Console Update 9.1 – Patch Notes

PTS Schedule:

PDT: October 19 7 PM – Live server maintenance end
CEST: October 20 4 AM – Live server maintenance end

Please note that we will have the following modes open for the 9.1 PTS on NA server.

Ranked Solo / TPP (64 players)
Paramo World (Seasonal Match) (64 players)
Normal match – Squad / TPP

What is the PTS (Public Test Server)?

The PTS (Public Test Server) is a separate PUBG server that is free for anyone who already owns a copy of PUBG. The purpose of the test server is not just to provide a preview of upcoming features, but to find the issues and bugs we need to solve as soon as possible. To take part in the test, all you have to do is own a copy of PUBG.

All player data, statistics, etc from the test server will not carry over to your live server account.

For Xbox:

You can search and download the “PUBG – Public Test Server” on the Microsoft Store or the ‘My Games and Apps’ menu.

For PS4:

You can find the “PUBG – Public Test Server” in the ‘Purchased’ section of your Library.

For Stadia:

Update 9.1 will be available on Stadia once the live server launches for consoles.

Live Maintenance Schedule:

PDT: 10/28 10 PM – 10/29 4 AM
CET: 10/29 6 AM – 12 PM

Live maintenance schedule may change. We will update you if there are any changes made.

New Map: Paramo

Cradled hidden among the clouds in the highlands of South America lies Paramo, an ancient land with ancient secrets. Paramo’s dangers are plentiful, but none so dangerous as the active volcano nearby whose molten lava streams flow across the land. Survivors dropping onto the Paramo Battlegrounds will only be able to reach the highlands via helicopter, which also have the task of distributing Care Packages around the field. Paramo is a 3×3 map with a dynamic world new to PUBG. This dynamic world system alters locations between matches, making every trip to Paramo a unique experience. Read on for the full details!

Seasonal Match

Due to our new Dynamic Map Locations system, Paramo will be provided as a Seasonal Match separate from current matchmaking pool.

Paramo is provided as a Seasonal Match exclusive for Season 9 only.
Seasonal Match will have bots disabled.
Seasonal Match will not count for your Career > Stats.
Seasonal Match will have Battlestat feature disabled.
Seasonal Match will allow you to complete missions.
TPP Squads Only
FPP will be supported only in NA and EU regions.
Paramo does not support separate brightness control in the ‘Universal Brightness for all Maps’
Match beginning time for Paramo will be 120 seconds.

Paramo Map Rules

3×3 km playable area with dynamic map locations.
64 Players
No Red Zones
The Blue Zone shrinks slowly but deals more damage compared to other maps, even in the early phases of the match.
Motorcycles are the only vehicle available on Paramo and can usually be found near small villages.

Paramo: New Features

Dynamic Map Locations

Major landmarks and parts of the terrain are relocated in every new session.
Players must adapt and use suitable strategies and tactics according to the changes.

Several streams of the lava flow from active volcanoes throughout Paramo, presenting a unique environment hazard as you traverse across the map.
Stepping foot in lava can lead to a quick death, dealing 10 damage per second to players, ticking every half second.
Riding a Motorcycle into lava will destroy your tires and quickly begin to destroy the vehicle, whilst also dealing damage to the player.
Unlike other maps, players can wander outside the bounds of the playable area and a warning will display on the screen. Failure to quickly return to the playable area will result in you being killed.

New item boxes can now spawn in certain houses.
Destroy the boxes to find multiple pieces of loot, such as ammo, throwables, and healing items.

Players will drop into the Battleground of Paramo from helicopters.
During the match, these helicopters carry precious cargo across the map, with the plan of dropping it just outside the play area. Pay close attention and if you shoot enough rounds into a helicopter, you’ll force it to release the cargo early.

Paramo has a handful of Care Packages exclusive, highland themed items not found on other maps, including new full-body camo suits, ghillie suit and backpack.

With a critical response kit in your inventory, you will be able to revive a downed squad member in just one second.

In Paramo, you might find ‘Secret Room Key’ while looting.. it’s gotta unlock something, right?

Ranked Mode

Ranked Mode just got a little more solo friendly with the introduction of Ranked Solo queue. You’ll now be able to take on the Ranked Battlegrounds against other solo players as you climb the competitive ranks.

