Fortnite – Xbox Series X Review
Fast Facts
Fortnite – Xbox Series X
Developer: Epic Games
Publisher: Epic Games
Website: www.fortnite.com
Genre: Battle Royale
Platform: Xbox S|X
Age Rating: 12
Release Date: 21/07/2017
Price: Free to Play
A code was provided for review purposes.
Introduction
The juggernaut battle royale that is Fortnite has quite literally taken the gaming world by storm. From its simple multiplayer gameplay, to its wealth of seasonal content, Fortnite show no signs of slowing down. With the Xbox Series S|X consoles now with us, Fortnite has inevitably found its way to the newest members of the Xbox family.
So come with me as I delve into the realms of Fortnite, and see how well the cross-platform-multiplayer-battle-royale plays on the Xbox Series X. We’ll also be taking a look at the Skull Squad cosmetic pack too!
Gameplay
Fortnite is your typical battle royale with the game following the tried and tested battle royale formula. Each player skydives into the match armed with only a pickaxe and then has to scavenge for weapons and building materials as they go. To make matters worse during play the map periodically shrinks and in doing so brings the surviving players closer and closer together until only one player (or team) remains.
It’s easy to see why Fortnite originally exploded in popularity. It’s a free-to-play title with child-friendly aesthetics and caters to all skill levels. Back during the game’s infancy, building a staircase up a mountain was considered ‘elite-tier’, nothing compared to the 7-storey mansions that get built instantly nowadays by players who are getting shot at. Epic Games are also constantly listening to player feedback and the constant patches keep the game fresh and engaging to its community.
However because of this constant evolution Fortnite isn’t easy to learn as a newbie. The building mechanics are complex to say the least and fits into the game right alongside the core third-person shooter gameplay. Learning and putting both into practice takes a fair few matches but eventually it all falls into place.
Story
Another part of Fortnite’s appeal comes from its surprising narrative. Despite existing solely as an online multiplayer title, Epic have spent the last few years breaking the usual multiplayer tropes by introducing a continuous evolving plot that now spans multiple seasons of content.
The first season of story content all started with a meteor hanging for weeks in the sky above the game’s map. This soon crashed into the Dusty Depot location which then changed the way the map looked. Since that first event the Fortnite world has changed considerably. There’s been: giant robot vs. monster battles, rocket launches, volcano eruptions, time distortions and even more recently super-massive black holes…take that Muse!
Through this clever way of storytelling Epic have created quite a passionate Fortnite community, who thrives on what it could all mean and the greater conspiracy at play. Without these awe-inspiring moments, the game wouldn’t be half as popular as it currently is. The community really is the beating heart of Fortnite – and this also includes those who play as Peely or the dreaded ‘Default Skin’.
Evolution Is A Mystery
The overall experience with Fortnite will be different depending on when you get involved though, because the meta constantly changes as Epic introduces new items and vaults old ones. Just like the map frequently changing, some of the weapons available will be completely different from month to month.
Epic Games’ wild ride of changes – combined with building mechanics and quirky items – keep the game from feeling too serious. This means that as a whole, Fortnite is pretty fun to play. Sure there are times where you’ll be outplayed and quit for the evening, but you’ll be right back at it the next day because nothing in Fortnite ever feels unfair. With multiple modes on offer, Fortnite has moved past being solely a battle royale game, even if Epic have sadly dropped support for Fortnite: Save The World.
Series X-treme
Getting into the nitty-gritty, Fortnite on the Xbox Series X is a smooth and pretty experience. The only real draw-back is the game’s loading times. It takes just under 14 seconds to get from Xbox Dashboard to the start menu of Fortnite – is 14 seconds too long?
Thankfully Fortnite on the Xbox Series X is more impressive when it comes to its visuals. We now have the option to add an FPS (Frames Per Second) counter to the screen and this confirms that the game runs at 60FPS, even at 4K resolution. Fortnite looks great on the Xbox Series X, with shadows and surfaces, looking crisper than ever. Even the omnipresent storm has more detail to it, with the storm wall having a kind of grid pattern. The only real graphical hiccup is the odd occurrence of texture pop-in when descending to the island at high-speed.
The changes made to the Xbox Series X version of Fortnite aren’t particularly groundbreaking in terms of what is already there on older consoles. It’s faster, but many elements of the game are still tied to the player’s Internet speed. The visuals are better, but this is mitigated by the cartoonish aesthetic of the game. With all of that being said, the Xbox Series X version of Fortnite is incredibly smooth and the game looks better than the iterations on older consoles. It’s an improved version of one of the most popular video games of all time, and it’s free, so there are no drawbacks to checking it out or tying existing progress to the Xbox Series X.
Skull Squad Cosmetics
These last few weeks have seen Epic really ramp up their cosmetics game. With a wealth of Marvel inspired cosmetics currently doing the rounds, a special Halloween pack was also recently made available. The Skull Squad cosmetic pack features four classic Fortnite outfits, reworked with the famous Skull Trooper’s black and white design.
Players can pick up the new pack for £15.99. Unfortunately, you will not be able to use V-Bucks to buy it. Whilst this may seem a lot you are getting a fair few cosmetic items for your buck. The Skull Squad pack includes the following items: Fishskull Outfit, Bait and Bones Pickaxe, Skull Squad Leader Outfit, Cuddly Bones Back Bling, Bone Boss Outfit, Creep Fried Back Bling, Beef Bone Pickaxe, Bone Ravage Outfit, Bone Wings Back Bling, Skelly Sailer Glider, and finally; Bony Wrap.
Rapid Reviews Rating
You can download Fortnite via the Xbox Store by clicking here.
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One Comment
TruCloud
One thing that stands out a mile especially with players on the European server is they really do must have a meaningless existence with the amount of time and mods they waste on it. Some take it so seriously they actually try to pretend to be real? Or they think it’s real? You have “players” who just jump on to find a spot and stand around like a complete tit just waiting for someone to pass by (to normal players these idiots would be called pussies because they are to scared to go looking for a fight) you have “players” who have the absolute worst taste in costumes. Some you’d think are completely colour blind. You have actual men using female characters?! – maybe they couldn’t pull in real life and likewise think their character is real? Who knows. The European server though has to be full of worst “players” imaginable. And I’m sure the development team of Fortnite would also be ashamed to see just what losers are playing it. Not all players are like this but certainly 90% of them. Finally mods. Yes these retards who are scared of losing at a fake game do exist and you can actually report them. I’m not entirely sure if Epic actually pay attention to these reports, however as it’s a paid game with a live platform I can’t see how they can afford to ignore them. The good news is you can change your server in the game to get away from the worlds biggest idiots and play among real players elsewhere in the world. You know the ones who aren’t scared to find a pretend gun, go looking for a battle and aren’t scared to press fire on the controller. So if your stuck on the European server. End the riff raff rubbish and change it.