Revolutionary title is an incredible amount of fun
PLAYER UNKNOWN’S Battlegrounds rise to popularity has been meteoric. As of the time of writing this review, there are currently 2.3 million active players, with 3 million peak players being the current record on Steam Charts.
When you consider Valve’s insanely popular DOTA 2 sits in second place on the Steam Charts with just shy of a million peak players, it really puts it into perspective how astounding PlayerUnknown’s ascent has been.
PlayerUnknown’s formula is simple, unforgiving and tremendously fun. You and up to 99 other players airdrop into a large map, with the aim of collecting weapons, armour and supplies before entering the fray and battling it out until only one player remains.
Immediately, the tactical side of PlayerUnknown’s becomes evident. When to jump out of the plane is the very first decision you will make in this game and it is the first of a very long list of things you must consider carefully if you are to survive.
The first few fevered minutes of a PlayerUnknown’s game is the same for everyone - a mad scramble for weapons and loot. While the loot is partially randomised, experience will eventually give you an idea of where the better items will spawn.
Once you have the loot, your attention needs to turn to the circles - deadly shrinking force fields that contract the playable area of the map at set times throughout the game. This mechanic gives PlayerUnknown’s a breathless, exciting quality as you are constantly aware that you can be caught outside the circle at any moment. If you spend too long outside the circle, you will die.
Currently, PlayerUnknown’s is in Early Access, meaning that players are allowed to play the game while it is still in development. There are now two maps for players to explore, breathing a little more variety into a game that was in danger of becoming a tad stale. It is worth mentioning that, while not overly visually impressive, PlayerUnknown’s requires a meaty computer to be able to run, especially if you plan on playing on the older, less optimised map.
PlayerUnknown’s is a revolutionary title. Sure, it has its fair share of issues but there can be no denying the incredible amount of fun that this game brings to the table.
The volume of other developers who seem to be now emulating the battle royale formula speaks volumes about the enjoyment people derive from this style.