Fortnite is adding the Storm Flip and Quick Heal in Patch 9.20, while also vaulting the hunting rifle. While E3 is right around the corner, Epic Games continues to provide constant change to its Battle Royal. As always, the patch notes can be read over at Epic Games.
An exciting addition to the game has been added in the form of the Storm Flip, which is thrown like an explosive and on impact creates a spherical zone that inverts the space it occupies: In a storm, it creates a safe space to occupy for a short while. Conversely if it lands in a safe space, it creates a storm. In theory the item should be useful for area denial when fighting other players but given that Fortnite is generous with its player mobility this may not be as useful as it seems on paper. With that said, there are applications for its use in the odd chance that fighting it happening in places with significant choke points, which is true of any explosive device.
The Quick Heal is a new feature introduced in this patch that will make healing both more streamlined and efficient. It allows for Shield and Health consumables to be used more easily, and whenever either your health or shields drop below 100, the Quick Heal button will be displayed on screen. A Button Icon will display the current priority items from the player’s inventory:
- Priority 1 - Chug Jug over all other healing items
- Priority 2 - Health over Shield items
- Priority 3 - MedKit over Bandages.
- Priority 4 - If shields are below 50, Small Shields
- Priority 5 - If shields are greater or equal to 50, Shield Potions
In a move that may irk some players, the Hunting Rifle has been vaulted in all its variants. Epic went on to state that “While we value the variety of longer range sniping options, the Hunting Rifle has become somewhat outclassed by the Infantry Rifle after it was changed to hitscan. In addition, there are a few Sniper Rifle options available and we feel it doesn’t currently fill a necessary role in the item lineup.”
This is an interesting explanation from Epic with regards to favoring a hitscan weapon over a projectile. Perhaps this is a move to reward accuracy in a different way, though no one can argue that hitting a moving target at 200 meters with a non-scoping sniping weapon does not require skill.
Finally, Sword Fight will be returning in the Limited-Time Mode Rotation. The drastically overpowered Infinity Blade can be found in Treasure chests and will function as it did during the brief time it was in the game before being vaulted.
Fortnite is available on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile, and patch 9.20 is available on all platforms.