While Epic Gamesâ now ubiquitous battle royale shooter Fortnite may dominate the genre, it was PlayerUnknownâs Battlegrounds that started the trend. Originally released in 2013 as a mod for military shooter Arma 2 and its sequel Arma 3, the full game was released in 2017 mere months before Fortnite followed in its footsteps. But now PUBG will follow in the footsteps of Fortniteâs OG season with its latest update, which lets players return to Battlegroundsâ first map.
Erangel Classic, as the update has been dubbed, was announced on April 24 through PUBGâs official website. The announcement blog started with the greeting, âWelcome back players, We are going home.â The original Erangel map will only be around for a limited period, during which it will replace the current version of the Erangel map in normal matches. The special event runs only two weeks, but if you are willing to play on both PC and consoles you can get an extra week to enjoy the nostalgic map. Thatâs because the PC version of Erangel Classic runs from May 14 through May 28 while the console version runs from May 23 through June 6. The update will go live after server maintenance on the day of release and run till 7 a.m. UTC on the last day.
As for what Erangel Classic will actually change in PUBG, the update seeks to offer players a nostalgic trip to the original days of the game, but with some modern sensibilities. The foggy and rainy weather of days gone will return, as will bench weapons on the starting island. Everyoneâs favorite, the Tommy Gun, will also be making a return in Care Packages. Players will find that enemies are harder to knock down and that recoil has been reduced (though not exactly as it was in the original PUBG).
The gameâs UI is even getting a demakeover. When starting Erangel Classic, you will be met with the vintage world map and minimap, a match start timer, and even the old font. A full list of what old features are returning in Erangel Classic will be available in the official patch notes on May 13.