Season 9 Begins

A new ranked season has begun. Ranked rewards earned from Season 8 will be granted to your account upon login. For more information on the rewards, see our ranked rewards announcement.

Player ranks have been reset
- Players will be given their initial rank after 5 placement matches.
- RP has been soft-reset, so your initial Season 9 placement will be influenced by your Season 8 rank.
Leaderboards have been reset
- Final player ranks and the regional Top 500 leaderboards will be finalized once live server maintenance is complete, to ensure all matches are accounted for.
- View your Season 8 stats and the Top 500 leaderboards of each region under Career > Stats.

Ranked Game Mode Updates

Ranked Solo

Solo matches have been introduced to Ranked Mode.
These matches will have the same competitive qualities as Ranked Squad matches.
- 64 players
- No Red Zones
- More loot
- Erangel, Miramar, Vikendi and Sanhok only
- TPP only

Ranked Leaderboard Changes

For the following regional modes, we’re lowering the minimum rank required to display on the leaderboards from Diamond 2 to Gold 5:

Europe
- TPP Solo and Squads
South America
- TPP Squads

This change has been made to ensure each region has a sufficient percentage of their player base displayed on the leaderboards.

Ranked Mode Ruleset Updates

Algorithm Update
- Points earned per kill and assist have been increased by 50%.
Sanhok Blue Zone Adjustment
- Compared to other maps, the number of players who die in Phase 2 is very high. We’ve made some Blue Zone changes which we believe will improve the overall pacing of Sanhok matches.
  - Increased the size and waiting time of Phase 2
  - Removed the dynamic Blue Zone mechanic which scaled circle speeds based on the number of players alive.
  - Please note, these changes are only to Ranked Sanhok matches.
Item Spawns
- Increased AR/DMR Magazines spawns
- Increased 4x, 6x and 8x spawns
- Increased Canted Sight spawns
- Slightly decreased the spawn rates of 2x and 3x spawns
- Decreased Handgun/SMG Magazines spawns
- Decreased Handgun spawns, along with 9mm and .45ACP ammo
Vehicle spawns
- Esports vehicle spawn locations will now always spawn a vehicle.
Added to Care Packages
- MG3 has been added Care Packages on all Ranked maps

Regional Matchmaking Changes

This update to regional queues adds a Solo option to Ranked. In addition, we will now begin adjusting the available queues on a per region basis in an effort to deliver the best experience possible to each region.

When players go to select a game mode in either normal or ranked sections, they will see that the options that are available will be different. At a minimum, the changes will include the addition of a solo ranked option, but depending on the region they may see different combinations of options available in terms of team size, perspective, and ranked/normal matches.

For the game modes available for each region, please see below.

Random Map Selection
TPP: Solo, Duo, Squad, Solo Rank
FPP: N/A

Random Map Selection
TPP: Solo, Duo, Squad, Solo Rank, Squad Rank
FPP: Squad

Random Map Selection
TPP: Solo, Duo, Squad, Solo Rank, Squad Rank
FPP: Solo, Duo, Squad

Random Map Selection
TPP: Solo, Duo, Squad, Solo Rank, Squad Rank
FPP: N/A

Random Map Selection
TPP: Solo, Duo, Squad, Solo Ranked
FPP: N/A

Weapon Balance Update

After the weapon balance adjustment from patch 7.2, we have been receiving lots of feedback from players on how Beryl and SLR are too strong compared to other weapons, and our data has showed that Beryl and SLR were indeed dominant picks among our players. The PUBG team are working on plans to allow players feel more free to choose their weapons based on their surroundings or strategic goals.

With this 9.1 update, we will be making some adjustments to Beryl and SLR. Please note that this won’t be the last update and we will continue to have in-depth monitoring and analysis to provide best gameplay experience.

Beryl M762

Base damage reduction: 46 → 44
Increased vertical recoil of early spray by 5%
Increased horizontal recoil of early spray by 5%
Slightly increased the min horizontal recoil

SLR

Based damage reduction: 58 → 56
Increased recoil during ADS by 5%
Increased loss of bullet velocity by distance by 15%

Survivor Pass: Highlands

Survivor Pass: Highlands loads you up with the looks you need to explore Paramo’s mysteries. Unlike previous passes, Highlands will run for a reduced duration of 2 months but is also easier to complete with only level 50 needed to receive all its rewards. Drop in early to hit the ground running and claim your great Paramo-themed rewards.

