[Hands-on Preview] PUBG: Blindspot has me peeking around corners

Bottom’s up with the top-down tactical shooter

I wasn’t expecting a PUBG spinoff at IGN Live to leave me grinning for a half hour straight, but here I was after winning all of my team’s matches in Krafton’s Blindspot on the show floor.

The game, a 5v5 isometric tactical shooter, doesn’t feel overly deep, at least not in this demo. In it we take control of one class-based character and head around an arena in an isometric viewpoint. The show floor demo is pure deathmatch, with the first to 30 kills taking the win. Our teams of 4 start in the same spawn point every time, and must navigate around the arena with only a dedicated field of view as to what we can see.

That’s the major hook around the game, as we can only see enemies on our radars and views based on our line of sight. Buildings, obstacles, walls block out views and limit our ability to keep up with our enemies to some extent, while windows, corners and doors can provide lite cover.​ If we’re smart, we can use these spots to position ourselves so that we can get the drop on an enemy as they approach.

The controls we use are mouse and keyboard, and function a bit like a twin stick shooter, so there is some getting used to involved. Aiming with the mouse (as opposed to pointing with it) can throw us off a smidge until we really get into the groove.

A few good clicks of the mouse and we can shoot down an opponent, but if we miss then we’ll give away our position. In my session I find myself sometimes camping, knowing that an enemy will be forced to eventually head down a hallway, or firing blindly in hopes that just because I can’t see them it won’t mean that they’re not there or on their way. Sometimes I do end up nailing a few strays their direction, especially if it’s closer to their spawn point, but at other moments they’ll easily come up behind me and take me out while I’m focused on somewhere else.

The matches are​ fast, with 30 kills piling up within what feels like just minutes. It’s focused on preparation and movement, not necessarily stopping and camping. That leads to multiple satisfying kills per person instead of someone being a clear champ and the rest of us getting picked off or missing out on numbers. That’s good, that’s what I want from a multiplayer game like this. I don’t want to have to lead a charge across a big map in hopes of shooting maybe one opponent, I want to feel like I contribute in some way, even if it’s just making a number go up.

We see two maps during our time, one set in sort of a villa complete with homes and rooms and outdoor park-like areas, and the second in a more traditional warehouse, stacked with a lot of corridors and side rooms that have half-walls and doors… and corners. Neither are *that* different from the other, so I’m hoping that as the game develops more there will be a greater variety of areas. Just seeing walls and doors ​could make for a bit of a repetitive feel.

PUBG: Blindspot feels easy to get into, and just as easy to ​enjoy. Its lack of complexity means that it’s inviting for many gamers while at the same time allowing teams and long-time tactical players to get deep with their own experiences. The game does not have a release date yet.