Fortnite’s Season 9 update is now live on all platforms, making some big changes to the games map and loot.
The first new location is Neo Tilted, a more futuristic-looking high-tech version of Tilted Towers that has appeared on top of the ruins of its predecessor, which was flattened by a volcanic eruption last week. Retail Row was also flattened by the volcano, but a new and improved version called Mega Mall has now appeared on the site.
The other major addition for Season 9 are Slipstreams, which are tunnels of wind that “passively carry players down the stream”, giving players another method of travelling around the map. Players will be able to move faster and change direction in the stream, and you’ll be able to gain extra velocity by using directional inputs. Interestingly, projectiles and vehicles can both travel down the Slipstreams, which could be quite amusing. Air Vents are also new, and will act as launch pads that players can use to launch themselves a short distance into the air, granting them immunity to fall damage in the process.
As always, there’s also a new Battle Pass available right now for 950 V-Bucks, offering 100 levels and over 100 rewards to unlock such as skins, emotes, pets, and more. Fortbytes (get it?), which are new collectible items, are also exclusively tied in to the Battle Pass; they take on the form of computer chips, and over 100 will be available to collect for Battle Pass owners. Collecting Frostbytes will slowly decrypt a “mysterious image”, and collecting all 100 will unlock rewards and “uncover the secrets of Season 9”. 18 Frostbytes are available to find as of day one of Season 9, and at least 1 new Frostbyte will be made available each day.
There are also a load of weapon changes. The Combat Shotgun is new and is available in Rare, Epic, and Legendary variants from Floor Loot, Chests, Supply Drops, and Vending Machines. The Combat Shotgun offers a “tight spread and a fast fire rate”, with a base damage of 73/77/81 per shot and a headshot multiplier of 1.70x. Because of the addition of the Combat Shotgun, the highly popular Pump Shotgun has been vaulted, which is sure to upset a few people. There are plenty of other items getting the vault treatment too, with Clingers, Buried Treasure, Poison Dart Trap, Scoped Revolver, Suppressed Assault Rifle, Thermal Assault Rifle, and Balloons also being vaulted. Conversely, Grenades have been unvaulted and will now be available again.
There are also a number of bug fixes and quality of life improvements in the update – you can read the full patch notes here.
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