PUBG Battlegrounds dev explains map rotation changes
PUBG Battlegrounds may have been one of the biggest influences on the battle royale genre we enjoy today, but that doesn't mean the game that started it all hasn't continued to evolve.
As we noted in our interview with Executive Producer Taeseok Jang to celebrate the game's sixth anniversary, there are plenty more "chicken dinners" to come - but the team is continuing to evaluate the systems already in place, too.
One of those is the map selection system, and Jang was happy to share with GGRecon the challenges of implementing a map selection screen for players.
PUBG Battlegrounds dev on map schedule changes
Speaking as part of the interview, we asked if the option to select a map would ever come to PUBG Battlegrounds.
"When considering traffic and individual MMR (Matchmaking Ratings), it is difficult to provide the map selection option across all regions," Jang explains.
Still, it's not all bad news for battle royale aficionados that want to see all of the game's locations, as Jang explained that an update coming this month (as revealed in the game's 2023 roadmap) will update the map rotation system.
"With the update in April, we will be rotating five maps in a shorter cycle. Players have expressed that the previous cycle of one month is too long of a wait if the map of their choice is not included in the rotation - and the longer they wait, the less interested they become in the game," Jang admits.
"We want to shorten the rotation cycle so players don’t have to wait that long to play the map of their choosing." Last month, PUBG Studios revealed a series of big changes coming to the title in 2023, and map rotation will now occur in Ranked mode as well.
Normal Match will rotate five maps, but Jang didn't explain how much shorter the rotation window would be. Ranked matches will see four maps rotate, with changes after each two-month season.
For more on PUBG Battlegrounds, be sure to check out Jang's discussion about the game's playercount following the move to free-to-play, as well as our longer interview about the past, present, and future of the game.