New Weapons
If there’s one thing that’s been really noticeable as part of Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 1, it’s been the stripped-back arsenal of weapons we’ve had in comparison to past seasons.
Where in previous seasons there were about three or four different types of Assault Rifle, numerous shotguns, SMGs, launchers, and weird and wonderful weapons for players to use, Chapter 2 simplified everything. There’s no longer half as many weapons, but it has somewhat simplified the pros and cons of each weapon in different combat scenarios. Though we’re still not over the loss of the beloved Hunting Rifle. F… F.
Chapter 2 Season 1’s not been completely devoid of new additions to the roster of weapons. The Harpoon Gun made its debut, offering a faster way to fish, as well as deal damage to your opponents. Sidegrading also introduced the Heavy Assault Rifle, albeit in a limited fashion (you can only get it from sidegrading).
We’ve had a great time messing around with all the weapons on offer, but it would be nice to have some more thought-out additions introduced in the next 10-week season. A single-shot or semi-automatic rifle would be neat… can you tell we really miss that Hunting Rifle?
Whatever Epic decides to add (if it does opt to add new weapons in Chapter 2 Season 2), they need to be balanced. The first ‘Chapter’ of Fortnite was marred by unpopular additions to the game that felt massively unbalanced. The Stormwing planes and mechs, for example, stuck around for whole seasons despite being largely unpopular and overpowered. The same can be said for the Quad Launcher and Guided Missile.
New weapons are fun, but the meta is more important. Here’s hoping Epic keeps that in mind when making any new additions to Fortnite’s arsenal. We’re looking at you, hinted dynamite.
More Consistent Support
One of the most glaring faults in Chapter 2 Season 1 was the lack of consistent support from Epic Games. In past seasons, each and every week players were given patch notes detailing the new content or balance changes that had been introduced that week. We were part of the discussion, kept in the know. It was wonderful.
Alas, Chapter 2 Season 1 went in the complete opposite direction. We’ve only had a handful of patches, and they’ve been lackluster in what they offer. Similarly, patch notes have been few and far between, to the point where it’s unclear if little balance tweaks have been done that players just haven’t been made aware of.
Chapter 2 Season 2 needs to turn this around. The community needs to be kept in the know to feel like they’re a part of the game’s developments. This is an early access game, and the major lull in consistent patches and support doesn’t enable players to provide feedback as frequently, hindering that discourse between developer and player. Here’s hoping we’ll be back to regularly scheduled patches and patch notes moving forward.
Map Changes
Chapter 2 introduced an entirely new map. New named locations have been introduced, a ton of new landmarks litter the island, and rivers make inroads into the land mass to make for a more varied experience.
All of this results in a far more ‘fresh-feeling’ Fortnite experience. The problem is that since the season kicked off all the way back on Oct. 15, 2019, the map’s remained the same. Minor cosmetic tweaks aside — including those in the Star Wars crossover event — we’ve been stuck with the same map for over four months now.
This issue is certainly exacerbated by the fact the season’s run on for much, much longer than the usual 10-week duration, but that only makes it more important that Chapter 2 Season 2 brings significant map changes to the table. With rumors of the map flooding, and others of a ‘golden touch‘ bringing sweeping changes to the entire map, things certainly look promising.
More Exciting Challenges
I don’t know about you, but I enjoy Fortnite’s challenges the most when they’re not simply requiring me to deal damage with a certain weapon type, or visiting a certain named location. Sure, we get it, you need some of these to help fill out 10 week’s worth of challenges, but Chapter 2 Season 1 felt particularly lacking when it came to tracking down hidden collectibles, or encouraging players to dive into the new features introduced in the new chapter.
Sure we had the occasional challenge requiring us to do a spot of fishing or upgrade our weapons, but compared to the vast amount of challenges requiring us to open chests in a certain location or dealing damage with a particular weapon type, it just wasn’t enough.
With the start of a new season, there’s an opportunity for new gameplay features, weapons, hidden collectibles, landmarks, items, and so on. All of this in itself then gives Epic plenty of options for new and exciting challenges that don’t just feel like the same ones we’ve seen countless times before.
Limited-Time Game Modes Galore
When the core concept of a standard Battle Royale match begins to get a little boring, no map changes, new weapons or challenges can do a whole lot to change that.
It’s why Epic’s introduction of Limited-Time Modes back in Chapter 1 was so genius. Things like Team Rumble mixed up the rules just enough to make it a nice breath of fresh air, and those that followed this now-staple mode only took it further.
Solid Gold brings gold-only drops to the table, the Floor Is Lava is exactly what you’d imagine it to be, and The Getaway was arguably one of the most enjoyable and unique BR experiences I’ve had to date.
All of these, sadly, were introduced initially in Chapter 1, and in the 14 Days of Summer event that took place last year, players got 14 entirely new LTMs to check out.
In comparison, Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 1 has had slim pickings when it comes to LTMs. We’ve seen the likes of Solid Gold and a Trios mode make an appearance, but nothing new that’s really got us excited. The Star Wars crossover event brought new weapons and places of interest on the map, but only temporarily. It was also forced into all game modes, so there was no escaping the wub-wubbing of lightsabers in Fortnite.
While by no means a major issue in Chapter 2 Season 1, new or fan-favorite LTMs returning to the fold would have helped keep interest. It’s a statement that rings especially true when the season has dragged on for so damn long. At least there’s next season!
Improved Bot AI
I didn’t know what to expect when Epic announced bots would be populating games of Fortnite. Considering games were seldom ever reaching the full 100 players per game, it was a good way to help ensure matches didn’t feel empty and became a boring traipse across the map as a result.
On the other hand, bots are dumb. They never quite emulate a human properly, and they stick out like a sore thumb. Well, guess what, Fortnite’s bots are the exact same.
They don’t build, they like to harvest almost anything and everything they see, and they’ll fire at you from distance, missing most shots. In team-based modes, they don’t stick together, making picking them off a cinch. In other words, they’re cannon fodder of the highest degree.
Granted, they’re not supposed to be as common in games with higher-skilled players — they work alongside the relatively new skill-based matchmaking system, but they still seem to show up far more than I’d expect in a typical match.
It wouldn’t be an issue, honestly. I don’t mind gunning down some bots, just as long as it’s not so easy that I could do it with my eyes closed. Chapter 2 Season 2 really needs to see bots up their game. Let’s see them ‘cranking those 90s’ or actually landing a sniper shot for once.
Bot difficulty can still be scaled dependent on the skill level of players in the game, but they shouldn’t feel as ‘dumb’ as they currently do.
What changes do you want to see in Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2? Let us know down in the comments below.
Published: Feb 18, 2020 10:38 am