Survivor Pass: Highlands will be available for 990 G-Coin
You can collect a total amount of 1,000 G-Coin from the rewards. Yes, that’s correct, collecting all the G-Coin rewards means earning the pass for free!
Unlike previous passes, Survivor Pass 9 has a reduced duration of 2 months with 50 levels with rewards.

QoL improvements

Missions
- Missions XP is now automatically claimed upon completion.
- Once a mission is complete, you’ll see a MISSION COMPLETED animation the first time you return to the pass.
Pass Reward and XP Visibility
- Upon returning to the lobby after a match, you’ll immediately see an animation of XP earned filling the Survivor Pass bar.
- Claimable rewards are animated and highlighted to better display which rewards are ready to collect.
- Daily, Weekly and Challenge missions can now be viewed in the lobby without having to dive into the pass page.
Preview Improvements
- You can now preview multiple items on your character at once, while on the Survivor Pass page.
- You can now preview emotes while also wearing skins you wish to preview at the same time.
Weekly Missions
- Now all players will be able to challenge weekly missions.
- There are a total number of 7 weekly missions.
- Weekly missions are now grouped by difficulty, giving XP based on how challenging they are.

Highlands Pack

With the specially offered Highlands packs, you can enjoy the very best out of the Survivor Pass: Highlands.

PUBG – Highlands Advanced Pack – $24.99

Sales Period:
- 10/29 4 PM KST – 11/12 0 AM KST
- 10/29 0 AM PDT – 11/11 7 AM PST
- 10/29 8 AM CET – 11/11 4 PM CET
Included:
- Survivor Pass: Highlands
- Tribal Glyph Hoodie
- Tribal Glyph Pants
- Tribal Glyph Winter Hat
- Tribal Glyph Boots
- 20 Levels

PUBG – Highlands Pack – $14.99

Sales Period:
- 10/29 4 PM KST – 12/10 0 AM KST
- 10/29 0 AM PDT – 12/9 7 AM PST
- 10/29 8 AM CET – 12/9 4 PM CET
Included:
- Survivor Pass: Highlands
- Tribal Glyph Hoodie
- Tribal Glyph Pants
- Tribal Glyph Winter Hat
- Tribal Glyph Boots
- 5 Levels

Custom Match

Custom Match – Observer

A long-requested feature from our community, Custom Match now has observer functionality in almost all of its modes. You can select the “Observer” slot in the custom match lobby to enter the game session as an observer. Detailed observer settings are available under “System Menu – Settings – Gameplay – Observer”.

Custom Match – Match Settings

We are glad to introduce the new ‘Match settings’ feature. You will be able to toggle around through a wide range of game options, such as the Blue/Red Zone, detailed settings on reviving and Flare Gun Package Settings and so on. Features like saving presets and more will be made available over time.

Framerate Priority

The Framerate Priority setting has some exciting changes this time around. The frame cap is now lifted to 60 FPS and the screen resolution will be set to 1920 x 1080 to increase framerates. The new Framerate Priority is available on Xbox One X and the PlayStation 4 Pro, and we are investigating ways to bring the lifted frame cap to other console devices as well. Stay tuned.

PS4 Pro Players using a 4K display will have both Framerate and Resolution Priority options available.
PS4 Pro Players using a display that doesn’t support 4K resolution will not have the option to turn Framerate Priority on/off, but instead, the resolution will remain the same as all the previous updates at 1920 x 1080p with the frame cap increased to 60 FPS.

Match Standby Time Changes

To resolve the long loading issue, the match beginning time for all maps in Normal mode will be increased to 90 seconds from the previous 60 seconds when Update 9.1 arrives on live servers.

Performance

Character animation preloading has been added to improve performance
- This will result in shorter loading when entering matches and slightly reduced instances of hitching.
- Although, as the game now loads character animations when first launching PUBG, there will be a slight increase in loading time upon launch.

UX/UI

New Feature: News Page

We’ve added a new News page to the client, which will include helpful info on game contents, promotions, maintenance as well as community messages. All the PUBG info you need in one convenient spot!

