By Eean Garcia

Fortnite: Battle Royale is the highest grossing game of the quarter having sold 45 million copies across PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The original game was released in July of 2017 by the game’s developer Epic, where they later decided to add in a “last man standing” battle mode similar to the game PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds. In a nutshell Fortnite is a mashup of Hunger Games and Minecraft thrown into one game…also did I mention it’s FREE.

The reason the game has grown to be so popular is most likely due to the fact that it is free and it has caught the attention of many youtube gamers such Ali-A. The game includes bright animated graphics and include tons of DLC items such as space suits and dinosaur outfits. The initial game is free although you have the option to purchase  a Premium Battle Pass where you gain access to exclusive clothing and items. None of the items that are earned through the Battle Pass make the player more powerful although they do spice up the games graphics.

Fortnite: Battle Royale is based on a single, large island with an ever-shrinking habitable area. If you’re outside of that area, your health begins to drain until you’re dead — in this way, players are forced together rather than able to hide. Therefor the game forces you to play aggressive yet strategic as you need to watch your back. At the beginning of each game players jump from a purple flyin bus known as the Battle Bus to the island where they parachute in to find loot such as weapons, med packs, shields, and various materials (wood, brick, metal). Rather than being a normal last man standing gamemode, Fortnite adds the element of construction allowing the player to build similar to the game of Minecraft. Matches in each game typically last from 10 to 15 minutes which is what makes it easy to hop into a new game similar to other fast paced games such as Halo.The first few minutes of each round typically play out as a mad dash for weapons. Most of that precious loot is found in the game’s town areas scattered around the center of the map. As such, you have a choice to make: Do you risk dying early in the pursuit of rare weapons, or do you stay away from the pack in favor of less densely packed areas without nearly as much available firepower?

The Fortnite community will only continue to grow as it’s ridiculously fun to play, easy to learn, and surprisingly complex beneath the surface. If you do not own a console or a pc, fear not, Fortnite is making its way to ios devices in the near future.