3 PUBG Recoil Secrets Hidden in the Game Files

There are secrets about PUBG recoil that pros, and maybe even the devs themselves, don't want you to know. But I'm here to expose that knowledge, along with 3 PUBG recoil facts that I'm pretty sure no one has ever discussed online, or anywhere.

I've been really dipping my toes into data mining PUBG, digging into fun stuff like old 3D renders of the repair kit and unreleased skins buried in the game files.

But most importantly, I've been diving face-first into the actual recoil mechanics of PUBG: learning how they work and what information lives in these files that can help players of all skill levels improve their recoil control.

All of the data I've mined lives right here on PUBGIntel, where I've extracted every weapon and recoil-related file within PUBG and built tools to arm players with more info on how this game actually works. You'll find an attachment recoil calculator, interactive maps with secret room locations, and even a weapon meta page that shows which weapons have the highest pick rates and the most kills per stage of a match. All of it is pulled directly from PUBG's files or the official PUBG API.

Every screenshot in this post comes from those tools, so if you want to play around with the data yourself, dig in. Got feature requests or found a bug? I've set up a PUBG Intel channel in my Discord, so come let me know.

With that out of the way, here are the 3 secrets about PUBG recoil I found while digging through the game files.

Secret #1: Per-Shot Recoil, and Why Your First 10 Shots Matter Most

There are different stages of recoil when firing any weapon in PUBG. Three, to be exact.

That means from the moment you pull the trigger, the game increases both vertical and horizontal recoil intensity the longer you sustain fire.

To break this down into simpler terms: imagine recoil on a scale of 0 to 100%, with 0 being not firing at all and 100 being the end of a 30 or 40 round magazine.

Some weapons start at a much lower percentage within those first 10 shots than others.

Take the SCAR-L, which has the same fire rate as the AKM. The SCAR has one of the smallest amounts of vertical recoil in PUBG, starting at only 37% vertical recoil within the first 1-10 shots. It then jumps significantly to 65% from shots 11-20, and tops out around 90% for shots 21 and beyond.

SCAR-L per-shot recoil build-up from the PUBG Per-Shot Analyzer showing 37.2%, 65.6%, and 90.8% vertical kick — SCAR-L's real per-shot recoil build-up, pulled straight from the Per-Shot Analyzer.

Then there's the Beryl M762, which starts at 69% vertical recoil within the first 10 shots, jumps to 84% for shots 11-20, and hits 95% of its total recoil by the 21st shot.

Beryl M762 per-shot recoil build-up from the PUBG Per-Shot Analyzer showing 69.6%, 84.8%, and 95.5% vertical kick — Compare that to the Beryl M762, which starts much hotter and climbs even faster.

This is exactly why it's absolutely critical to shoot only within those first 10 shots whenever possible. You can explore every weapon's shot-by-shot recoil curve in the Per-Shot Analyzer.

// The takeaway

For better PUBG recoil control, fire a quick burst, and if you don't get the kill, take cover, re-peek, and shoot again. That's how you optimize your sprays. Anything past 10 shots will tank your accuracy and your chance of hitting anything at a modest distance.

There's also code written into each weapon's recoil blueprints showing that weapons reset their recoil after only a second or two of not firing.

Although I'll admit, I still find it fun to do full mag dumps from 150 meters. I blame TGLTN for that obsession.

Secret #2: Crouch Modifiers Are Not Equal Across Weapons

It's a universal fact that crouching significantly reduces recoil for all weapons in PUBG. But did you know some weapons get greater recoil reduction when crouched or prone than others?

You can find all of these values in the Weapon Database here on PUBGIntel.

It should come as no surprise, but LMGs get an insane 40-50% recoil reduction when crouched, and a whopping 78% when prone.

Almost every AR gets an additional 16% crouch modifier, except for the AUG, Beryl, and Mutant.

The AUG only has a 14% crouch modifier
The Mutant and Beryl have a 12% crouch modifier

That means the AUG, Beryl, and Mutant all get less recoil reduction from crouching than any other AR in the game.

PUBG assault rifle crouch recoil modifiers from the Weapon Database showing AUG A3 at -14%, Beryl M762 and MK47 Mutant at -12%, and AKM, M416, SCAR-L at -16% — Straight from the Weapon Database: the AUG, Beryl, and Mutant all get a smaller crouch bonus than the rest of the AR class.

Weirdly enough, the Beryl and Mutant are also the only assault rifles that get an additional 30% recoil reduction when prone.

A quick side note on crouch and prone recoil values for SMGs, most ARs, and DMRs: this is where I hit a brick wall in my research. There's code buried within the C++ programming that handles prone recoil reduction modifiers, but with the surface-level access I have, those numbers aren't represented anywhere I can see.

