South Korean video game developer Krafton, makers of Battlegrounds Mobile India, today announced that PUBG: Battlegrounds is now free-to-play (F2P) on PC and consoles. This F2P transition, which was initially announced last month at The Game Awards (TGA), marks the start of a new era for the globally popular battle royale game.

With the game’s transition to F2P, it introduces Battlegrounds Plus, an optional premium account upgrade that allows players to access a variety of new and exclusive in-game features. While all new players will start with a Basic Account that offers access to most game features, they can upgrade to Battlegrounds Plus for a one-time fee of $12.99 USD and gain access to the following:

• Bonus 1,300 G-COIN
• Survival Mastery XP + 100% boost
• Career – Medal tab
• Ranked Mode
• Custom Match functionality
• In-Game items, including the Captain’s Camo set, which includes hat, camo mask and camo gloves

Players who purchased and played PUBG: Battlegrounds before its transition to F2P will receive the PUBG – Special Commemorative Pack, which include an automatic account upgrade to Battlegrounds Plus, the Battle-Hardened costume skin set, the Shackle and Shanks Legacy Pan and the Battle-Hardened Legacy nameplate.

Update 15.2 now live in celebration of the F2P transition

In addition to the F2P transition, update 15.2 is now live in PUBG: Battlegrounds. Update 15.2 introduces Tactical Gear, a new category of in-game items that provide new and existing players with various options for improving their in-game performances that do not involve pure gunplay. But that’s not all. See below for a full rundown of major features added to the game with Update 15.2. The full Update 15.2 Patch Notes are available here.

Expanded Roles with Tactical Gear: Tactical Gear are unique in-game items that players can obtain to offer additional levels of support to their team during a match. Tactical Gear takes up a player’s primary weapon slot but opens up additional strategic options previously unavailable in the game:

Drone: The Drone is a Tactical Gear that allows players to scout a far distance and even pick up items without facing the risk of direct combat. The Drone will spawn on every map and have a large 300-meter operation radius.

EMT Gear: The EMT Gear is a Tactical Gear that allows players to opt into increased healing potential for both themselves and their team at the cost of reduced combat flexibility. Players with the EMT Gear equipped will gain the ability to interact with damaged teammates, allowing them to spend one of their own healing items on their teammate. Players can toggle between different healing items on the bottom screen where a weapon’s fire mode would normally be displayed. EMT Gear will spawn in every map.

Improved In-Game Fluidity with Action Queuing: With the Action Queue feature, players can queue up their next desired action by pressing and holding the button while a previous action is in progress. The action will immediately perform after the action in progress ends. For example, if a player holds the firing key/button while reloading, the gun will fire immediately after the reload action ends. While this feature is turned off in-game by default, players can toggle this in “Settings”, then “Gameplay”.

Improved Onboarding Experience for New Players with Revamped Tutorials: To create a richer gameplay experience for new and returning players, two new in-game tutorial modes have been added to the game.

Basic Training Mode: In this mode, players will be able to play through five stages to help familiarize themselves with key game mechanics including basic character movements, looting and shooting guns, looting and throwing throwables, using healing items and reviving knocked down teammates.

AI Training Match: In this mode, players can drop into a match with 99 AI-controlled Survivors to get a grasp of the typical flow of normal matches. Tutorial messages will pop up throughout each match to offer suggestions on how players should approach a variety of scenarios.

Lobby Tutorial Missions: After completing Basic Training Mode and AI Training Matches, players can complete a series of extra tutorial missions meant to introduce them to additional game modes and features. Players who complete these missions will receive various in-game rewards.

Quality of Life Improvements with Screen Ping Markers: The game’s existing ping system has been improved with the added ability to display the ping on the screen where the player can see. This upgrade to the ping system is available in all Solo, Duo and Squad modes, but is unavailable in Ranked and Esports modes. The goal of this update is to enable quicker and clearer communication between squad mates.

When PUBG: Battlegrounds launched into Steam Early Access in 2017, it popularized the battle royale game genre. To date, the game has sold more than 75 million copies across PC and consoles, making it one of the best-selling games of all time. In the nearly five years since its launch, PUBG: Battlegrounds has continued to expand from its early success and evolve with consistent in-game updates, including new maps, game modes and gameplay features. The PUBG brand has also grown into a multimedia franchise, pushing into other ventures such as PUBG Esports, its expansion of lore with PUBG Universe and additional games such as the recently released mobile title, PUBG: New State.

Also Read: FiiO announces launch of KA3 Small USB DAC & Amplifier in India