Everything You Need to Know to Win at Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) on XBox
Despite being a lifelong gamer (starting with Atari, SEGA and NES in the 80s and everything else since), games aren’t something I tend to write about.
That said, I’ve become a wee bit obsessed with PUBG since it came out for XBox…OK, that might be an understatement. I’ve played 500+ rounds, and I pretty consistently make it into the Top 5 to 10 now (>50% of the time, depending on how well I follow my own rules), and have ranked #167 in North America on Solo (FPP; ~260-ish in Solo N/A TPP).
I’m not the best, but I’m pretty damn good, getting better quickly, and I have partaken of 17 delicious chicken dinners and counting :) I mostly play solo though, though I’ve been playing more squad. If you play as a squad some of this stuff won’t apply; team play has a whole different set of things to be aware of, but I’ll try to cover at least some of it here.
Anyhow, I think some folks might find my strategies useful, so here goes (I’ll add to this as I think of more things, so check back periodically):
1. Use Headphones
Sounds play a key role in this game, and it’s important to be able to clearly hear where shots are coming from, if someone else is in or entering your building, if someone is walking or running towards you, which direction vehicles are coming from, etc.
You can also use game sounds to your advantage, timing attacks to the sound of bomb drops or cargo planes or even nearby vehicles.
Speakers just don’t cut it, so a good pair of surround sound headphones is a must.
If you play squad, make sure you find a good balance between game sounds and chat volume, as you don’t want teammate chatter to stop you from hearing footsteps and gun shot directions.
2. Where to Avoid
I prefer to stay away from anything on the map that has a name when picking where to jump into. Especially the military base, the shelter, any big city, hospital, school, prison…you get it :) Unless you’re a FPS god, or you want some battle practice, it’s probably not worth it.
There’s great loot in those places, as you can see in the map above, but everyone tends to cluster there if it’s along the flight path. Especially Sosnovka Island (military base).
The reason the player count drops so fast in the first few minutes is because people tend to cluster in the major areas and get themselves mowed down. Firefights are fun, but no so great for your odds of survival and thus winning.
The only exception is if you can get to a good location way outside the flight path (covered below), or if you really want to practice your close quarters fighting, but man, it gets intense. I do recommend taking at least 10–20 rounds though to just practice fighting in the thick of it…but once you feel comfortable with combat, stay out of crowded areas if you’re trying to win.
Ignore this rule at your peril!
3. Flight Path
Pay close attention to the flight path of the plane across the map. If possible, jump where you can glide to a road, in whatever direction goes the farthest away from the flight path (if the red line is your flight path, glide towards one of the farthest corners a la the green line).
You can glide 1–2km (1–2 large squares) depending on when you open your chute and how you glide, so keep that in mind. You can also swing yourself back and forth in the chute to get more distance (just push up on the left stick, hold for a second, and let go; rinse and repeat).
Keep an eye out for other players as you float in, because if someone lands close to you, you need to know it.
Also look for a vehicle as you’re gliding if you can (motorcycles are best at this point, but hard to see until you’re super close to the ground). Grab one if you find one, and race to a decent cluster of buildings as far away from the flight path as possible. This will give you at least a couple of minutes to scrounge in peace before you may have to dash for the circle, if you aren’t already in it.
You’ve got 5–7 minutes after you jump before the blue circle can catch you, so use that time wisely. The first circle shrinks slower than every vehicle moves, boats included, so you can safely run it right down to the wire scrounging if you have a vehicle (with enough gas). If you get caught outside the first couple of circles, just take a booster (Energy Drink, Pain Pills, etc.) and it should heal you quicker than you take circle damage while running for it.
4. Vehicles
At the start, when you need to quickly get far away to scrounge, nothing is faster than a motorcycle (~140kmh max)…but they are dangerous if you aren’t careful; SUPER easy to wreck, flip, explode and die. The single motorcycle is way better than the one with a sidecar for handling (you can cross the entire map on a cycle in ~3 minutes).
