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Tips and tricks to survive and win in PUBG Mobile

pubg mobile
© Tencent

PUBG Mobile has finally released worldwide, and you know what that means. It's time to jump into the fight! Do you have what it takes to win? In this article we'll lay down our tips and tricks on how to get a good start in PUBG mobile, survive to eliminate your rivals and grab that delicious chicken dinner.

The typical PUBG Mobile game mode is a free-for-all where 100 naked and hopeless contenders are dropped upon an island littered with gear and weapons to gleefully slaughter each other until there's just one left standing. To put the pressure on, the game area shrinks periodically, automatically disposing of players left outside the play zone. Yes, just like in the movie.

It's not easy getting to grips with a new game and trying to survive when everyone's out to get you, but keep these tips in mind to help you get a good start and get an edge on your rivals.

Jump to:

Drop into town alone

In PUBG Mobile, your first strategic moves start before you pick up a gun or even hit the ground. First, you have to choose a good place to drop.

There are two factors at play in this decision: 

  1. Buildings contain loot.
  2. Everyone else also wants loot and is trying to kill you.

Quite a dilemma. You'll want to aim to land next to buildings to grab the loot, but avoid the most popular ones that might be swarming with enemies.

AndroidPIT PUBG on Android 7
Look out for buildings. / © NextPit

Maybe some hotshots will want to dive straight into the crowd, pick up the first weapon and just start gunning the slowpokes, but that's not you reading this guide yet, rookie. Instead, get a good start by aiming for a building that other players aren't going for.

Loot first, ask questions later

There's going to be battle, and you don't want to be the loser who brings their firsts to a gunfight. Your first priority upon landing should be to loot. Of course, you followed our first tip and have dropped next to a building away from enemies, right? Great. Now get indoors and loot up.

A weapon is always first priority. Next is body armor and healing items to keep you alive through the action.

AndroidPIT PUBG on Android 9
Get tooled up. / © NextPit

Once you have a choice of weapons and other items, you can start thinking about which weapons work best for you as you explore the area and take down enemies. But first, just pick up everything. PUBG Mobile has a handy auto-loot to help get this done fast.

Use the auto functions

Playing action games on a touchscreen can be awkward but PUBG Mobile has a few convenient auto functions to make it easier. Don't make life hard for yourself. Make use of them.

  • Auto sprint: the icon appears when you’re running at full speed. Simply hover over it with your finger and then let go to continue running without needing to hold down.
  • Free look: A handy feature that rival Fortnite lacks, you can drag around the small eye icon just below the map  in order to look around and keep an eye on your surroundings. This works while running so you can look around you without changing your direction.
  • Auto loot: Your avatar will simply pick up essential items, like rare scopes, weapons, armor, and more without you having to do anything. The game is pretty smart about this, though when your inventory is cluttered, you might want to check that it is following your preferences.

Be aggressive-remember you're on mobile

Those of you used to PUBG on PC or Xbox might be used to a cautious style where you focus more on hiding, self-preservation and careful precision. That softly-softly approach isn't going to work on mobile, son. Controls are less precise, accuracy is more difficult. 

This means that you're less likely to get sniped by more calculating players, and often, you can get shot at a few times before your enemy lands a hit on you.

AndroidPIT PUBG on Android 10
Strike hard, strike fast! / © NextPit

When you hear gunfire, instead of immediately panicking and running for cover, try and turn the tables. With the skill levels between players somewhat flatted by touchscreen controls, the advantage skews in favor of sheer aggression. In PUBG Mobile, attack can be the best form of defense.

Take aim

That doesn't mean you throw skill out of the window. Firing wildly will waste your shots and alert others to your presence. In regular PUBG you might be afraid to stand your ground and aim. Standing still means you get your head popped off.

But on Mobile, most of those shots aren't being fired at you with any accuracy anyway, so stop and aim and make yours count. Nine times out of ten, it'll mean you'll be the one left standing.

AndroidPIT PUBG on Android 4
Only winners get dinners. / © NextPit

Aiming is done with the small crosshair icon at the right of the screen, which you can drag around on the screen to aim. If both aiming and shooting with the right thumb is too awkward, you can go into the settings to enable an extra fire button on the left of the screen. Use whichever is faster for you in the moment. The suckers die just the same.

Use your ears

What was that about alerting others to your presence? Oh yeah. In PUBG, your sense of hearing is key. Without distracting background music, you'll need to rely on your ears to pick up incoming shots and the sound of movement near you. 

A keen ear can make the difference between life and death, so don't be tempted to play PUBG Mobile on mute on the subway like other mobile games. Instead, invest in some decent headphones to give you an edge.

Set your preferences

In PUBG Mobile, a wise warrior always adjust the settings to make sure you fight on your terms. Sun Tzu said that, probably. The game has several settings in the options menu that often go unnoticed, but a bit of tweaking could score you victory.

AndroidPIT PUBG on Android 5
Seriously, you need to use these. / © NextPit

Is your game running slowly or jankily? Consider setting the graphics settings to low and your FPS settings to high to allow the game to play more smoothly. War is ugly, but winning is beautiful.

