Fornite Season 5 has finally arrived. The eagerly-awaited new season brings with it a ton of new changes both to the map and actual gameplay of
Fortnite's popular Battle Royale mode.
As teased by Epic, Season 5 features worlds colliding. Following Season 4's rocket launch, which caused a tear in the sky, various rifts have been popping up within the game. These rifts seemingly connect various worlds together, including our own real world! The Season 5 announcement trailer provides a bit more clarity and teases some new arrivals including a viking ship, desert outpost, ancient statues and a Battle Pass filled with tons of exciting new cosmetics.
Fortnite Update 5.0 coincides with the arrival of Season 5 and with it comes a ton of new features for both Battle Royale (PvP) and Save the World (PvE).
New arrivals in Battle Royale include the All Terrain Kart (ATK), a new vehicle type that has room for your entire squad. The vehicle gets a speed boost after drifting and features a roof that acts as a bounce pad. Additionally, all riders in the vehicle can work together to leap over obstacles with the ATK.
Additionally, the Battle Royale map has been updated with a new desert biome replacing the swamp area in the southeast portion of the map. The sunny Paradise Palms replaces Moisty Mire, while Lazy Links (a new golf course) takes the place of Anarchy Acres. And lastly, the evil lair tucked into the mountain overlooking Snobby Shores has been transformed into a Viking hideaway. Check out images from the map updates below!
In terms of gameplay, there are also a ton of changes. The addition of Rifts throughout the map allow you to jump in and get teleported into the sky. This new gameplay mechanic will undoubtedly offer new strategy during fights.
Speaking of strategy, Update 5.0 brings a ton of changes to shotguns. Epic has essentially removed the shotgun swap strategy.
"After firing a shotgun, another shotgun cannot be fired for a very short time," the patch notes read. Other notable gameplay changes and bug fixes in Update 5.0 are listed below.
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The center of Storm circles 7, 8, and 9 can now shift in random directions (instead of simply shrinking). As the storm closes in, it will move & shrink to the new location.
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Starting in Season 5, progressive challenges will no longer be restricted to a single season. You can now complete progressive challenges at your own pace.
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Progressive challenges are now completed by acquiring a fixed amount of XP and is no longer dependant on your season level.
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Gyro/motion controls have been added to the Nintendo Switch. Adjust these options in the Settings menu.
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Weekly challenges are now split into two sections, free and Battle Pass. The first 3 challenges will be available for free while the last 4 are only available if you own the Battle Pass. The threshold to unlock the weekly challenge reward will remain at 4.
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Down But Not Out players now have smaller collision. Previously their collision was at the standing height which blocked DBNO players from crawling under doors and blocked building collision in some cases.
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Players that were crouching when knocked Down But Not Out will be returned to a crouching state upon revival.
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Emoting will now interrupt sprinting.
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You now earn XP for reviving teammates in 50v50 and Teams of 20 LTMs up to three times per match (30XP, 10XP, 10XP).
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Weapon reticle will now fade slightly when reloading, out of ammo, or changing weapons.
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The player camera can now see out of the water when walking in lakes.
Bug Fixes
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Launch Pads and Cozy Campfires now destroy overlapping small objects when placed.
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Reduced trigger volume for floor Damage Trap to better match visuals and prevent triggering when standing on ledges above.
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Supply Llamas now fall to the ground if the object they were standing on is destroyed.
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Autorun will no longer cancel if you let go of the stick and it slightly flicks backward while using a gamepad.
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Fixed issue where Autorun could be active while using a Shopping Cart.
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The first Storm circle will now consistently do 1 damage.
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Players will no longer get stuck in a doorway if they were standing in it when the door closed.
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Fixed an issue that prevented some weapon animations from playing.
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Autorun can no longer be activated while walking backward.
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Textures will now consistently appear correctly while in Edit Mode.
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Fixed a crash that could occur when logging out.
Battle Royale isn't the only mode that has been updated today. Save the World,
Fortnite's PvE mode, has a new event. Kicking things off the new Road Trip event is teh addition of Wild West Heroes. Like Battle Royale, there are a ton of balance changes in bug fixes in Save the World.
Fortnite Season 5 kicked off this morning.
Check out the full patch notes for Update 5.0 over on Epic's blog.