The News page replaces rolling banners previously located in the top left corner of the lobby.
The Patch Note icon at the top right corner of the lobby now opens the News page, which also contains the patch notes.

Lobby Menu Improvements

Enhanced the visuals and navigation of the menu.

In-game Store Improvement

Along with general navigation bar upgrades, we have also revamped the in-game store for a better experience. Rather than simple crate images, now item sets are displayed with unique key art.

Customize Menu Improvement

The structure and layout of the customize menu have been revamped. Categories have been combined to provide quicker and easier navigation.
Overall menu structure and layout improvement
- Category home menu has been deleted for quicker access
- Streamlined the excess amount of categories (e.g. vehicles)
- Number of items displayed on the screen has been increased
Enhanced searching tools
- Items earned most recently will be now filtered to the top
- Search filters have been applied to more categories
- Added on-off toggle to show or hide face accessories when accessing the appearance category.

Player Status in Party

It has been difficult to distinguish whether a party member had disconnected or was still in a match and we’ve now improved the information displayed right above the characters to share more clear information on their status.

New UI and text have been added to clearly state the player’s current status.

Other UI Updates

New emote volume control slider has been added under Settings > Audio > Sound > Gameplay section.
Now you are able to control the volume of emotes separately from gameplay volume.
Karakin map image used in Match history section has been updated.
Optimized the UI in Observing Mode to provide more clear visibility.

Custom Key Binding

“Back in August 2020, we had our first Open Dev program where we asked our community to try the Custom Key Binding feature ahead of release and give us early feedback. Custom Key Binding was a tricky feature to develop, but with Open Dev, we were not only able to figure out what you wanted in terms of game controls, but were also able to discover design issues that we weren’t expecting.

To all those that were in the Open Dev program, we would like to thank you for participating. This feature wouldn’t be what it is without your help. And of course, even though the Open Dev program is over, that doesn’t mean we’ll stop receiving feedback on this feature, so please let us know if there’s something with Custom Key Binding you would like to improve upon.”

– PUBG Console Team

You will now be able to bind an action to a key you prefer, as well as make actions activate through button hold instead of tap and vice versa. For example, you can customize the jump and the parkour on different keys and (Tap) to reload in lieu of the traditional (Hold) to reload. But please note that some key binding combinations are restricted as we found that some don’t even allow you to play the game normally.

How-to

1. System Menu – Enter the controller settings menu (image assets can change)
2. Activate customize (Tap) R-Stick Thumb from the controller guide
3. Find and select the custom key binding you wish
4. Find the desired action group and confirm

Brightness Setting Improvement

We have added a guide image to help you set up the right brightness for an improved battle royale experience.

The above screen will greet you when you launch PUBG for the first time. Once you set your brightness preference, it will remain the same unless you adjust the settings under the “Settings – Graphics – Brightness”.

Also, we have added a guide image in the map brightness settings to help you to get an idea of what your brightness will look like on each map.

Changes in Bot Ratio

Ever since the introduction of the AI to our game we have been reviewing the community feedback and at the same time, collecting/analyzing data. As a result, we are now ready to announce some changes to the system.

We have made changes to the ratio of the AI in Normal Matches for those in the higher MMR matchmaking groups. Long story short, now you can have sessions with only human players playing. The session will wait 5 minutes until 100 players(64 for Karakin) have filled up and if it fails to fully fill up, only then the rest number of slots will be filled with bots. Therefore, when the matchmaking conditions are on green light, sessions will be bot-free, leaving only human players.

Skin & Item

Baseball themed items – 9 set items, 16 individual items. (Release on October 29th)
Doggy themed items – 7 set items, 21 individual items. (Release on November 4th)
Streamer (Thomas) set – 1 set item, 3 individual items. (Release on October 29th)
TBR – Batch 7 – 5 individual items. (Release on November 4th)

DLC

PUBG Gear Up Pack – $9.99

Sales Period:
- 10/29 4 PM KST – 12/17 2 PM KST
- 10/29 0 AM PDT – 12/16 9 PM PST
- 10/29 8 AM CET – 12/17 6 AM CET
Included:
- 1,100 G-coin
- 5 Levels
- Shiba Crew Backpack – Level 1

