Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 4 has arrived, featuring a psychedelic new trailer, as well as a range of new cosmetics, items, and locations.
The latest Fortnite update promises all kinds of new things. An all-new map, Mega City comes with a new biome filled with new locations, including the peaceful cherry blossoms of Steamy Springs, the waters of the Knotty Nets, and the frenetic battles of Kenjutsu Crossing, to name a few. The latest season - opens in a new tab - also includes two new weapons, the Havoc Shotgun and the Havoc Suppressed Assault Rifle, as well as two new vehicles designed specifically for the winding streets of Mega City.
A new Battle Pass has also been released. It's packed with futuristic character designs that would be right at home on the cyberpunk streets of Mega City and will set you back 950 V-Bucks. In a jarring twist, people who purchase the Battle Pass can also unlock Eren Jaeger, the protagonist of the iconic Attack on Titan anime (now in its fourth season). However, given Mega City's focus on rail grinding and 3D traversal, the inclusion of Eren Jeager jumping off walls and scaling buildings doesn't seem all that strange on reflection.
The launch trailer for the new update beautifully showcases the new movement options. The flashy characters use rails to move around the futuristic metropolis of Mega City, before showing us a glimpse of some of the other areas of the biome. The sweet cherry blossoms of Steamy Springs are beautiful as a graceful samurai cuts his way through opponents as he leaps across rooftops. He's psychedelic, cyberpunk, and wall-breaking all at once. You won't find these things in Call of Duty: Warzone or Player Unknown's Battlegrounds, that's for sure.
Neuromancy
I remember, in the mists of time, seeing an advertisement for a zombie survival game called Fortnite on the side of a bus one morning on my way to work. I never imagined that the title would one day offer its players such a beautiful blend of neon-tinged urban futurism. It's amazing to think that a game with relatively humble beginnings is now in a position where it can offer such a wide range of experiences.
I admit, I found the trailer quite charming. Fortnite looks ready to break the fourth wall with a cheeky wink and a wry smile. The people behind the trailer are fully aware of how shocking it is to see Attack on Titan's Eren Jeagar appear in a setting that looks like it belongs in Cyberpunk 2077. However, what is also clear is that the artists and designers revel in the incongruity.
They're right to do so because Fortnite is at the heart of a huge set of dolls and action figures that invite players' imaginations to run wild. The title deliberately and proudly breaks many of the arbitrary boundaries we have set in our fiction. There's something wonderfully childish about the inherent joy of Fortnite, and it's heartening to see that Epic seems determined to continue that trend.