"PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" ("PUBG") just revealed its next battleground and this time, it is smaller in size compared with the first two maps of the battle royale game.
The developers have taken to Twitter and posted a photo revealing the top-down view of the whole map. This time it appears to be taking place in a tropical setting and is actually a small and lush beach island with some few elevated areas. It is also noticeably smaller than the Mediterranean map Erangel or the desert map Miramar and has a lot of water.
They also mentioned that the new map will be introduced to the game next month, though probably in the test servers first in order to iron out issues. Eventually, though, the official release will come a few weeks after the test server version of the map. The smaller map will then ensure faster and more frantic firefights in the battle royale game and will increase the chances of players meeting others and possibly killing them or getting killed by them.
Next month we are launching a new, smaller, 4x4km island map on our Experimental Test Server. This smaller map will offer faster, more intense matches with higher player density. Your feedback during this playtest period will directly impact the map's development. pic.twitter.com/H7SHPt5joA
— PLAY BATTLEGROUNDS (@PUBATTLEGROUNDS) March 8, 2018 " data-caption="null" data-credit="null">This is in stark contrast to the desert map of "PUBG" where the huge landmass of the locale made the 100 players a lot more scattered throughout the map and making for tedious travel times on foot.
The new map's testing phase next month will also shape how it turns out upon release based on the feedback of the players who participated in the test. The map remains unnamed at the moment but the developers might soon announce what it's going to be called.
It also seems the new tropical map, which was made smaller in size, is a response to the popularity of "PUBG's" competitor "Fortnite: Battle Royale" which has smaller maps for its players, resulting in more exciting 100-player deathmatches. Those who have played "Fortnite: Battle Royale" and compared it with "PUBG" will also recall that the former has approximately only half the standard match length of the latter due to the faster movements and smaller maps.
"PUBG" devs aim to remedy this in their new map and players might see the usual 30-minute hide-and-seek matches reduced to 15- to 20-minute skirmishes. Players of "PUBG" need only wait a few more months and keep their eyes peeled for official announcements regarding the new map.