After the initial dash where top speed is critical, there is nothing better than a dune buggy. It’s moderately fast, deals with rough terrain well, handles really really well, and provides armor right behind your head because of the rear seat (which has saved my ass many times.) You can also quickly switch to the rear seat to fire on someone, then back to the driver’s seat to keep going (every other vehicle forces you through 2–4 other seats before you’re back in the drivers seat, with a short pause between each seat switch, unless you just hold A to go back to the driver seat, but all other vehicles just take a little longer to make that switch).
A note: even if a tire gets shot out, like this, you can keep going in the buggy at close to top speed with diminished handling…I’ve made it into the top 3 with a hosed buggy.
After that, vehicle choice is a matter of necessity or personal preference:
· You don’t want to be on a motorcycle under fire, period. They’ll also flip and kill you over seemingly small bumps, so watch it.
· The Dacia is very fast, but handles like crap and wrecks easily, and has shite for HP. It can however whip around on a dime and bash people, which is fun. Use Y for e-brake to do this.
· The UAZ is slow, handles rough terrain only so-so, and is really easy to tip.
· Boats are slow (as is the new Jet Ski, soooo slow), but useful if the circle includes water. Sitting offshore can be a great way to survive to the top 20 or so if the circle area permits…just don’t get caught in an area where you can’t get back on land (cliffs suck, FYI).
Always try to find and carry a fuel can, as they’ve saved my bacon many, many times, especially if you like to boost. Running out of fuel at a shitty moment is face-smackingly crappy
Stick to driving in third person, as first-person sucks while driving (you’ll wreck way more, less FOV and general visibility in FPP in vehicles). Also, vehicles are great weapons if you’re smart about it. I’ve gotten more road kills than gun kills :)
Since some vehicles have extra seats, know the seat switching order (press A to rotate seats, hold A to go to the driver seat), so you know where you’ll be. In the UAZ, Dacia, Dune buggy, boat, and motorcycle with sidecar, you can shoot from the other seats, which is useful. It can also be useful to switch seats before jumping out of a vehicle to remain covered if you’re under fire. If you’re under fire though, move away from the vehicle as they now explode easily under fire.
As you drive, be careful about what you drive over or through; if you wreck your vehicle, it damages both you and your ride, and some vehicles damage or flip easily. If you damage the vehicle too much, it can explode and kill you (watch your vehicle damage meter in the lower left of the screen). If the vehicle starts smoking, ditch it ASAP!
Everything but the motorcycle is super slow going uphill, so climb hills only if you must, because it makes you an easy target. Also, vehicles are loud…everyone will know you’re nearby, and you will be a target. I have multiple players take pot shots at me every single time I’m in a vehicle. Every time. But a vehicle is like a suit of armor, so pros and cons.
The left button will turbo boost the vehicle when held (except for the motorcycles), but burns WAY more fuel, so save it for when you’re under fire or absolutely need to climb a hill faster. Oh, and vehicles spawn facing east-ish with taillights off, so if the vehicle isn’t facing east or has taillights on, be careful, someone may be baiting you or close by.
Of course, you can also do the baiting, especially if you have a buggy ;) If you jump out of your vehicle while it’s still rolling (slowly), the lights will stay off.
Speaking of jumping out…be very, very careful exiting your vehicle when it’s moving. If you’re moving moderately fast, it will damage you. If you’re going too fast, it will kill you. This is extra important when switching seats. I’ve accidentally jumped out when I meant to switch seats multiple times, and it sucks.
5. No Car? Get Guns and Run
If you can’t find a vehicle in the first minute after landing, scrap that plan and go grab guns. If you’re unarmed and not in a vehicle, you’re easy pickings.
After you’re armed, hunker down. If you’re in the white circle, just sit tight. If you’re not, wait until the blue is close to you and run for it. You’ll run faster with all weapons holstered (hold Y), and pressing Y again will yank your weapon back out but slows you down (left trigger will do the same). Just remember, the eye is attracted to movement, and you’re most at risk when you’re moving around. Still and hidden is safe.
