PUBG Mobile Version 4.2 brings the Primewood Genesis update, featuring a nature-themed overhaul of Erangel, new gameplay mechanics centered around the Sacred Tree mythology, and significant quality-of-life improvements across all game modes. The update begins rolling out on January 7, 2026, and will be available to all players by 11:00 UTC+0.
Update Period: January 7, 2026 – March 10, 2026 (UTC+0)
Update Rewards: Themed Music Track “Whisper,” 20x V4.2 Perk Voucher, 1,000 BP, 100 AG, and exclusive V4.2 Forest City Theme
Themed Mode: Primewood Genesis
Themed Areas & Map Revamps
Five major urban locations in Erangel have been revamped with a “fusion of old and new” aesthetic, introducing nature-based mechanics while maintaining familiar layouts:
Revamped Locations: Hospital, Pochinki, Sosnovka Military Base, Yasnaya Polyana, and Mylta
New Features:
- Corrupted plants appear throughout urban areas
- Defeat corrupted plants to unlock vine-wrapped supply crates
- Encounter new buildings and themed gardens
- Engage with PvE purification zones for dynamic looting and combat
Corrupting Swamp: Dense areas feature grotesque Corrupting Mega Flowers. Defeating these elite flora encounters grants abundant supplies and purification energy.
Primewood Purification Event
This server-wide collaborative event ties player progression to map restoration. All players contribute toward server purification through three activities:
- Clear corrupted flowers from Arboretum Sanctuary
- Defeat the Corrupting Mega Flower in Corrupting Swamp
- Plant Sacred Fruits to accumulate revitalization energy
Milestone Rewards:
At 50% server purification, the Bramblewood Scorpion vehicle becomes available in matches—a two-seater with burrowing and attack capabilities that adds strategic depth to vehicle combat.
At 100% server purification, the Targeting Vines item unlocks—a rare skill item enabling offensive and defensive vine control for battle-turning plays.
Monitor server purification progress through Main page > Themed System or the Event Center.
New Characters & Allies
Smart Ally: Barkle the Treant
Following the penguin ally’s success in V4.1, Barkle joins as an AI companion offering combat support, protection, and supply assistance.
Where to Find: Available on Erangel and Livik maps. Mid-match, locate Barkle on the map and interact to recruit him to your team.
Barkle’s Abilities:
- Combat: Advances and attacks enemies alongside your squad
- Defense: Blocks shots with his body when your health is critical
- Rescue: Carries knocked teammates to safety and restores their health
- Carry: Transport you to specified locations on command
- Heal: Instantly restores health and energy when defeated while nearby
- Supply Search: Detects supplies within range via voice or command wheel
Themed Vehicles
Bramblewood Scorpion (Two-Seater)
A tactical two-seater combining stealth, traversal, and combat mechanics.
How to Obtain: Find Scorpion Horn items in-game to summon the vehicle
Skills:
- Burrow: Move stealthily underground while pilots/passengers remain invulnerable (consumes stealth energy; forced surfacing when energy depletes or tail takes damage)
- Pincer Attack: Swing dual pincers to strike frontal enemies
- Spike Bomb: Fire area-damage projectiles with lingering slow effects
- Launch Slide: Passengers eject and slide with freestyle jumping and cancellation options
Cherry Blossom Deer (Two-Seater)
Designed as a social vehicle for immersive team experiences, this elegant two-seater leaves a beautiful flower trail during movement, offering moments of peace amidst intense combat.
Themed Items
Targeting Vines (Rare Skill Item)
A control-and-counterplay item providing deployable vine shields and enemy restriction mechanics.
Features:
- Shield: One-time damage shield lasting the skill duration
- Ensnare: Create restricted zones; trapped enemies must escape or face immobilization (teammates can attack vines to accelerate teammate escape)
- Cooldown Management: Skill ends on duration expiry or health depletion; manual cancellation available
Deployment: Instantly deploy from the themed slot by swinging the screen to control vine direction
Florawings (Rare Skill Item)
A mobility-focused tactical item redefining three-dimensional movement and spatial agility for attack repositioning and evasion.
Movement Forms:
- Boost
- Low-Altitude Flight
- High-Altitude Flight
- Flash teleportation
Controls use joystick + screen swipe; flight and flash consume energy. Strong impacts or environmental restrictions (interiors, low ceilings) forcibly interrupt flight.
Harass: Teleport to target locations and trigger pollen flash effects to briefly blind enemies.
Also Check: PUBG Mobile System Requirements
Themed Firearm
Overgrowth – Honey Badger (Rifle/Pod Hybrid)
Following the Kar98K’s success, this dual-form weapon switches between rifle and pod explosive modes with health recovery capabilities.
Availability: Themed mode only with thematic visual effects
Skills:
- Health & Energy Recovery: Recover health and energy within 5 seconds of knocking down/eliminating enemies (multiple triggers refresh duration)
- Attribute Bonus: Gain firearm spread and stability bonuses while stationary
- Dual Forms: Switch to pod explosives for AoE damage with slowing debuffs (consumes multiple rounds per shot)
Gameplay Mechanics
Prime Eye: Interactive Sacred Tree Gameplay
The Sacred Tree transcends lore to become an interactive gameplay element. Head to Ishtar Gate to enter the Primewood Heart instance and compete for the Prime Eye artifact, granting bird’s-eye view control of Erangel.
