Bundle up, because winter has arrived. Last night at The Game Awards, PUBG players got a first glimpse of the game's long-awaited winter map, Vikendi, which is available now on test servers. Vikendi is a 6x6km map, which is blanketed in snow, allowing players to track each other’s footprints. Of course, you need a way to get around this frozen tundra, so PUBG Corp. has introduced snowmobiles as well. You can check out an overview and description of the map below (click the image for full resolution).
An isolated Northern resort island in the shadow of Mount Kreznic, Vikendi was home to a wide variety of attractions, businesses, and villages. Look to the future from the Cosmodrome or travel back to the past and walk with the giants at the prehistoric Dino Park. Visit the aging Castle or take a tour of the winery. Vikendi is as beautiful as it is dangerous and Survivors treading these bitter cold lands will have to watch their backs even more closely as the fresh snow is perfect for leaving behind footprints! The days are long on Vikendi, but it won’t be long before the sun sets and the auroras fill the moonlit skies.
Here’s the Vikendi teaser trailer from The Game Awards.
And here’s some gameplay courtesy of YouTuber Stifler Gaming.
Vikendi launches alongside a full update, which includes the new G36C Assault Rifle, the aforementioned snowmobiles, and a major overhaul to the game’s replay system. You can check out the full notes for PUBG PC 1.0 update 24, below:
Vikendi
- Vikendi is 6x6km map. The gameplay of Vikendi is quicker than Erangel and Miramar, but offers an arguably more tactical experience than Sanhok.
- Players can throw snowballs while waiting to board the plane in the starting area
- Vehicles will be more slippery in snow or icy areas. Acceleration on icy terrain is slow and you lose more general vehicle control as you speed up
- Footprints and vehicle tracks will appear as players travel in snow-covered areas. Keep an eye out! These are great to help identify if enemies have passed by recently
- Keep in mind that footprints and tracks in the snow don’t stay around forever!
Redzone
- The center of the red zone spawns outside of the play zone
- The smaller the play zone, the smaller the red zone
Bluezone
- The first circle of every game is much smaller than other maps, but subsequent circle sizes change less drastically.
- This facilitates more blue zone variety and unique experiences.
- Similar strategies work on Vikendi to Erangel and Miramar for the first three phases, but the zones will close slower starting from phase 4, similar to Sahnok. We feel this leads to a good balance between strategy and gunplay throughout the duration of each match
Item Spawn Balance
- The overall item spawn rate is at a midpoint between our maps – offering a unique place between the spawn rates of Erangel and Sahnok.
- Level 3 helmets spawn in the world
- Level 3 vests spawn more often than other maps
- Smoke Grenades are spawned at a higher rate compared to other throw
New Weapon: G36C
Added a new AR – G36C
- G36C spawns only in Vikendi
- Chambered for 5.56mm ammo, it can load 30 bullets and 40 with an Extended Magazine
- G36C has a lower and upper rail for attachments, but cannot attach a stock
New Vehicle: Snowmobile
Added a new vehicle – Snowmobile
- The Snowmobile only spawns in Vikendi
- It seats 2 players and performs much better than other vehicles on snow and ice, but is more difficult to drive on other terrain.
Replay Editor
Added a Replay editor system
- This system allows you to create dynamic video clips with creative camera angles and special effects using your replay files
- You can also create 3D paths for the camera and camera angles and export clips
- Guide & Tutorial of the replay editor system will be updated later.
Gameplay
- Improved the character animations used in the air.
- Character movements are much more fluid and have been improved to be more realistic.
Parachute System Overhaul (Upcoming)
Updated parachuting system will be applied to the test server on Dec 10. We’re looking forward to your feedback on this updated feature!
Freefalling
- LSHIFT now puts you into a dive at full speed straight down towards the ground
- Turning speed is now much faster and has increased control, responsiveness, and precision
Parachuting
- Added new freefall animations and increased overall control and responsiveness
- LSHIFT helps you drop faster and land quicker
- LCTRL lets you glide, when you want to travel a longer distance
- You can now cut the parachute while relatively close to the ground, while still moving through the air.
- This can be used to strategically to get to your drop point faster, but be careful, as you can take damage if you drop too far
Added new landing animations
- The speed in which you land matters, as landing too fast may force your character to roll, or roll for longer, before you can gain full control of your movement
- Colliding with buildings or objects while parachuting will now automatically cut your parachute. Be careful!
- The parachute no longer disappears instantly after landing
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Improved blood hit effects
- Improved the visuals of blood particles when players are shot.
- Improved the visuals of blood effects that appear on screen when shot by other players.
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- Slightly increased delay between single shots of the M16A4
- Players now receive damage from Molotovs that hit their vehicle
- Molotovs that hit around the vehicle, or when driven through an already-exploded molotov will not damage those inside
Play Menu UI Renewal
- Improved the map and game mode selection UI
- Training mode can now be found under the PLAY menu, next to public match
Performance
- Optimized foliage and vegetation rendering
- Improved CPU performance by optimizing the object creation process
- Improved GPU performance for Medium and Low options by adjusting graphic quality related to the ‘Post Processing’ with those settings (tuned HBAO+)
If you need to know about every minor bug fix and menu tweak, you can read the full, unabridged notes for update 24, right here.
PUBG is available on PC, Xbox One, and, as of today, PS4. As mentioned, Vikendi is currently on PC test servers, and will go live on December 19. The map will be available to play on consoles in January.