6. Scrounging
As you explore buildings, clear them very carefully…check corners, room by room, before scrounging. Do this in 3rd person view if playing in TPP, as it lets you see around some corners without exposing yourself. I’ve hidden in some fun spots in houses to get the drop on unsuspecting folks…so beware of closets, bathrooms, and blind spots behind doors :)
When you’re scrounging through buildings, 2 more things are critical:
· Check to make sure all doors are closed before you go inside. An open door means someone has been there, as all doors spawn closed.
· Close all doors behind you! They serve as auditory warnings if someone follows you into the house, since they have to open it to get in. A closed door is also a good way to lure unsuspecting folks into a trap, if you so desire. As such, peek in windows if you can, carefully, to see if someone is baiting you.
7. Gear
Everyone will have different preferences on this front, but here’s mine and why:
· The frying pan serves as extra armor for your backside, so get that if you can find one.
· Speaking of armor, try to get at least Level 2 or if possible Level 3 armor (helmet and vest). Armor will save your ass, especially a Level 3 helmet (stops a single headshot from every gun in the game). All vests increases your carry capacity slightly as well.
· Next get a backpack. You can’t carry much without one, but even a Level 1 pack gives you a good amount of space. Level 3 is of course best.
· Grenades are great 😊 That said, the only grenades I truly love and mostly use are the frags, so get those. Smoke is mostly useless, and stun grenades and molotovs are so-so (there are exceptions, such as creating a ring of smoke when you need cover or to make a getaway, or flashing an enemy as you enter the room, but I try to avoid situations where those would be useful). Frags are your best friend at the end, hands down.
· Anything health/energy related is great; bandages, medkits, first aid kits, pain pills, energy drinks…grab what you can. Loading up on the boosters towards the last fight can save your bacon (energy drinks, pain pills, Adrenalin shots), because they heal you as you go and can boost your run speed and aiming. Be aware though that bandages take up a lot of space, so ditch those once you have something better.
8. Guns & Ammo
I like to carry one scoped rifle (4x or higher if possible) that fires burst or auto (AR, SKS, M16A4, M416, Etc.) I then prefer either a shotgun or an SMG with a holographic sight for gun #2. For the pistol, it depends on how good a shot you are under pressure…if you rock aiming, get a 1911, if you suck, get a P18C (full auto pistol; 2nd highest rate of fire in the game after the Vector).
For ammo, be careful about inventory space. When you hover over ammo or accessories, it will show you a picture of a gun if the ammo or accessory matches a gun in your inventory; ditch any ammo that doesn’t fit your guns after you’ve got your gun slots loaded, to save space. If you’re playing squad, pick a place where the whole team can drop extras and share stuff.
The best guns are in airdrops, like the M249 or AWM…if you can get one, they rock, but be careful getting them. A brief note on sniper rifles…they have a slow rate of fire, are slow to reload, and usually small clip sizes (though expanded clips are available). If that’s your jam, all power to you, but be careful sniping. If you go that route, when you fire, hold the left button to hold your breath, and fire slowly. Fast fire helps to pin down your location more easily. As with any other part of the game, don’t fire unless your shot is certain, as it gives you away.
9. Gun Accessories
For accessories, there are a TON of options. Extended quick draw mags are a must. Same for anything to hide muzzle flash, suppressors, or to increase accuracy (grips, chokes, etc). Suppressors are extra nice, because it makes it much, much harder to spot the source of gunfire :)
For scopes, this depends on your play style…if you like close quarters, get a red dot or holographic sight. If you like sniping, 8x or 15x scopes are the best (these are often hidden under crappy things like shirts and helmets). Be aware that high zoom can be a pain in the ass if you aren’t in a perfect spot, and aiming is cumbersome. If you have a high zoom scope equipped, you need to be extra aware of which gun you have in your hands. Accidentally scoping on a 4x or higher when you’re trying to fight CQ is going to get you killed.
