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PUBG’s next update adds Ranked Mode, weapon balance tweaks, and bots

Get ready for another big ol' batch of PUBG changes on the way

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ next update for PC has landed with a bump on the battle royale game’s testing servers, ready for a good round of tweaks and tinkering before going live soon. The patch notes – which we’ve included for you below – are pretty hefty, but among the big news this update is the introduction of Ranked Mode, PUBG bots, a bunch of gameplay balance changes to weapons, and gas can improvements.

“Ranked Mode matches are available on the test server now,” PUBG Corp. announces in the notes. “With Ranked Mode, PUBG players can finally test their skills against the best players in the world, rising (and falling) through the ranks for great rewards and of course bragging rights.” This means Survival Title’s out and Ranked’s in – though legacy season data from the mode will still be available to take a look at via the Season navigation tab.

“This update also brings Bots to PC servers,” the post adds, “which we know has been a controversial topic among the Community the last few weeks.

“Rest assured, we plan on making improvements to how bots currently work and most importantly, bots will not be in Ranked Mode games,” it explains.

Read on to check out the patch notes for the PUBG 7.2 update (ranked, bots, weapon, armour, and gas can changes), now on the multiplayer game’s test servers (via PUBG Corp.):

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PUBG UPDATE 7.2 – RANKED MODE

  • A new ‘Ranked’ sub navigation option has been added to the ‘Play’ section of the primary navigation menu.
  • Options for Ranked play include TPP or FPP Squad modes.
    • 1/2/3 man squad options are also available.
  • Matches will feature a maximum of 64 players.
    • Ranked matches will not have Bots.
  • There are additional requirements for starting a match in the Ranked queue. All squad members must meet these requirements in order to begin matchmaking.
    • A squad cannot enter the queue if two players (who have completed placements) are too far apart in rank from each other (10 divisions maximum).
    • Depending on their platform and region, players may need to reach a minimal level of Survival Mastery before they qualify for ranked.
    • Depending on their platform and region, players may need to verify their account using SMS before they qualify for Ranked mode. If an SMS verified account is banned, the device connected to it will also be permanently blocked.
    • Players who have received ranked matchmaking penalties for actions such as repeatedly ‘dodging’ games after loading onto the island will need to wait out a matchmaking penalty timer before they can play ranked again.
  • Players may cancel Ranked matchmaking at any time with no penalty.
    • Players who find a match and load into the pregame lobby will face Ranked penalties if they then choose to abandon the match.

Ranked mode ruleset

  • Ranked mode games will be randomly played on Erangel, Miramar, or Sanhok.
  • Ranked mode will operate under its own game settings.
    Unique Season 7 Ranked settings include:
  • Overall increase in item loot spawns
    • No Crossbow spawns
    • Red zone has been removed
    • Motor glider has been removed
    • The timing and speed of the Blue Zone has been adjusted to increase the pace of play
  • Exact settings are subject to adjustment throughout the season and especially at the start of new seasons.
    • Changes in the ranked mode rule set will be posted via announcements

Ranked Tiers and Divisions

  • There are a total of 6 tiers in the Ranked system (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Master) with 5 Divisions (V – I) within each tier.
  • A player’s current rank is determined by their Rank Points (RP) in a given queue.
  • At the start of a Ranked season, players will be considered ‘Unranked’ in all queues.
  • The first 5 games they play in each ranked queue will count as placement matches.
  • At the end of the fifth placement match, players will be given an initial rank for the season.

How climbing works

  • After a player dies, they will receive an adjustment to their RP based on their performance. The metrics that determine performance are:
    • Kills
    • Assists
    • Personal placement
  • When a player exits a Ranked match, they will be presented with a new pop-up modal celebration that shows the player their performance metrics as well as the change to their RP.
  • Players who are at Diamond rank or above will begin to face RP ‘decay’ if they do not play any Ranked games for a week or more in a row

Ranked Rewards

  • At the end of the season, players will receive Ranked rewards based on their Highest Ranked tier that season
    • Ranked rewards are unique and only obtainable by playing Ranked during the season they are awarded
  • All players will receive a nameplate and emblem recognizing their Tier
  • Players who ended the season at Gold or higher will receive a set of Ranked reward skins

Leaderboards

  • The Leaderboards have returned and have been updated to work with with Ranked mode
  • Leaderboards now list the Top 500 players per server, sorted by RP
    The Leaderboard you see is for the region you’ve played the most Ranked matches in.
  • Once a player enters the leaderboard, their region will be fixed for the rest of the season.
  • Players who end the season on the Top 500 Leaderboards for any queue will receive a small additional reward to recognize the achievement