Sacred Tree Skills:
- Barrier: Summon opaque shot-blocking barriers for advancing, holding positions, or protecting relocating teammates
- Teleport: Place two-portal systems for rapid mobility during aggression or retreat
- Heal: Generate continuous healing zones rescuing downed teammates
- Corrupting Flower: Spawn damaging flowers at target locations; defeating them grants high-value supplies
Cross-Match Mythology: Plant Buds System
A persistent progression system linking matches through the Sacred Fruit ecosystem. Plant buds mature across multiple matches, creating dynamic collection objectives beyond traditional looting.
Mechanics:
- Plant: Pick up Sacred Buds in-match and choose safe planting locations as future harvest points
- Harvest: After playing sufficient matches on the map, buds mature into Sacred Fruits containing supply rewards (three quality tiers; Gold Fruits summon Barkle)
- Contention: Visible fruits attract all players; interceptors expose the planter’s location for retaliation risk
Classic Mode Improvements
Climbing Enhancements:
- Improved window edge detection for consistent climbing trigger
- Smoother animation transitions between climbing and climbing camera
Team Training Grounds: Enter Training Grounds as a squad from Lobby > Unranked; invite friends while in Training Grounds
Reconnect During Loading: Reconnect to matches experiencing timeout failures to minimize non-combat disconnection penalties
Highlights Feature: Select playback segments and jump to specified sections for quick review
Season Mode Updates
Promotion Requirements
Ace tier and above now require specified rating points combined with consecutive top-placement finishes:
- Ace: 4,199 Rating Points + top 15 (Erangel) or top 8 (Livik) in 3 consecutive matches
- Ace Master: 4,699 Rating Points + top 12 (Erangel) or top 6 (Livik) in 4 consecutive matches
- Ace Dominator: 5,200 Rating Points + top 10 (Erangel) or top 5 (Livik) in 5 consecutive matches
Settlement & Progress Rules
- Rank Determination: Based on remaining enemy players (excluding teammates) when eliminated
- Rating Calculation: Promotion matches calculate points normally; tier protection and event bonuses don’t apply during settlement
- Progress Protection: Gain 1 automatic protection per promotion match (consumed on failure, preserving challenge progress)
- Cross-Mode Calculation: Non-TPP Squad promotions store scores for next regular-mode match calculation
- Privacy: Promotion status visible to friends by default; adjustable in privacy settings
Season Series System
A new semi-annual honor system recognizing perseverance, strength, and technique across three seasons per cycle.
Season Series Medal Components:
- Core Gem (Perseverance): Crown tier achievement frequency
- Central Chassis (Activity): Login days exceeding 40 per season
- Border Light Effect (Outstanding Skill): Highest Classic tier achieved
- Star Halo (Technique): Complete 10 Trial Challenge missions
Continuous Challenge: Achieve specified tiers across all three seasons for exclusive rewards. Use Season Series Catch-Up Cores to complete unfinished challenges one season behind.
Trial Challenge: Earn Season Series Tokens and medal upgrades through high-difficulty in-match missions. Point limits progress seasonally (1,000 → 2,000 → 3,000).
Season Series Treasury: Redeem Season Series Tokens for exclusive cosmetics. Previous cycle rewards return at higher prices; tokens never expire and accumulate across cycles.
WOW Pass Updates
Availability: January 7, 2026, 7:00 UTC+0 – March 10, 2026, 23:59 UTC+0
Free Version Changes:
- Added Avatar and Home Coin rewards
- Profile feature access with Target Shutdown WOW Profile selection
- Moved AG and fragments from paid to the free version
- New challenge rewards: 50 AG, 500 BP, 500 BP with Legendary outfit upgrade
Mega-Popular Creation Grand Prize: Added past ranking feature for the previous period top 10 data review
WOW Gift Ranking Season: January 7, 2026, 2:00 UTC+0 – March 10, 2026, 23:59 UTC+0
Metro Royale Updates
Firearm Adjustments
Damage Increases: 7.62mm weapons across all levels—AKM, M762, ACE32, Honey Badger, Groza, and Mk47
Magazine Enhancement: FAMAS gains an additional slot for rifle magazine compatibility
Gameplay Updates
- Vine Crates: New random spawns on classic maps containing highly valuable sellable items
- Mutated Plant Boss: New elite encounter granting high-value rewards
- Frontline Confrontation: New spawn-point crates containing basic weapon ammo and medical supplies
- Item Quality Display: More intuitive visual indicator system
General Improvements
Ultra HDR Graphics
90 FPS mode now available on select devices with expanded support incoming.
Performance Optimization
Graphics: Smooth 120 FPS power-saving mode optimized
Heat Management:
- iOS RAM allocation time optimization
- Character, weapon, and vehicle logic processing optimized for high frame rates
- UI overhead reduced at high frame rates
Rendering Enhancements:
- Occlusion culling strategy optimization
- Vegetation culling distance improved
- Rendering pipeline logic refined
The Road Ahead
The highly anticipated V3.1 Skyhigh Spectacle themed mode makes a surprise return in early February, offering new aerial adventures for all players.
For more updates and announcements, stay tuned to PUBG Mobile’s official channels.