One neat trick; while ADS or Scoping (holding left trigger if you’re on controller type B), you can hold down RB at the same time, and then use up and down on the left stick to change zoom and reticle brightness on a few scopes (brightness on red dot, holo, and 2x; zoom only on 8x and 15x; 4x has nothing to adjust.)
10. The Circle
Inside the white circle is where you need to be, and inside a red circle (bomb zone) or outside the blue circle (the glowing, shrinking wall of death) is where you don’t want to be.
Make sure you stay aware of where you are in relation to the circles and the timer, especially if you’re on foot. The red circle is no biggie if you’re indoors and away from windows, but otherwise is super dangerous. The blue circle shrinks slowly and does minimal damage at first, but shrinks faster and deals way more damage towards the end.
There are 8 shrinkings in total, most happening faster than the last and dealing more damage if caught outside in it. That said, the blue circle is useful as a protective shield for your backside.
One big mistake is moving too early; it’s safer to stay at the edge and move with the blue circle to protect your six, otherwise anyone could be running up behind you. This is especially useful towards the end, as the edges are safer than the middle. In fact, almost all of your body can be outside the circle, as long as your head is inside you’re safe. That said, I’ve taken to driving my vehicle around the edges to run people over, so, only hide at the edge if you have cover to stop a vehicle (rock, tree).
Unless there’s a bug, the final circle won’t end in water, so be aware if you’re in a boat hiding offshore, as beaches provide no cover (though sneaking in from the water can be a very good tactic in some cases; I’ve won that way).
11. Traps
If you plan to hunker down, bait can be useful. Make sure the doors are shut, and place a first aid kit or pills on the table or floor, somewhere where you can get line of sight on the item, but where you can’t be seen from the door. Be careful though, as you don’t know how well armed/armored or skilled your opponent might be. When in doubt, cook off (tap LB, you have 5 seconds) and toss a grenade. Tapping LT let’s you switch between underhand and overhand throwing, which can be useful.
If you have grenades, all buildings are more or less traps, as you can toss grenades through windows, though if the windows have bars you’re a bit safer.
If you drop into a crowded area, setting up to snipe on a buggy or other vehicle can be a great tactic, as they are coveted items. This is especially effective in hot zones like Prison, School, Hospital, and Military Island.
Laying down next to the box of a recently killed person can also be effective, as they may think you were the one who was just killed, giving you the drop on them as they loot.
Lastly, every air drop is a potential trap. Sniping on an airdrop is, almost without fail, a great way to get a kill or three if you’re careful about it.
12. Fighting
First, make sure all your weapons are loaded and ready, and know the switching order on the guns. This may sound silly, but in the heat of the moment scrounging, especially with people nearby, all the guns you pick up don’t always end up loaded… and switching to an unloaded gun mid-fight sucks.
Keep your close quarters weapon of choice selected while on the go, and only switch to long range weapons if you’re in a safe spot.
Automatic weapons can be good in close quarters, but medium to long range you should stick to single fire and semi-rapidly tap to fire (not too fast, so you preserve accuracy).
Now, if someone is in a building, and you can get close, toss a grenade through the window :) This is also useful if they’re in a vehicle, if you can time it right, especially if they’re driving across a bridge.
For shooting, close quarters is usually easier in 3rd person non-scoped view, though there are exceptions. Save first person and scopes for sniping (red dot and holographic signs are fine for close quarters).
Speaking of scopes, make sure your sensitivity settings are high (6+) for low power scopes, and low (1–3) for high power (smother movement at long range). For close work, shotguns are fantastic, especially if you have an S12K. A high rate of fire means a high rate of recoil though, so don’t count on being accurate if you spray and pray.