(PS4 Only) PUBG – PlayStation®Plus Drop Pack II – Free for PS Plus members

Sales Period:
- 10/29 4 PM KST – 12/17 2 PM KST
- 10/29 0 AM PDT – 12/16 9 PM PST
- 10/29 8 AM CET – 12/17 6 AM CET
Included:
- Blue-sleeved Windbreaker
- Fire Axe 12010135
- [BATTLESTAT] Rip Tide – Beryl M762

(Xbox Only) PUBG – October Horror Pack – Free for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members, otherwise $19.99

Sales Period:
- 10/29 4 PM KST – 12/17 2 PM KST
- 10/29 0 AM PDT – 12/16 9 PM PST
- 10/29 8 AM CET – 12/17 6 AM CET
Included:
- 20,000 BP
- [BATTLESTAT] Rip Tide – SKS
- Bloody Nurse Skin Set
  - Bloody Nurse Cap
  - Bloody Nurse Mask
  - Bloody Nurse Uniform
- 5 Levels

(Xbox Only) PUBG – Flower Child Pack – Free for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members, otherwise $19.99

Sales Period:
- 2020 10/29 4 PM KST – 2021 01/01 5 PM KST
- 2020 10/29 0 AM PDT – 2021 01/01 0 AM PST
- 2020 10/29 8 AM CET – 2021 01/01 9 AM CET
Included:
- Flower Child Skin Set
  - Flower Child Hat
  - Flower Child Jacket
  - Flower Child Pants
  - Flower Child Slippers
- Victory Dance 12
- 5 Levels

Bug Fixes

Gameplay

Fixed the issue where players could cancel the reload animation of M249 to reduce the time to reload.
Fixed the issue where the player is stuck in a single direction when parachuting.
Fixed the issue where after using the gas can to fill up the car, you can discard remaining items without opening inventory.
Fixed the issue where the sensitivity of casting cancellation in moving vehicle was inconsistent between PC and console platforms.
Fixed the issue where the player can shoot through a wall with a UZI in FPP at a certain location.
Fixed the issue where the player could cancel the reloading of M249.
Fixed the issue where the throwing distance varied between TPP/FPP.

World

[Miramar] Fixed an issue of colliding into an invisible object near a cactus in Impala.
[Miramar] Fixed an issue of certain parts of the rocky areas west to Puerto Paraiso was transparent.

UI/UX

Fixed the issue where players damage in match history and match report page shown differently
Fixed the issue where unrelated system message displayed when player stays certain amount of time at the out game screen such as lobby, customize screen.
Fixed the typo in the loading screen of the training map.
Fixed the issue where changing the volume of Gameplay / UI / Music in Settings – Audio tab does not apply in real time.
Fixed an issue where the ingame banners were not shown in some regions.
(PS4 Only) Fixed an issue where the Item Exchange Window is duplicated when exchanging items.
Fixed an issue where the makeup preview is not displayed as intended when there are more than four rows showing.
Fixed an issue where an unintended message is shown when waiting in the lobby for a certain period of time.
Fixed an issue where the player character’s UI on the world map was slightly shacking when the player was on the move.
Fixed the issue where the fifth kill feed was not displayed as intended.
[Arena Mode] Fixed the typo for Georgopol Downtown.
Fixed the issue where the highlight is gone if you scroll down from the settings, game play tab, use items continuously and then going into deathcam.
[PTS] Fixed an issue where the old Sanhok image was displayed on the Normal Match button in Random map mode.

Skin & Item

Fixed the issue where characters appearance could distort when equipping Madsy Utility Belt with certain other clothing items.
Fixed the issue where wrong item being displayed when previewing Jockey boots with a male character

Spectating

Fixed the issue where player’s number could mismatch the number displayed on the player list when observing a match.
Fixed the issue where M16’s iron sight could block players ADS view when attaching scopes.
Fixed the issue where players could receive wrong penalty pop-ups when trying to leave the match after spectating the killer.
Fixed the issue where you can’t return to free look while spectating a player in Custom Match Observer mode.

The post Console Update 9.1 – Patch Notes appeared first on PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS.

[2020] Console Update 9.1 – Patch Notes