Following an explosive end to the battle royale’s third chapter, Fortnite’s newest season has arrived. Chapter four comes complete with an entirely new island for players to fight over. It features a handful of landmarks that draw on fantasy tropes, including a castle known as The Citadel that’s home to “The Ageless.” There’s also Anvil Square, a picturesque medieval town surrounded by trees at the peak of their autumn colors. On a different part of the island, players will find an abandoned farm ominously named the Frenzy Fields.
Chapter four also introduces new gameplay tweaks, and if there’s a theme to the season, it’s mobility. Dirt bikes called Trail Thrashers allow you to perform tricks and fire your weapons while on the move. Now you can also vault over obstacles by sprinting at them. Additionally, in areas where there’s snow, you can use a pickaxe to create a snowball. You can then jump into the snowball to take your enemies down by rolling over them.
However, the most interesting addition is a feature called Reality Augments. At a few intervals during a game, you’ll get to choose between two random buffs that you can keep until your character dies or you win the match. Light Fingers, one of the 22 Reality Augments available with the start of the new season, allows you to reload weapons that use light ammo faster. Speaking of weapons, there are several new ones to try, including a Shockwave Hammer you can use to launch yourself at your teammates and enemies.
On the technical front, Epic has moved Fortnite to the latest version of the Unreal Engine. On PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, players can look forward to ray-traced reflections on glossy materials and water. Of course, a new season also means a fresh battle pass for players to purchase and complete. The pass includes Doom Slayer, the protagonist of Doom (2016) and , as well as Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher series. Separately, an Incredible Hulk skin will arrive in the Item Shop “soon.” Chapter four, season one is available to play starting today.
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