PUBG’s new map brings urban combat on a smaller scale, sticky bombs, and the Black Zone

It’s also tiny compared to the other maps so far.

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is about to hit Season 6, and to shake things up, developer PUBG Corp. has introduced a host of fixes, changes, and additions, with the biggest addition being a new map for players to get stuck into.

The map is called Karakin, and it looks as though the focus is going to be on short, sharp games, with the conclusion taking place away from the towns and into the desert. At 2x2km, it is tiny in comparison to its much larger desert counterpart Miramar, with the player count capped at 64 to make the game manageable for players.

The map appears to be very sparse aside from the coast of the island, so the strategy will likely be to head to a town, grab a weapon and supplies quickly, and get to a vantage point.

The map will also include a new throwable in the sticky bomb, allowing you to blow openings in buildings to expose campers, or on the other side, to create an opening for you to take shots at approaching enemies.

Another new feature is called the Black Zone, which will rain down a torrent of bombs, deforming the buildings and landscape to keep games exciting and players out of the safety of buildings. There’s also bullet penetration for the weaker walls throughout the towns of the map.

The current date for Season 6 going onto the live servers is Jan. 22 for PC and Jan. 30 for everyone else. Once Karakin has been added, snow map Vikendi will be taken out of public matchmaking.

The patch notes for 6.1 also includes a new motor glider added to the game, available on Erangel and Miramar, along with a host of fixes and balance changes.