Fortnite’s new map is too bougie for me
Gone are the days of collecting loot from run-down taco joints and rusty playgrounds Fortnite. Epic Games released a huge new update to the battle royale game this week as part of Chapter 5 Season 1. The patch literally blew up the OG map with a meteor and replaced it with a brand new, much nicer map. Instead of rugged locations like Greasy Groves or Tomato Temple, players will now explore palatial mansions like Lavish Lair or the manicured vineyards of Pleasant Piazza. Fortnite is now basically a fancy European vacation, and it feels a little out of my personal budget.
Developers have filled the new map with luxury points of interest. Another example: Grand Glacier, a hotel perched on a snow-capped mountain that looks like it came straight out of Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel. If the mountains aren't your thing, you can head to the Ritzy Riviera, a picturesque seaside town with villas perched on a sloping hill. In places like Classy Courts, decoded playgrounds with broken concrete have been replaced with manicured hedges.
Image: Epic Games
Call me a traditionalist, but I like to do stupid things Fortnite. I personally play as Kakashi naruto and style it with a Among us backpack while treating other players to emotes like the Gangnam Style dance. Part of what I fell in love with Fortnite was the flashiness of it all. It's a bright, cartoony game where you can go fishing with Ariana Grande, then turn around and fight Goku. In the new season, much of that quirkiness is still there: Peter Griffin is now a skin and appears as an NPC you can fight. But that tone doesn't seem to be reflected in the map, which is a central part of the game.
It's not like previous cards were lacking in high-end locations. Prior to the return of the OG map, Chapter 4, Season 4 added the cyberpunk-inspired Mega City and the sprawling Japanese estates of Kenjutsu Crossing. While Kenjutsu resembles the more elaborate locations in the current version of the game, some of those additions still evoked a kind of surrealism: the sci-fi elements of Mega City felt true to the less realistic elements of Fortnite.
That said, locations may change with each update. So it's possible that more meteors or other disasters will hit some of these beautiful locations and bring back some of the good old days. Fortnite charm – rough hedges and all.