You'll also play faster and more effectively if you tweak some options to suit your style and skill level. In the menu you can adjust sensitivity settings, change location of on-screen icons and disable or adjust the auto-loot settings here. As we mentioned, enabling the left fire button can be a real game-changer.

Look out for cars

One of the most frustrating things in PUBG, Mobile or otherwise, is being caught in a death zone with no fast way to the safe area. You'll want a fast option, and that often means a car. Once you know where cars are found, keep them in mind for when the walls close in. Some players even prioritize dropping near cars instead of their favorite weapons.

Get some help from your friends

If you're getting repeatedly dropped in PUBG Mobile's free-for-all, then you might want to consider playing some squad games to hone your skills, especially if you can get friends you already know to join you. Teamwork, especially with more skilled players, is a little less intense and gives you more breathing room to get to grips with the fundamentals. Your 'friends' may regret training you up if you ever meet face-to-bullet in a free-for-all.

Here are some fun facts and figures about PUBG Mobile provided by the nice folks at Consumersbase.

pubg infographic
PUBG Mobile facts and figures. / © Consumersbase

That's all our tips right now for getting starting and dominating in PUBG Mobile. We'll be adding more as we keep playing, but if you've any to share, feel free to leave them in the comments below!

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Nicholas Montegriffo

Nicholas Montegriffo
Editor

A cyberpunk and actual punk, Nicholas is the Androidpit team's hardcore gamer, writing with a focus on future tech, VR/AR, AI & robotics. Out of office, he can be found hanging around in goth clubs, eating too many chillies, or at home telling an unlucky nerd that their 8th level wizard died from a poisoned spike trap.

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  • 2
    bagshak Jan 13, 2022 Link to comment


  • 7
    berry johnson Jan 24, 2020 Link to comment

    These all are amazing pubg tips.
    I also try to find new pubg tips and will share here when I got new things.


  • Nupur 5
    Nupur Apr 11, 2019 Link to comment

    Here are some of the points which will be beneficial for you while playing pubg:
    1. If you want to rankup fast play with squad rather than playing single and if you have your own squad of friends you will rank way more faster.
    2. But If you want to increase your skills always play in single mode or single vs duo/ squad. Trust me it will increase your skills rapidly.
    3. Communication is the key in this game, always keep your eye on the direction which is on the top side of the screen so that as soon as you spot an enemy or a group of them you can call for direction.
    4. I improved my skills by playing against emulator players and me being on mobile which is very difficult. I use to do it by playing squad or duo and having 1 or two emulator players as teammates. This is the highest level of difficulty, trust me I have played against crown emulator players.
    5. Always be aware about your inventory. Flashes, smokes, nades and molly's should be put into use again and again until it becomes your habit. This will improve the overall skill of playing pubg.
    6. If you want more kills and are always trying to beat your own record always drop inside hot zones like (Bootcamp, Paradise, Pai nan for Sanhok) (Pochinki, School, Military base for Erangel) etc.
    7. Always fight taking cover never fight in open you will always get 3rd partied.
    8. Always I mean always wear your headphones no matter what.
    9. Most important point don't make it your life. It is just a game no matter how crazy you are about it. Always take break, dont play more than six hours, stay hydrated and always play in a comfortable position rather than keeping your mobile down and bending your neck to look into it.

    SORRY FOR MY BAD ENGLISH. I HOPE YOU GET WHAT I AM TRYING TO SAY.
    Thanks @Nicholas Montegriffo for suggesting to comment my tips and tricks.
    PEACE OUT. \/


  • 1
    Christoph Kuhn Apr 2, 2018 Link to comment

    Dont stop to keep straving while in a gun fight when you want to win. The suggestion here to stop moving and taking time to aim is just false. I played my first 2 rounds and won both. Players who stopped to dodge shots via straving simply got outplayed by me. It took em too long to refocuse because i straved left or right and for me it was easy to aim them down because they were not moving at all ;).


    • David Švorc 2
      David Švorc Apr 20, 2018 Link to comment

      Disagree. I'm standing still and fight them. About 15 matches solo with 40 k/d ratio. 10 wins


    • 1
      Guy Tan Nov 21, 2018 Link to comment

      That's cause first 10 levels of the game you're playing with bots...


    • ThaGrimhunter 1
      ThaGrimhunter May 20, 2019 Link to comment

      yo, you do know that all matchs up to roughly rank 10 is almost all bots after roughly rank ten the game adds less and less bots and more and more real players


  • GhostNoah 2
    GhostNoah Mar 26, 2018 Link to comment

    Assault rifles can do a sniper's job, but it needs better aim to hit all the shots necessary to kill and it scares them while a sniper oneshots them.

    Im just saying this cuz snipers arent everywhere but assault rifles sure are.

    ThaGrimhunterDavid Švorc


    • David Švorc 2
      David Švorc Apr 20, 2018 Link to comment

      Assault rifles are best choice, instead of hunting sniper ones at whole map.

      ThaGrimhunter


  • 9
    Fullmetal Jun Mar 23, 2018 Link to comment

    Haha nice guide! All for chicken dinner

    ThaGrimhunter

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