When in a fire fight, if you can get to cover, do so fast, but watch out for grenades. Headshots are best, so make sure you practice your aim! When zoomed in, hitting the left/right joystick buttons lets you tilt your aim to the respective sides to peek around corners.
If you need to escape a fight and don’t have a good vehicle, or if you need cover dashing across open areas, that’s the right time to use a smoke grenade and/or a stun grenade (stuns are also useful clearing buildings, as they blind the enemy for a good 10 seconds).
13. Looting Bodies
If you’re in a really safe spot, indoors, doors shut, sure nobody is nearby, or if you’re desperate for heals or ammo, feel free to loot the dead body…otherwise, if you’re already well loaded, skip it. I’ve been killed a dozen times while looting a body :/ At the very end though, it might be worth it, especially if they’re wearing a ghillie suit or your health is low and you have no meds.
I was down to the tiniest sliver of health in a match, looted a body, found a medkit, and ended up winning that match. So, play it by necessity.
14. Running
Jump (A) periodically, and alternate between crouch run and standing run (B) as you move to cover to make yourself a more difficult target. Also, zig zag lots while running, and don’t do it in a predictable pattern. Holding still or running in a straight line out in the open is just begging to be sniped.
PUBG relies on precision shots for taking damage though, and you can take a few good body hits and keep going, especially if you’re well armored. Sometimes though speed and a straight line is going to be best (say, when running to beat the circle).
15. Hiding
Ground cover like grass or crops only renders about ~100–150m out (one and a half small squares) in every direction, so hiding in grass is only effective if the circle is smaller than that, or if enemies are super close.
Bushes and trees render much further out, and make great hiding places (especially if they’re close to rocks or ditches, as you’re less likely to get run over).
That said, never drop to prone to “hide” once you’ve been seen, because you’re a sitting duck and getting back up takes time.
Rooftops can be great sniping spots, but can also box you in and attract grenades, so snipe carefully.
If you can find a ghillie suit in a drop box, lucky you!! Ghillie suits let you basically disappear in shrubbery, so they’re gold. My favorite item in the game, by far.
Speaking of clothes, avoid wearing anything light or bright colored. And don’t go half naked, unless your character skin color is dark (pro tip):) One exception though…if the last circle or two are in the corn fields, and you have lighter skin on your character, stripping off your clothes actually makes you less visible (dark clothes especially stand out in the corn fields).
Earth tones or camo generally work best for clothing, though black is great if you can stick to shadowed areas. Oh, and don’t wear boots, they’re noisy af on most surfaces. They do however give you a small speed boost, so, trade-offs.
If the circle permits, cliffs and rocks by the beach can be great hiding spots if you’re careful about how you get there and to not be seen. Hiding in water can also be really effective, but you can’t shoot when submerged. I like hiding in water with a boat between myself and land, so I A. have cover and B. a quick escape if needed.
Just make sure you can get back out of the water, as many of the cliffs are totally unscalable. I’ve been killed by the circle a few times, stuck in the water with no way up.
If you’re going to hide in a house, try to find one with only one door in and out, and hide in a spot behind the door so you can shoot an unsuspecting entrant in the back :) Just make sure you aren’t visible from outside through a window, as grenades and snipers suck.
16. Air Drops
While the gear in these is always great, I never go for them unless A. It happens to land right where I already am and I’m sure nobody is close, or B. If it lands out in water and I have a boat. If you do go for it, do it with a vehicle, and make sure you jump out between the vehicle and the box (for a V with the front of the vehicle and the corner of the box if you can). Also, be quick. And never, ever go for a box if you didn’t watch it land, because people LOVE to set up and snipe on boxes!
If you go for one in the water, know that you can climb on top of the box from the water, giving you the ability to shoot people going for the crate if it’s a race, or in nearby boats if playing squad.
Speaking of, it can be way more effective to let someone else loot it, run away, and track them down and kill them to get the gear. This is a lot of fun, but dangerous because they are now better armed and probably armored than you. Still, if they escape in a vehicle and you can shoot out a tire at full speed, you can do some serious damage and then go in for the kill.
