PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds: Tips and Tricks Second Part

Boost your health with quick access

Boosts - be they energy drinks or bottles of painkillers - have plenty of uses, including helping you recover from bullet and explosive damage and mitigating the effects of operating behind the first barrier of the shrinking map. But having these items won’t count for naught if you don’t have access to them at a moment’s notice.

Did you know you don’t have to open your inventory to use them? The game will automatically map your boosts to the 7, 8, 9 and 0 number keys so you can quickly boost your health at the drop of a bullet-ridden hat.

Prioritise finding a vehicle

In the early portions of the match you're far more likely to be killed by the map shrinking than the enemies you encounter. 

Although as previously discussed you can survive for longer than you'd think outside of the zone, there's a limit to how long this is. 

If you want to actually have some time for looting then you're going to want to find a vehicle pretty early on in the match. 

Vehicles spawn in different places from match to match, but generally they're found on roadsides and occasionally in the garages of buildings. 

Once you've got a vehicle, try not to park it in front of buildings or you'll make it a target for snipers and other players looking for a ride. Instead, try to hide it round the back to hold onto it for as long as possible. 

Airdrops are a massive opportunity, and a massive risk

The way to get the absolute best equipment in the game is to retrieve it from an airdrop. 

Airdrops are distributed by planes that periodically fly over the island. You'll then see a box fall from the plane, and slowly float to the floor while attached to a parachute. Once they hit the floor they'll start to emit red smoke, allowing you to find it easily on the ground. 

While these drops present a massive opportunity, they're also very risky. Going for a drop reveals your position to any other players in the vicinity, and you'll also be very exposed while you root through the drop to find new items. 

As a result, you should only go for airdrops if you're prepared for a fight, and have a vehicle ready to make a quick exit. 

Check all gear for better levels

If you’re starting out in the world of PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds you’ll want to grab the first bit of gear you can find. However, just because you’ve grabbed some new clobber doesn’t mean you should just stick with it the whole match. 

Helmets, vests and backpacks all come in three distinct flavours (Level 1, Level 2 and - you guessed it - Level 3) with the highest providing the most protection/carrying capacity. So make sure you check every piece of gear you find. 

Armour also comes in three levels, but it also has a durability rating which reduces as it gets damaged. If its durability is the same or lower than the one you have equipped, leave it be.

Normally, everything you pick up takes up space in your inventory, but items that you wear are automatically equipped, and you'll automatically drop the item it's replacing. Your backpack's capacity won't be affected. 

Pros always skirt the edge of the map first

Since the maps in PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds gradually shrink as the match begins to countdown to its conclusion, less experienced players will be busy in the middle of the map looking for kills/more than likely being pwned themselves. 

However, if climbing the ranks is your game, then you’ll want to traverse the edges of the map since gear and weapon drops are most common here. This way, you’ll be geared up for the final showdown and you’ll know your six is covered. 

Just be aware this tactic is starting to take off across the community, so hunt with caution, and don't take too much time doing this unless you want to find yourself killed off by the map's shrinking boundary. 

Mute that voice chat from the off

While the quality of PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds’ gunplay and combat is significantly more polished than the likes of H1Z1 and DayZ, the same can’t be said for the voice chat that swamps you like a stagnant wave every time you wait in a lobby. 

Thankfully, lobbies tend to last no longer than 60-90 seconds at most, but we’d advise you switch voice chat to off as soon as you enter one. On the flip side, cranking up the volume up on game itself and investing in a good headset will give you a real advantage - hearing the telltale crack of a sniper rifle or the pounding of sprinting boots could be the difference between death and survival.

We're also massive fans of how the sound of footsteps can be used to track another player in the same building as you, which creates some fantastically tense standoffs. 

Play smart when it comes to healing

Much like very similar (but technically inferior) H1Z1 and DayZ, healing in PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds isn’t a quick, Far Cry-style injection of life. It’s a slow process for the most part and one that’ll leave you open to sneaky players if you’re not careful. 

Health comes in two forms - bandages and medkits - with the former offering a small boost with a quick turnaround, while the latter brings a great health gain but at a slower pace. Make sure you find a decent piece of cover first, then activate the item. A timer will also appear, letting you know how long you have until you can use another.

Know your weapon’s effectiveness

As it stands (we can’t speak to what changes developer Bluehole will patch in post-launch) PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds’ arsenal of weapons all have their standout guns and items that prove more effective for certain playstyles. 

For instance, the AKM is a beast of an assault rifle at close and medium ranges, but has one helluva recoil. Alternatively, you can settle on the M16 if you’re looking for something that’s deadlier over longer ranges (but you'll need to attach a decent scope to make the most of it). Talking of long range, the monster Karabiner 98 Kurz (Kar98) is a bolt-action rifle with serious stopping power and is well worth your time.

Each of these weapons can be augmented with add-ons that you'll find around the map, which can transform some of the less useful weapons with the addition of a good scope for example. 

Finally, many guns have different firing modes, meaning you can switch between single-shout and rapid-fire modes. Be sure to switch any sub-machine guns to 'burst' or 'automatic' mode immediately, or risk finding yourself in a short-range firefight with a single-shot weapon.