PUBG gets new weapon, canted sights and Vikendi changes in PC test patch
The first major patch for PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds in 2019 has arrived, and with it, a hefty list of new features and requested changes.
PUBG's update 25 is available now on PC's live servers, following an initial rollout on test servers. After seven long hours of maintenance this morning, PUBG Corp. released the 9GB patch to the public.
Unfortunately, not all features made it out of testing. Most notably, the new snowbike vehicle, which won't be available in the live version due to "critical issues" the developer identified during testing.
There's plenty to get excited about, however, in today's patch. It all starts with the Bizon (PP-19) SMG, which is available on Vikendi, and Erangel. It takes 9mm ammo and has a massive 53-round mag by default. You can only use sights and muzzle attachments with it, no grips or magazines.
The biggest feature in update 25 is the ability to use canted sights along with regular scopes. This is perfect for weapons that excel at range and close quarters, because it allows you to quickly aim using a red dot sight up close, and easily switch back to a better scope for ranged targets.
For this to work, some of PUBG's weapons now have a secondary optic slot. By default, you can switch between them by hitting Alt and right click. There's also another wrinkle: your primary sight will depend on which of the two (canted or regular) you equipped first, but you can easily swap them on the fly - just be mindful of which you picked up first.
The Beryl M762, AKM, AUG, M416, Mutant, QBZ, SCAR-L, G36C, SLR, Mini14, Mk14, QBU, SKS, AWM, M24, Kar98k, UMP, Vector, Bizon, M249, and even the S12K all support canted sights.
Vikendi has received a new weather setting: moonlight. This is a well-lit nighttime mode featuring a bright moon, and aurora borealis. In addition, the map's loot balance is being updated based on feedback. This is something the developer explained in much greater detail in a blog post, but it essentially boils down to a drop in SMG spawn rate, an increase to AR spawn rate, and afurther decrease to DMRs.
PUBG Corp. is also making level 3 helmets and vests more rare, and adjusting attachments spawn rate on the same map. Another hot topic has been Vikendi's bluezone, which the update is making some adjustments to. It will now be generated further away from the centre, and its final form will deal more damage to players.
On the gameplay end, the update added a new option to set default firing modes for all weapon classes, and there's a new skin that tracks the number of kills, CS:GO-style. The skin, however, is only available in a new crate, with a measly 0.16% chance of dropping.
Head over to the PUBG blog for the full set of fixes.