“PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds” is giving an ultimatum to its players, which practices AFK farming. The statement came alongside the patch notes released for the September Update of the battle royale title. Bluehole will implement a fix that will reduce, if not eliminate, the number of players who are farming Battle Points in the game by staying idle.
Meanwhile, the recently released September update introduces a new weapon called Mini-14. It also features a new weather condition in the game: Foggy weather. Furthermore, it implements several improvements in the gameplay and UI.
AFK farming
Bluehole has identified the rising idler problem in “PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.” There are several players that participate in matches that are not playing the game. Instead, they would just let the characters die while earning the in-game currency known as Battle Points for simply being there. Battle Points are used to purchase in-game items.
This includes opening up loot crates that could contain expensive gears that can be traded or sold for real money. The practice simply shows that players can still earn BP without even putting an effort. Most players are burning long hours of real playtime just to earn Battle Points. AFK is not only unfair but it also impedes genuine players’ experience.
When caught, AFK farmers are simply thrown out of the plane at the end of the flight. However, they are still in the game until they are killed. So far, it is not clear how massive the problem with AFK farming is in the game. Numerous players have reported time and again a lot of idlers during their respective matches.
Upcoming solution
In the patch notes for the September update, the game developer revealed that idle players or AFK farmers will no longer be entitled to receive BP. There will be a rule that will be implemented alongside the next update that will restrict this type of players to earn Battle Points. The developer promised to track and improve the current system.
The same issue was discussed by game producer Chang-Han Kim in its recent interview with PCGamer at PAX West. Kim revealed that there is a team working on the issue to analyze the problem. The producer also shared that while the number of players practicing this is not that high; he noted that they want to create a tool to prevent it.
According to Kim, they do not want players earning Battle Points and not really playing the game. The new rule is expected to be implemented in the next update. “PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds” is currently playable on Xbox One and PC.
