PUBG’s latest patch looks to stop cheaters before they start playing

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds developer PUBG Corp. is deploying the game’s latest anti-cheat patch today. The patch is the largest and most aggressive measure the company has taken so far to combat the game’s cheating problem.

According to a post made by the company’s community manager on the PUBG forums, the new anti-cheat system will search the game’s files to detect if there are third-party programs running that might affect or interact with Battlegrounds and prevents the game from being played if such programs are found. This will hopefully address most popular forms of cheating software, but will also affect other programs like ReShade that could be seen as giving some players a competitive advantage in the game.

The developer emphasizes that players who use ReShade won’t be banned, but that they can’t play PUBG if it’s installed under the new system.

“You will not be banned for having it on system but you will no longer be able to play PUBG while it is installed,” community manager PUBG_FWG wrote. “Please uninstall ReShade (or any other blocked program) and launch the game again. Some players may find that reinstalling PUBG is also necessary.”

The post also warns that certain third-party applications that do not affect gameplay, like video or audio recording software (including Nvidia ShadowPlay), might also be affected by the patch. The company said it will be working quickly to correct any non-malicious software that is blocked by the anti-cheat system.

The patch is scheduled to go live at 6 p.m. PST on Feb. 5, and there will be no server downtime while the patch is applied.