esports
Tempo Storm’s coach Microstar and Team Vitality player Shadow1k explain what directions PUBG Corp. should go to improve the game’s primary map, Erangel.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is a rare Battle Royale title in that it utilises multiple maps in a competitive setting. With a variety of landscapes, sizes, and strategies spanning across the maps available in casual play, PUBG Corp. has landed on two definitive choices for its esports efforts: Miramar and Erangel.
As with anything in life people have their preferences and when it comes to the maps; some players and spectators prefer Miramar, whereas others think Erangel – the first, and original, map to be introduced in the game – should be the primary choice. Whatever your preference may be, having large maps built for up to 100 players to compete at any one time requires a lot of maintenance to keep them fresh and in working order.
PUBG Corp. have caught a lot of slack over the first two years of PUBG’s existence when it comes to in-game development, response times to glitches, and the quality of patches that are indeed released. One of the main complaints when it comes to Erangel is the lack of loot on the map – it may seem like a small complaint but it has huge ramifications on how a match plays out. With the pro scene now in full force with the game’s official esports season, we quizzed two pros for their thoughts on what Erangel needs: Tempo Storm coach, Benjamin ‘Microstar’ Kyle, and Team Vitality player, Yoan ‘Shadow1k’ Lingrand weigh in.
"It wouldn't hurt for PUBG Corp. to take feedback on-board more literally, rather than looking for fancy ways to fix things,” says Ben ‘Microstar’ Kyle. “The main problem with the way PUBG plays in a casual setting right now is that the loot settings are so low, the solution to this is literally turning the loot up like we have in competitive play. We don't need new compounds or anything extravagant.”
PUBG is a survival game at its very core and the key to being able to survive is defending yourself (or attacking others, which are often synonymous). You need weaponry and armour, as well as superior gun skill and game sense, to outlast your opponents in the game – and a severe shortage of those items makes for a poor playing experience.
What’s perplexing is that the loot settings in PUBG’s esports circuit – which has its own definitive ruleset – are different to what’s utilised in casual game modes. The community at large have been effectively campaigning for this to change and that extends to the professional players too.
"I think Erangel is in a good place, but I'd like to see some minor bug fixes with object sizing in certain areas,” says Kyle. “In terms of competitive settings, I wouldn't change much right now. Public loot settings are definitely low but, more importantly, I'd like to see a mode that replicates the competitive settings to give a better experience for casual players."
It appears that loot settings are the only cut and dried change that’s being demanded universally, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only aspect of the map that some professional players would like altering to make the playing and viewing experiences even better.
"Erangel is a good map for competitive play; all of the new compounds that PUBG Corp. have added are good and offer a lot of possibilities for us who play at the very top,” says Lingrand. “I think that some of the fields need a rework – PUBG Corp. could add more cover to give a chance for teams to progress into the next zone in a more strategic fashion. It often can be really difficult to play that way and you have to heavily rely on getting a good circle. We also need more options to be able to cross to the military island – whether that includes more boats or a new bridge with a lower level where you can travel on foot.”
An alarming amount of people have also been requesting a competitive, ranked, playlist to be implemented in the game for months, too. Not only would it allow professional players to progress through a ladder system in a less-intense fashion than scrims with other professionals, but it would allow for casual players to get a taste of playing the game at a higher level than what’s perhaps found in other game modes.
“Level design and loot are really important for this game when it comes to the competitive aspect,” says Lingrand. “Though rather than specific map changes, what we really need as competitive players – but also for casuals players who could discover the game on the competitive side – is a ranked mode that utilises the current esports settings. The whole community has asked for it for a long time now.”
The common thread between the majority of complaints thrown at the developer – whether it be for a ranked playlist or Erangel’s loot settings – is that PUBG Corp. doesn’t seem to deliver on what’s needed most. Instead of making vital changes or listening to the mass of the community, it’d rather introduce Joker and Harley Quinn skins or a flare gun in a casual map – fingers crossed they’ll be listening to the community, and the pros, a whole lot more going forward.
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