Air drop pings now let PUBG players know where crates will land

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ new ping system has a game-changing and possibly unintended feature.

During a recent broadcast, popular streamer Jake “chocoTaco” Throop found a new use for the game mechanic. While playing in a duo match he discovered that air drops can be marked with a ping, giving players an exact location on where the crate will land:

In PUBG, air drops give offer players valuable weapons and equipment ranging from the M249 light machine gun to the Ghillie Suit that camouflages players better than anything else in the game. Players often scramble to gain access to the crate’s contents during games, but being able to get in position as one descends can be tricky if it’s unclear where it will wind up.

That can now be remedied with a simple ping.

After spotting an air drop, players can use the ping tool to place a marker on it. Though this was designed to call teammates’ attention to enemy positions or useful items at close and medium ranges with a marker on the HUD, the ping also places a marker on the map. Because air drops descend straight down, this allows players to know the exact spot where it will land.

In the case of ChocoTaco, he and his partner quickly spotted the package and marked it. Knowing where the crate would touch down, they scrambled to a nearby compound and got into an easily defensible position to ensure that they could secure it.

This is a valuable tool for players looking to secure air drops.

It is unknown whether this feature was intentionally added to the game by the PUBG development team. Because air drops can contain such valuable cargo, they frequently kickstart skirmishes between players looking to claim the contents. Allowing players to more quickly ascertain their final location may be a deliberate move from the PUBG team to speed up the game. Or it might just be an unintended consequence of a new feature.

It may be patched away in the near future but in the meantime, players ought to take advantage of this new discovery.