PUBG mythbusters: Are footsteps really quieter without shoes?

For years, the PUBG community has maintained a persistent myth: removing your shoes makes your character’s footsteps noticeably quieter, providing a tactical advantage. This is why many players have noticed discarded boots scattered across the map, viewing it as a sign of “advanced” tactics.

It’s time to examine whether this myth holds up to reality.

How Footstep Loudness Was Tested

The testing used a comparative method to measure footstep volume through audio analysis. Measurements were conducted in LUFS units—a measure of perceived loudness, meaning how loud a sound is heard by humans rather than just its technical amplitude.

It’s important to note that such measurements have a margin of error of approximately 0.3 LUFS, so minor deviations are not considered significant.

What is LUFS?

LUFS (Loudness Units relative to Full Scale) is a unit for measuring subjective sound loudness. Unlike standard decibels, LUFS indicates how loud a sound is perceived by the human ear rather than its peak volume.

The LUFS scale uses negative values: the closer the value is to zero, the louder the sound is perceived. For example, −32 LUFS will sound louder than −38 LUFS.

This makes LUFS ideal for comparing in-game footsteps, as it reflects the player’s actual perception of loudness.

Does Footwear Type Affect Footstep Loudness?

During testing, various equipment options were examined:

• Classic shoes
• Sneakers
• Costumes occupying the footwear slot
• “Bear paws”
• Rubber footwear

The result was definitive: footstep loudness in all cases fell within the measurement margin of error.

Conclusion: Footwear type has no impact on footstep loudness in PUBG. Even the popular “bear paws” don’t make your character quieter—the effect is purely psychological.

Where Did the “Quiet Footwear” Myth Come From?

The myth was largely perpetuated by streamers and players who subjectively perceived certain footwear as more “soft” and quiet. In reality, there are no differences in footstep loudness between footwear types in the game code.

What About Barefoot Steps?

The main question: does running barefoot provide a real advantage?

Comparison revealed that barefoot steps do differ slightly in loudness—the difference is approximately 1.3 LUFS compared to steps with footwear.

However, this difference is minimal and doesn’t provide a noticeable advantage in combat. Your opponent can hear you practically the same way.

The myth of “nearly silent” barefoot steps can be considered busted.

Why Did This Used to Work?

In 2017, when PUBG launched, barefoot steps were indeed noticeably quieter. This provided a real advantage and became the foundation of the myth.

However, in patch 8.1, released in July 2020, developers rebalanced footstep sounds. They stated that while realism is important, gameplay balance is more crucial. As a result, footstep loudness was equalized so that running barefoot wouldn’t provide an advantage.

Summary

• Footwear doesn’t affect footstep loudness
• “Bear paws” create only a psychological effect
• Running without shoes produces minimal difference that doesn’t impact combat outcomes
• The myth is only relevant for old versions of PUBG