Fortnite's latest update brings a light machine gun, but no meteor devastation
Plus free goodies for last week's downtime.
Epic Games has released its latest Fortnite update, heralding another round of balance changes, bug fixes, and tweaks, alongside new additions like the Light Machine Gun. It also brings a selection of gifts for players, by way of an apology for last week's extended server downtime.
Scanning down the list of new additions, the Light Machine Gun is undoubtedly the highlight of today's Version 3.5 content update, although perhaps less exciting than some of the game's other recent treats - such as the sadly temporarily shelved guided missiles. The Light Machine Gun is a Battle Royale mode exclusive and includes a fast rate of fire and 100 round magazine designed, says Epic, to keep squads pinned down from a distance.
If that's not quite enough to get your pulse a-quickening, 3.5 also paves the way for the new limited-time Battle Royale mode 50v50 V2. This was originally scheduled to unfold last week but was delayed as a result of the game's widely reported account server issues and extended downtime; however, the new mode begins in earnest today.
Elsewhere, Fortnite's Save the World mode gets Into the Storm: Encore. "Venture into the storm with Lars," says Epic, "great treasures and dangers await". Complete the new challenges and you're able to unlock one of the new Cyberpunk Heroes pictured below.
Today's update also brings a number of free goodies for players as an apology for last week's server fiasco, just as Epic previously suggested it would. Players will receive 20 Battle Pass Stars in Battle Royale mode, and 1600 Seasonal Gold for Save the World.
A full list of additions, tweaks, and changes can be found in Epic's latest patch notes.
There is, of course, one notable omission here: Epic is still yet to make official mention of the presumed imminent destruction of the Battle Royale maps's Tilted Towers area.
As you might recall, an ominous meteor has hovered in the sky over Fortnite's map, gradually inching closer to earth, for several weeks now. Community sleuthing had lead fans to believe that the meteor would, eventually, slam straight into the map's controversial Tilted Towers area.
Most fans seems to agree that this will likely happen once Fortnite's current Battle Pass season draws to an end later this month. However, that didn't stop the community from organising a pre-emptive knees-up yesterday in anticipation of Tilted Towers' demise.
Spurred on by a post on the Fortnite subreddit, players arranged to log into the game at a specific time, then jet to Tilted Towers. The goal of the meet-up was to work together as one, and destroy every single piece of Tilted Towers - made possible thanks to Fortnite's building and destruction system. The agreement was that participants would all wear the default skin, in order to recognise each other and not shoot on sight.
Incredibly, the community pulled it off, managing to completely dismantle Tilted Towers before the match came to a close and then utilising the remaining time wisely with a hardcore dance party. You can see how that worked out for everyone in the video above.
Fortnite's 3.5 update does offer some advancement for those meteors watchers counting down the hours until impact: multiple meteors are now visible in the sky, suggesting that Epic's gripping denouement isn't far off.