games - that intoxicating stress of fighting for your life - while stripping away almost all of the mechanics that I often clash with in the ge

Starting off each round, players are flown to the battlegrounds in a huge aircraft carrier that takes a random path across the huge maps and gives players the chance to jump out and parachute to their starting location. This moment alone marks a big point where players will have to strategize, whether they decide to jump from the plane early and (usually) wind up in a bloodbath of other players trying to scrounge for weapons and ammo, or taking more remote paths to other parts of the island that could make survival easier, but potentially put the player at a disadvantage as far as outpacing some of the game's environmental hazards, such as supply drops and random bombing r

Nuevo Paraiso, the explorable Mexican territory from the previous game, is a fan favorite. It’s slightly more violent, the characters are more morally ambiguous, and the gambling seemed to be more

Part of that comes from the twists and turns that Battlegrounds implements to keep the action focused and the dynamics of each match constantly evolving. Aside from other players, one of the biggest threats that players will have to face throughout the entire match is an electric forcefield that constricts the playable areas of the map gradually, which works to both prevent camping or cheesing the game mechanics, and to push players into tighter fields of play and encourage confrontation. That also goes for the game's occasional airstrikes (the "red zones" on the map) that drop lethal bombs on unsuspecting players, and passing planes that can also drop supply care-packages that contain some of the game's best weapons and gear for players that get lucky. Better yet, the care packages also offer a chance for crafty players to use them as bait and pick off those that aren't paying attention to their surroundi

Specifically, Greene clarified with the game's new cosmetic crates that players will be limited in the number of crates that can be received each week, as crate prices will be reset every Monday. Players will (currently) be limited to six crates per week, while trading and distribution of the crates will be free through the Steam Marketplace. Greene also provided some images of new items that can be found in the two new free-to-open crates coming with the Monthly Upd

Unless you're a player like me that's dumped dozen of hours into the game, PUBG 's lack of clear explanation as to the mechanics and gameplay secrets might have newcomers going through a few painful first few hours trying to get the hang of it all. And as much as the game's few maps offer tons of strategy and replayability, some players might find themselves bored at going back to the same map over and over, unlike multiplayer games with a greater map vari

A new post on the community forums for PUBG on Steam revealed that a new update will be heading to the game's PC version, hot on the heels of the recently-released patch for the Xbox One version of the title. Specifically, the new update packs in bug fixes and seeks to address more of the game's technical performance, while introducing some new cosmetic changes, such as a new design for the energy drink so it looks less like a knockoff Red Bull

Likewise, the actual design and visuals of PUBG maps are equally a mixed bag. Character models in particular take on some odd qualities and though players can customize them to their liking, they aren't exactly stellar looking and the cosmetic options that the game provides (even with loot crates and microtransactions) are limited, at best. The maps are perhaps my favorite aspect of the game's aesthetic as their vast draw distance and varied terrains are impressive, other than the occasional low-res textures or copy-pasted building and town layo

Pushing past six million copies in the past few weeks, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds has dominated the Steam charts throughout this year alongside continued monthly updates, with the game's upcoming August updates to be one of its most expansive

In the hours I've played in Battlegrounds , I've come out of each round with wildly different outcomes. Some matches I died almost immediately after parachuting into a dropzone, due to either just dumb luck or a lack of vital resources to gather. Other times, my friends and I rode our way to near-victory ( with our best Squad game resulting in #2 placement ) and executed squad tactics with lethal precision - only for the game's unpredictable ways catching us by surprise in the