PlayerUnknown, also known as Brendan Greene, took to Reddit Wednesday morning to answer questions from PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds . The Creative Director provided a road map of changes and new features planned for the Battle Royale shooter prior to its Steam Early Access exit later this year.
In response to a fan’s question, Green clarified what Bluehole would work on ahead of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) full release.
1. User interface rework.
2. Profound debugging of the vehicles physics. (This will be an ongoing process continuing after full release)
3. Bullet physics rework.
4. Audio mix and volume rework.
5. Client heavy optimizations. (This will be an ongoing process continuing after full release)
6. Network code, predictions and tempo management heavy optimizations. (This will be an ongoing process continuing after full release)
7. Improving servers [sic] stability, and increase in performance and tick rate. (This will be an ongoing process continuing after full release)
8. 3D Replays.
9. Vaulting.
Vaulting is currently planned to be released to the PUBG test servers in early November, as previously covered . The implementation of the movement feature is extremely complex due to the number of objects in the game that players should be able to mount or jump.
Of course, 3D replays would be a welcome addition to PUBG. One of the biggest complaints since Battlegrounds first hit Steam Early Access in March is the inability to see how you were killed. This makes it difficult for players to learn and improve their tactics.
Greene discussed the planned changes to the bullet physics in response to other questions during the Reddit AMA. Developers are currently working on penetration systems to allow PUBG players to shoot through objects like walls and fences. This also includes water, which some players currently use to hide from opponents.
Other Tidbits
The developers discussed the Blue Zone mechanics based on player feedback. Current complaints are that the ever-shrinking circle of death moves too fast in the late stages of the game. No ETA has been announced, but Bluehole will begin testing changes soon.
Modding support will not be available immediately when the game exits Steam Early Access. Greene says , “We have a lot of work to do before the game is at that state, but it will come, just no ETA yet.”
There are plans to add a division/placement system in PUBG. Bluehole also wants to add a character leveling system, weapon skill system, and other progression systems that don’t affect gameplay. It sounds like this would be a post-release implementation as they are not currently fully planned out.
Three new vehicles are being worked on, which will be added to the new desert map . No date on the new map other than “soon.”
There is no new information on custom games being available for everyone, per Greene .
Wildlife was considered for PUBG, but the feature was sidelined due to the development resources needed to implement them.
Destructible buildings will probably never happen in PUBG because of its impact on server performance.
[Featured Image by Bluehole Inc.]