PUBG UPDATE 7.2 – BOTS

  • The Ratio of bots in each match is dynamic.
    • The ratio of bots in each match will change according to player skill and the matchmaking pool in each server.
  • Bots can only join Normal matchmaking games
    • Players will not be placed on a team with bots and bots will not fill in the empty slots in your party.
  • Normal match with bots will start fresh with new MMR
  • Bots actions are limited.
    • Bots can perform basic actions such as walk/run/crouch/prone/shoot and are also capable of doing basic low height parkour, swimming, parachuting and looting.
    • Leaning, jumping, ledge grab, and the use of throwables will be added at a later date.
  • Achievements, trophies, missions, and Mastery can still be earned and completed.
    • Actions against bots are counted towards missions, Survival and Weapon Mastery, as well as platform achievements and trophies.
  • Bot spectate and Death Cam.
    • Death Cams from the perspective of bots will be available, but they may look a little odd until we make our planned improvements.
    • When a player is killed during a match, spectator is prioritised to remaining human players. However, if all players are eliminated, players can spectate bots.

PUBG UPDATE 7.2 – Gameplay

Assault Rifles:

  • Increased reload times for M416, M16A4 and SCAR-L
    • We’ve adjusted the reload time of some of these mid-range weapons to make them less of a go-to for their effectiveness in all situations. This change should especially affect close quarters engagements, as you’ll have a longer window to rush opponents reloading an AR.
  • M416
    • While fully equipped, the M416 was lethal even in far distances with its superior stability.
  • Kill distribution rate over Distance/Phase
  • Decreased base damage by 1 (41 → 40)
    Decreased muzzle velocity from 880 m/s to 780 m/s
    Changed damage curve distances from 60m – 450m to 50m – 350m
  • Weapon damage per round per pick up
  • M16A4, MK47 Mutant
    • Decreased recoil when firing in quick succession in semi-auto and bursts mode.
      Added tracers (shooter only).
  • Beryl M762
    • Increased muzzle velocity from 680 m/s to 740 m/s.
    • Decreased recoil.

Shotguns:

  • Body damage multiplier changes
  • Increased limb multiplier from 0.9 to 1.05.
  • Increased head multiplier from 1.25 to 1.5.
  • Increased hip-fire accuracy.
  • Decreased accuracy penalty during movement.
  • Decreased damage drop over distance for all shotguns.
  • Saiga S12K
    • Extended and Ext. Quickdraw magazines now hold 10 rounds.
      Suppressor adds slight pellet spread reduction (2/3 of choke bonus).
  • S1897
    • Increased the pump-action speed
  • Sawed-off
    • Increased reload speed.

Armour:

  • Vests not only provided armor but also provided additional inventory space. However, it felt pretty bad to immediately lose that space when your vest was destroyed in combat. Your survivability also drastically decreased once your vest was destroyed. leaving you extremely vulnerable until you found a new one. With this change, ‘destroyed’ vests will no longer disappear, and neither will your inventory space.
  • In addition, vests will continue to provide 20% protection and slight aim punch reduction once destroyed. The base protection level of the destroyed vest is the same no matter the type of vest you’re wearing. This should mean more competitive engagements, even if the situation doesn’t allow for the looting of a new vest.

Gas Can Improvements:

  • You can equip the Gas Can in a melee weapon slot.
  • Press “attack” to pour gas on the ground. It takes around 7 seconds to empty the can.
  • Spilled fuel can be set on fire with gun shots, molotovs, and grenade explosions. Fire deals the same damage as a molotov, but burns longer (~20 seconds).
  • Spilled fuel evaporates in about 3.5 minutes.
  • You can also throw the Gas Can the same way as melee weapons (aim, then press attack), which causes it to release some fuel upon landing, making it easier to ignite and explode.
  • Gas Cans cannot be picked up or reused after being thrown, but can still explode.
  • Gas can explosions:
    • Deals less initial damage. Max 40 dmg, which scales down with distance from the explosion.
    • Now sets the nearby area on fire like a molotov, dealing damage over time.

To find out about the UI/UX, sound, world, skin, and item changes and the new bug fixes, head to the patch notes post on the game’s site here. There’s no confirmed release date just yet, but you can expect the update to arrive live in-game very soon. You can also find out more about PUBG ranks at The Loadout.