Fortnite Battle Royale Game Review

Fortnite started as a third-person co-op survival game. It was marketed as a blend of Left 4 Dead and Minecraft with the title of Fortnite Save the World. The game initially focused on a PvE campaign, allowing its players to explore surrounding areas, scavenge for materials, build forts, and fight hordes of zombie-like husks.

Things took a major turn when a Fortnite update added the standalone battle royale mode in September 2017. It introduced a new Fortnite map that locked 100 players in an epic winner-takes-all battle against each other. At the end, only one player would remain standing. Or, well, one team if you’re playing with your friends.

The unique aesthetics and gameplay elements made the title a smash hit, but its biggest selling point is that you don’t have to buy anything at all! The game is free-to-play. And installing it was as simple as typing “Fortnite download” in Google and clicking on the Epic Games website.

If you want to conquer the Fortnite map, you have to know your items. Gathering loot is nothing new to the battle royale genre, but Epic Games made things more complex by adding item quality. The items are split into color-coded classes: grey (common), green (uncommon), blue (rare), purple (epic), and orange (legendary). This system is all-too-familiar to any MMO player. As a rule of thumb, you always want to pick an item of the higher quality, provided they’re both of the same types.

Of course, there’s also a matter of playstyle. A rare SMG won’t magically turn into a common sniper rifle, so you might want to hold on to the latter if you prefer to take out enemies from a long distance. As for the items themselves, you can often find them lying around the map. Still, you’ll have a better shot at discovering good loot if you hunt for treasure chests, supply drops, and the rare supply llamas. Hell, you can even stumble upon vending machines that exchange materials for items.

Fortnite presents a wide range of weaponry. Its arsenal includes pistols, SMGs, assault rifles, shotguns, and explosive weapons. On top of that, there are pickaxes (starting weapons used to gather materials), crossbows, bombs, grenades, and remote explosives.

Some of these are more valuable than others. Scoped weapons are king since most Fortnite battles happen at mid/long range, but having a shotgun for close quarters combat is also a pretty good idea. Finally, explosive weapons are great for demolishing player-made terrain and forcing your enemies out of their cover.

Make sure to stock up on ammo—you don’t want your weapons turning into glorified chunks of metal. And while this isn’t a requirement, equip a kick-ass Fortnite skin to kill your enemies in style!

In addition to weapons, the Fortnite map is home to a variety of items and consumables. Things like bandages and medkits can be used to restore health, and shield potions provide additional defenses and protect you from dying too easily. The slurp juice and the chug jug combine the best of both worlds by replenishing health and shields at the same time.

But your options don’t end here! You can set up spike traps on walls, floors, or even ceilings to blindside overly aggressive players. A launch pad will throw you up into the air where you can use your glider to escape your pursuers, and a cozy campfire will heal all teammates in its vicinity. You can even equip a camouflage to become a walking brush, although you might have to crouch if you want to actually fool someone. Finally, port-a-fort is Fortnite’s version of a panic button since it allows you to erect a massive fortress in a matter of seconds.

This title went a long way from the Fortnite Save the World days to its current battle royale iteration. During this time, the game acquired a massive following on Twitch, Twitter, and Fortnite Tracker. Its fans are incredibly passionate, and they have the numbers to make this game into the next big esport. And until someone else can challenge it, Fortnite will certainly stay at the top.