Fortnite update: Fans begin speculation for season 7 changes

With just weeks until a new Fortnite season drops, speculation is rife among gamers. Here’s what we already know and what you can expect.

SEASON 7 THEORIES

With only two weeks of Fortnite season six left, theories about the new season are starting to emerge and it looks like the map could be in for a chill.

Eagle-eyed fans have noticed what appears to be a snowstorm approaching the map south of Flush Factory that could plunge the map into a winter wonderland.

Given that #WinterIsComing in the United States ahead of Christmas, this makes sense but Epic Games has of course not confirmed any of this.

The season six road map skin (A.I.M) has frozen hands and feet, with many fans speculating that he is either running away from the storm, or coming to scout out the map for who/whatever brings the storm.

Just for a bit of further evidence, the Deep Freeze skin was recently added back into the store for purchase, while Epic Games recently announced the Winter Royale Tournament with US$1 million prize money up for grabs.

One reddit user created some concept art for some new snow covered locations:

Snowy Biome concept for S7 from r/FortNiteBR

WEEK 9 CHALLENGES REVEALED AND HOW TO DO THEM

Challenges for Week 9 of the battle pass have been leaked, and while subject to change by Epic Games, here is what we can expect for now:

• Get 30s of airtime in a vehicle

• Get a score of 10 or more on different Carnival Clown Boards (3)

• Stage 1: Consume Mushrooms (5)

• Deal damage to players with a Clinger, Stink Bomb or Grenades (300)

• Deal damage to opponent structures with Dynamite (10,000)

• Rocket or Grenade Launcher Eliminations (3)

• Stage 1: Deal damage with Grenades to opponents (100)

You dont have to get your vehicle airtime in one go as the challenges suggests so this is actually fairly easy to achieve. The carnival clown boards require you to pop balloons at 3 different locations near Junk Junction, Pleasant Park, Lonely Lodge, Flush Factory or Paradise Palms.The other challenges are fairly straight forward and just require you to consume items, get eliminations and deal damage to opponents and structures.

SHOTGUN CHANGES

Fortnite will once again be balancing the pump shotgun in the latest update, this time receiving a buff to improve effectiveness, says Design Lead for Epic Games, Eric Williamson.

The upcoming 6.31 update will include a Pump Shotgun rebalance to improve effectiveness: damage will increase in close quarters and range will be reduced slightly. Additionally, ALL shotguns will have a minimum damage of 3 pellets (even if only 1 or 2 hit).

— Eric Williamson (@erwil9) November 20, 2018

Since the most recent nerfs to the shotgun, the weapon has fallen out of favour with some players, with many shots dealing out very minimal damage. Given that shotguns are one of the most popular weapons in the game, these changes were needed to improve its consistency in-game.

LIMITED TIME MODE: THE WILD WEST

A new LTM is here centred on Cowboys and the Wild West, with items and weapons restricted to ones that suit this theme, like shotguns and the six-shooter. Players who have been enjoying Red Dead Redemption 2 recently can ease back into Fortnite with this Western shooter mode.

OTHER NEWS

In other changes this week, the brand new dynamite item was reintroduced after being removed from the game after causing client crashes. Once lit, the dynamite will explode after five seconds and cannot be cancelled, so don’t forget to actually throw it! The explosion will deal 70 damage to players and 800 damage to structures.

The new Turret item is expected to receive a nerf in a hot fix update, after being deemed too powerful by many players. It will now overheat quicker, while the headshot multiplier has also been reduced. The upcoming 6.31 update will improve the Turret’s collision volume, meaning it will be easier to hit targets from the front.

Some Fortnite users believe the games building mechanics are currently experiencing issues, with experiments showing the ‘turbo build’ setting is broken. While most people cannot build fast enough in game to be worried about this, it is a concern shared among high profile Fortnite streamers.

In terms of money, Epic Games took a hit in October, with Fortnite losing its number one position as the highest grossing game, to new releases Call of Duty Black Ops 4 and Red Dead Redemption 2. However, fears the game is dying should ease, as monthly revenue was still up and should continue to rise.

All the kids be playing it.

@wilsonsmithdt | [e-mail]