Top Tips For H1Z1: Battle Royale On PlayStation 4

Daybreak’s H1Z1: Battle Royale launched in beta on PlayStation 4 a couple months ago and quickly became one of the most played games on the PSN, racking up over ten million players in less than a month. Since launch there’s been quite a few updates which have improved the visuals and added new weapons and a revive feature, so if you haven’t played the game yet, it’s a great time to jump in.

Still, Battle Royale is tricky to get the hang of, so here’s out top tips for getting ahead and making it to the last few survivors.

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Be Prepared

Before you begin a match, consider what skins you have equipped for your character and gear. It’s all very well laying prone in bush hidden deep within a copse of trees, hiding until an unsuspecting enemy wanders past, but if you have a bright orange quad bike parked next to you it’s a bit of a giveaway.

Speaking of giveaways, winners of the Deluxe Founder’s Bundle giveaway will have a bright flaming skull to equip. Maybe you want to stand out?

Plan Ahead

When you first enter the arena, do not immediately plummet as fast as possible to the ground. The map has plenty of space so take a moment to scan around the horizon and note where the other players are falling. Your best bet is to head to somewhere with a vehicle; there’s plenty of weapons in the game so you don’t have to worry about getting one, but an vehicle can be invaluable if you happen to land near someone else. Jump in it quick and zoom off to safety! While a quad bike is good to start, try and upgrade to a Jeep or police car as soon as possible as they offer more protection.

Stay Healthy

There are plenty of bandages and first aid kits laying around. Bandages are quicker to use but first aid kits restore more health. These are very useful when driving around in the gas – the ever shrinking barrier of nasty green muck that encloses the play area. The gas is relatively harmless at the start of the game, so you can stay in it for a considerable length of time, looting areas that others have left. However, if you are shot use a bandage or first aid kit as soon as possible, the game has a bleed mechanic so left untreated you will slowly bleed out losing around one point of health per second.

This Is My Gun

Shotguns, pistols, and Hellfire SMGs can be found at start of the game, but they’re all useless unless you are close to your target. You may also find the crossbow which has explosive bolts, which is great for taking out enemy vehicles. The most powerful weapon is the LMG, but you’re only going to find that in gold air drops.

Other than that, the best weapons are Scout Rifle, M40 and Maurader for long distance and aiming for headshots. The Maurader is also good as a mid range weapon with a good scope and short burst fire. Once you have the Military backpack you can hold four weapons so you should try and get a long, medium, and short range weapon, and that crossbow if possible.

Bullet Time

Despite its arcade nature the game does include bullet drop, so your projectiles gradually lose height as the travel. It’s worth spending a little time in the training mode learning how far you can fire the various weapons before gravity takes effect. If you’ve got a short range weapon, don’t go shooting at enemies way off in the distance!

Fire And Forget

Never aim with Shotgun when going one on one, it’s pointless due to the wide spread of the weapon and you lose valuable time aiming down the sights. Instead just point the crosshair towards the enemy and shoot from the hip.

Shut The Door

As Larry Grayson used to enthuse, shut that door! Most players leave the doors on buildings and caravans open and it’s a clear sign that the structure has either been looted or that someone is inside. That means that when confronted by a closed doors most players assume it’s safe to go side, so why not wait behind the door with a shotgun and educate them?

The Need For Speed

Many people don’t use the grenades, but they can be very useful. Drop a smoke bomb on an air drop and you can loot it whilst being obscured. Also, using the boost in vehicles is fun and can create spectacular jumps, but try not to use it unless absolutely necessary, such as if there is air drop nearby or you need to escape a fire fight. Boosting uses fuel very quickly and you may find yourself running out of gas at an inopportune moment.

Crate Expectations

Military crates are dotted throughout the game, so keep an ear out for the bleeping radio signal the cases emit. The closer you get to the case, the louder the signal and once you’re a very close the signal will change. Crates are usually found in the back of churches, at campsites, gas stations and upstairs in larger buildings.

Drop It Like It’s Hot

Air Drops are the only way of getting the most powerful weapons and armour, and they are colour coded with green being the lowest tier, purple the middle, and gold the highest. It’s always worth going to an air drop as even the the green drops hold the top tier armour and the military rucksack which allows you to hold four weapons.

However, beware that others will be going for the same drops and could be waiting to ambush you. Keep an eye the map, if you see the air drop icon vanish then someone has beaten you to it and now has a bigger gun than you. Run away!

Greatest Hits

When you are finally kitted out, you’re going to be shooting things, so you need to know what the hit displays mean. A red hit indicates you have removed an opponents health, whilst a yellow hit shows you are damaging their armour. It is possible to shoot an opponents helmet off their head if you get the right shot!

The final indicator is white, which means you are damaging your opponent’s vehicle rather the occupants. This can be useful if they are using it for cover, as enough shots will them blow up, taking anybody nearby with it.

When looting downed enemies, be careful what you pick up, as they may drop armour or a helmet that’s been damaged and doesn’t offer much protection anymore.

A Honk Is As Good As A Wink

Playing Fives with friends is oodles of fun, but you can have a good game with a bunch of randoms. Always remember the unspoken code – a car horn beeping means “get in the vehicle”, and if someone shoots while you’re driving it either means they have spotted someone or they have spotted an air drop you should head for.

It’s always best to stay as a group in one vehicle until the end of the game, when there’s only a few players left. At that point it’s best to split in to a couple of groups with a couple zipping around in vehicles to distract the enemy whilst the rest sneak up and surprise them.

Play Dirty

In Fives and Duos you can revive a team mate and this can be used to your advantage. If you have managed to wound an enemy so they are crawling about waiting for a teammate to revive, retreat back a little and wait. Chances are their team mates will run out and try to help their downed friend and you can empty a shotgun in to the back of their head whilst they are being a good Samaritan.

We said these were top tips, we never said they were ethical top tips.

Emotional Baggage

And finally, the most important tip: Never, ever, use the emotes to recreate sex acts in the staging area, because that makes you a massive douchebag.

Thanks to @Crazy_Del for his help compiling these tips!