17. Top 10/Final Circle
At this point in the game, stealth will serve you better than anything else. You can let other folks kill each other off, or take stealthy shots if you have a silenced long gun.
Grenades are really helpful at the end also, as you can toss them wherever you think you see/hear someone, but nothing is more critical than good cover and a hiding spot here.
The final circle is SMALL, so be aware of where you are, and keep the circle at your back. At this point, don’t move at all if you don’t have to, and if you’re well-hidden you should stay prone. Granted, at some point the circle will shrink to nothing, so don’t camp for too long!
Hold RB to look around with the camera without moving your body, and watch carefully for movement. If you have a crystal-clear shot, you can take it, but you’ll give away your position…better to wait until everyone else kills each other off and it’s you and one other player before shooting. If you win, well, Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner :)
A few final thoughts:
- If you play in TPP (third person), you can switch to first person view as needed, which has big advantages. You can hold RB and rotate the camera 360 while running, which is really useful. You can peek around corners without exposing your body to shots. All around a great way to play. That said…
- If you play FPP it locks you into first person…which also has big advantages; you lose some visual ability to see your surroundings, but so does everyone else, which makes it WAY easier to hide and sneak and disappear. Crawling prone through grass and shrubbery, you are now basically invisible. I’ve made it into the top 10, usually #2 or #3, almost every round in FPP.
BONUS. Squad Tips
I’ve started playing a bit more squad, so here are some squad specific tips to round things out:
- Learning to communicate well with your team is important; where to drop, where you are in relation to them, what items you are finding and have in your inventory, what direction to move or where fire is coming from, etc. Make sure you have a clear system of communication (Enemy fire from 270, drop to the Red pip, AR available at Blue pip, dropping my extra loot at the Yellow pip, etc.)
- On that note, strike a balance between world sounds and team chat that doesn’t handicap your ability to pinpoint gunfire or vehicles by sound. Definitely play with a headset and mic.
- Make sure you balance out your loot as you scrounge. Have each mate take a different building, and call people over as needed to pick up extra loot. Outfit each teammate according to their play styles and needs (if someone is aggressive, give them more health boosters and watch their six; if someone prefers sniping, give them the long guns and scopes and ghillie suits).
- Staying together in one vehicle is a rookie mistake, because your whole team is at risk to all sorts of things (game crashing, grenades, flipping, falling off an unseen cliff, etc.) If possible, get a vehicle for each person and stick together in a pack. It makes your group feel way more intimidating, and one person’s lagiing or crashing won’t screw the whole team.
- Just as staying together in a vehicle is no bueno, same for camping out in the same house. One grenade is all it may take to wipe out your squad, so don’t cluster too close together (stay in the same small square, 100m, but no more than 2 in the same building, and never in the same room).
- In some cases, as the circle gets down to a pretty small space, having one person drop off to sneak in while the rest stick to vehicles to mow people over can be a good strategy. Or putting one player on overwatch with a sniper rifle. Again, play to your strengths. I personally prefer sticking to vehicles.
- Don’t put the rest of the squad at risk to save a mate if you are under fire or the circle is closing fast. Help if you can do so safely, but if one team member survives and wins, you all win.
- If a mate lags out, play it by ear. If you’re in a safe spot and can cover them until they get back in, go for it. If not, see above :)
- Buggies are still the best vehicles for squads (each in their own). Best damn vehicle in the game IMHO, no exceptions.
And that’s basically it for team play…everything else is the same as solo, more or less.
Happy hunting!
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My normal play style is aggressive, and I’ve had to unlearn some habits that don’t work in my favor in PUBG (if someone fires at your vehicle, don’t go hunt for them…and if they chase your vehicle with a vehicle, don’t force a showdown…just keep moving).
You can have fun while playing aggressively, but if you want to win, stealth or evasive non-stop movement will probably serve you much better.
