Fortnite v7.30 patches a lot of bugs that players have been experiencing/missing lately. One big change is the client-side editing, which was taken out of the game to be fixed and re-introduced. Zip lines have also received an update ensuring nobody has a magnet over their head after they hop off. There are many bug fixes added to every aspect of the game, just to help things run smoother. The patch notes go on, but there are a few key points that are game changers. Items have been added to the game and experiments are being done to try and improve competitive play.
Chiller Grenades
One of the newest items added to the game is the chiller grenade. The new common item drops in stacks of three and turns enemy feet to ice for seven seconds. The chiller grenade has the same purpose a boogie bomb has, fun but not practical. When an opponent has ice feet it is hard to do anything. Chillers provide an advantage to the player without them, however, the grenades aren’t useful. Sure the advantage is nice, but the fuse makes it difficult to use on anyone not in a building. The grenade also takes up a slot in the player’s inventory which should be for something more useful or practical.
The chiller grenade does have some useful aspects, but they’re very rare. These grenades would be helpful on mountaintops or high build battles as players could just slide the enemy off of high ground to death. Chillers are also useful in controlling two people in a 2v1 situation. Chilling an enemy makes them box up, allowing the player to take shots at the other enemy uncontested. Chillers are also useful on the player’s own feet in order to rotate to zone faster.
All of these situations are useful but do not make sense to do in a game. After a few minutes, the grenades become irrelevant since players will find better weapons or heals to take instead. This is a novelty item to mess with friends or bad opponents, not something for the competitive scene to take seriously.
The Vault
BOLT ACTION IS VAULTED. WUT!? 🙁
— Jaomock (@Jaomock) January 29, 2019
In the vault this week Epic continues its rampage on weapons. All bursts, the bolt action sniper rifle, SMG’s (not P90) and heavy shotgun are extinct. The bolt action sniper hit the Fortnite community pretty hard on twitter, but feelings were sad, not angry. Players like Faze Jaomock and Dakotaz expressed love for the bolt and are sad to see it go. With heavy snipers, suppressed snipers and hunting rifles at the front of the show, it could alter the meta. The damage to reload ratio could influence decisions on what would be best to carry late game, especially if the Deagle is nerfed in the future.
As far as the rest of the items, the meta will remain the same. SMG’s are now suppressed versions with better accuracy and less damage. Suppressed SMG’s or Deagle will remain the alternate to the pump. The burst rifle is an item the community does not really like and doesn’t have a presence in the game. The heavy shotgun is another item that doesn’t have a presence in the game and belongs in the vault. While it provides damage at range, there is no use for it close range. With the addition of the purple and gold pumps, it distanced the heavy shotgun even further since pumps are able to one shot opponents again.
Events
Fresh this week in Fortnite is a new style of Pop-up Cup. In the Architect Pop-up Cup, all previous rules apply with a twist; players can edit any built structure regardless of who owns it. Fortnite is changing a core mechanic of the game to see how players react to the change. Epic made it very clear this is just a test and they want player feedback, but this could be a step backward.
Epic is upsetting the Fortnite competitive community by catering to the public. This has been an ongoing issue for Epic since they release updates on days of tournaments and add game-breaking items. The sword and boomboxes are just two examples of Epic doing this to players. With this new editing change, the result could be bad if it isn’t accepted in the community.
To do a test, the cup should be a week-long event, then go back to normal after feedback. Instead, Epic has made the cup two weeks long with multiple game modes. This change could raise the skill ceiling in terms of building, but could ruin pop up cups as well. Big changes like this have caused outrage in the past, so it will be interesting to see how pro players adapt to the new editing system. This system could force people out of turtling, making for more active gameplay.
With zombies and fog being taken away, lots of pros are coming back to play from Sea of Thieves. If the competitive scene does not improve soon, pros may start taking viewers elsewhere and Fortnite could see a decline in high-level players.
Feature Image Courtesy of epicgames.com
You can like The Game Haus on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from great TGH writers!
You can also follow Nicholas @_NicholasRivera