The only SMG with an extra recoil reduction when crouched is the JS9, at 15%. That doesn't mean other SMGs have no crouch modifier. They do, it's just hidden in the game's code under a base-level value. They simply don't get any additional reduction.

DMRs all get a 25% recoil reduction when crouched, which makes sense given how hard they are to control while standing.

PUBG LMG, DMR, and SMG crouch recoil modifiers from the Weapon Database showing M249 at -46%, MG3 at -50%, SKS, SLR, and MK14 EBR at -25%, and JS9 at -15% — LMGs get the biggest crouch bonus in the game, DMRs sit at a flat 25%, and the JS9 is the only SMG with an extra reduction.

Secret #3: Recoil Bias Means PUBG Recoil Isn't as Random as You Think

While recoil in PUBG is largely random, believe it or not, certain weapons and ammo classes actually have a horizontal recoil bias.

Meaning: while a weapon might swing left and right while shooting, specific weapons have additional code that makes the recoil favor drifting to the left or to the right.

That line of code in PUBG's recoil files is listed as Horizontal Recoil Tendency, and it dictates which side a weapon will favor when firing.

Let's look at some examples.

Take the AKM, which has a left horizontal bias of 20%, the largest horizontal bias of any weapon in PUBG.

Because I'm not one to take things at face value, I had to build a testing environment to see if this was true. So I created a UGC test room, put up a wall with a center control line, and started spraying.

And holy crap, it was true. The majority of my sprays with the AKM drifted left, just like the data says.

For me, this is huge. For years, players have claimed online that recoil in PUBG is random and there's no way to predict which way the gun is going to go. That's true to an extent. But weapons like the AKM, with a massive 20% bias, are going to have far more predictable horizontal tendencies than a weapon with only 5%, where the pull might not even be noticeable.

PUBG assault rifle horizontal recoil bias from the Weapon Database: AKM 0.20 left, ACE32/Beryl/M416 0.10 left, AUG/K2 0.05 left, SCAR-L/QBZ95/G36C 0.10 right — The AKM's 20% left bias is the strongest horizontal pull of any AR in the game. SCAR-L, QBZ, and G36C are the only ARs that pull right.

There are also two other lines of code in the recoil files worth knowing:

RecoilSpeed_Horizontal determines the speed of horizontal sway
RecoilHorizontalMinScalar adds a base percentage to the strength of horizontal recoil randomness

So the Mk12, which has a 70% chance for horizontal randomness, is going to have bigger horizontal swings than, say, the Mutant at 52%.

DMR Recoil Bias by Ammo Class

When it comes to DMRs, bias purely depends on the ammo class:

The Mini14 has a 15% tendency to pull right
The Mk12 has only a 5% tendency to pull right
Both 5.56 DMRs have a 70% horizontal randomness value, so while they're coded to favor the right, shots still have a high chance of going either direction

All 7.62 DMRs, on the other hand, favor a left-side recoil bias:

The SLR was recently buffed, reducing its left-side tendency from 10% down to 5%
The Dragunov, SKS, and Mk14 all still have a 10% left bias
All 7.62 DMRs have a 60% randomness value

The VSS has no bias at all, with only a 60% horizontal randomness value.

PUBG DMR horizontal recoil bias by ammo class from the Weapon Database: Mini14 0.15 right, Mk12 0.05 right, SLR 0.05 left, SVD Dragunov and SKS and MK14 EBR 0.10 left, VSS Vintorez no bias — 5.56 DMRs pull right, 7.62 DMRs pull left, and the VSS sits dead center with no bias at all.

Assault Rifle Recoil Bias

Assault rifles are a mixed bag:

The SCAR-L, QBZ, and G36C are the only ARs with a 10% bias to the right
All other ARs favor a range of left-side bias
The AKM sits at that massive 20% left bias
The ACE32, Beryl, and M4 sit at 10% left
The AUG and K2 sit at only 5% left

SMG Recoil Bias

All SMGs have a small tendency to pull right, ranging from 3% up to the UMP45's 12%.

Not that it matters much. SMGs are easy to control anyway.

All of this data is available in the Weapon Database and on the PUBG Weapons pages.

Now that you know, hit the training range and tell me if you can feel your favorite weapon's natural pull. I'm still figuring out how much it plays into every spray and shot, but I'm curious to hear what you guys notice.

Final Thoughts on PUBG Recoil Control

Not gonna lie, I was incredibly excited to share this info with you. Hopefully it helps you understand your favorite weapons a little better and educates you on how PUBG's recoil actually works.

If you want to dig into the data yourself, it all lives here on PUBGIntel: the Recoil Calculator, the Weapon Database, interactive maps, and more, all pulled straight from the game files and the official PUBG API.

Have questions, feature requests, or found a bug? Jump into the PUBG Intel channel in my Discord and let me know.