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  • Worlds Collide in Fortnite’s Fifth Season

    Worlds Collide in Fortnite’s Fifth Season

    Fortnite’s fifth season is now live, following the introduction of a real-world ARG. Recently, the game’s Durr Burger mascot was found in the California desert, having apparently slipped there from the game’s world. Now that the fifth season has kicked off, it seems a number of objects from various places and times have been pulled into the game. Viking ships, giant statues and more now litter the game’s map. In fact, the map has changed pretty dramatically as a result of the rifts.

    News Areas, New Faces in Fortnite’s Fifth Season

    Moisty Mire, everyone’s favorite swamp, has been turned into a sprawling desert. In addition, a number of other changes on the map’s surface have occurred thanks to the rifts. Two new named areas are now in the game: Lazy Links and Paradise Palms. Lazy Links, a resort with a pool, replaces Anarchy Acres, which is no great loss, as Fatal Fields is nearly the same area. Moisty Mire, however, is now the desert locale of Paradise Palms.

    Several new skins are also introduced in the new Battle Pass. The slick-looking, paint-tagging vandal Drift and the Viking Huntress are both unlocked right away with the battle pass, and many more skins away in higher tiers.

    Golf Carts, Rifts and More

    The newest vehicle in the game, the All-Terrain Karts, can seat up to four players and give a considerable speed boost. While Shopping Carts were a cool addition for duos last season, the ATKs give squads of four a new way to travel! The top of the cart functions as a jump pad, too!

    Additionally, the rifts that developed in the sky at the end of last season have now fallen to the earth. If you jump in one, you’ll be teleported elsewhere on the map, where you can then paraglide to safety. This is a great trick for eluding would-be attackers!

    Fortnite is available for free on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and iOS.

  • Fortnite’s Durr Burger has Appeared in the California Desert

    Fortnite’s Durr Burger has Appeared in the California Desert

    A strange ARG has begun in advance of the fifth season of Fortnite. A few weeks ago, an in-game even led to a rocket launch that then caused a series of temporal rifts. Following the appearance of the rifts, some have grown considerably. The rifts have also begun to absorb certain notable landmarks from around the map. One such landmark, the large Durr Burger mascot from the Greasy Grove area, has appeared somewhere else. Nowhere in the Fortnite world, mind you, but somewhere in the real world.

    Durr Burger Sighting

    The dumb-looking mascot for the fictional Durr Burger restaurant was spotted by photographer Sela Shiloni, who is not a gamer. Shiloni was understandably a bit freaked out by the presence of a giant, googly-eyed burger with a lolling tongue. After spotting it and posting it to various social media sites, Fornite players quickly informed the photographer that he had found the missing burger! A bit of digging on Google maps yielded coordinates for the burger. Since, several streamers and enthusiasts have traveled to the location to see what’s going on.

    At the site, they are greeted by “secret agents” who encourage the tourists to stay back. The area is an anomaly, visitors are told, and it could be dangerous. Some are given promo codes for Fortnite goodies. Others are given a phone number to call; the number plays an odd, garbled version of the rift sound from the game.

    Future Items to Appear in Our World?

    The giant burger mascot will likely not be the only Fortnite landmark appearing in the real world. The fifth season of the game will begin in earnest tomorrow, and with it we expect to see some major changes in the world map. The rift in the sky over the map has grown larger every day since it appeared, and that will likely come to a head at the start of season five. What this means for the future of Fortnite, and for the ARG that seems to be developing in our own world, remains to be seen. Either way, we’ll be sure to see you on the battlefield!

  • New Malware Targets Fortnite Cheaters

    New Malware Targets Fortnite Cheaters

    In an unusual twist, those gamers downloading hacks for Fortnite may be in danger of downloading malware. Fortnite, the super-popular battle royale game, is quite competitive, and some less-scrupulous players opt to download cheating scripts. Such scripts give them an unfair edge, doing things like aiming for them or altering their screen’s heads-up display. These cheaters are clearly making the experience worse for others, but they seem to be getting a comeuppance.

    Fortnite Cheaters Drowning in Malware

    The malware was detected by a company called Rainway. Rainway is a remote streaming service that allows its users to play games while away from their computers. The company’s traffic enforces whitelisting, only connecting to URLs that have been given an official go-ahead. As such, the malware, which was redirecting ad traffic to different servers, caught their attention, as did the common denominator behind them. All of the players who were experiencing these errors were Fortnite players!

    By narrowing it down, Rainway was able to quickly discern that the malware in question came from a specific aim-bot hack. According to a report by Ars Technica, the malware acted as a man-in-the-middle attack, which would begin hosting ads from adtelligent.com and springserve.com. The attacks would cut off legitimate ads and run the ones hosted on the aforementioned sites. Rainway informed the site that was providing the Fortnite hack, as well as Adtelligent and Sringserve. The site hosting the hack took it down, and Springserve helped purge the hosted ads. Adtelligent had no comment, nor did Epic, the company that makes Fortnite.

    The Moral of the Story

    An easy way to avoid viruses like this is to not download anything from sketchy websites. Running scripts from cheat-hosting websites is like inviting strangers into your house: you don’t know what they’ll do with your stuff. While cheaters are jerks for trying to get an unfair advantage, we don’t want anyone having their computers ruined by viruses. So, be smart, don’t cheat at video games, and don’t download sketchy hacks! This malware wasn’t even that disruptive. The next one might not be so generous!

  • PS4 Fortnite Players Locked from Playing on Switch

    PS4 Fortnite Players Locked from Playing on Switch

    Sony has been a notorious opponent of cross-platform play. Most recently, Sony has slammed the door shut on cross-platform play with the mega-popular Fortnite on their system. Fortnite players on Xbox One and Switch can’t play with their friends on PS4 and vice-versa. PS4 players can, however, play with players on iOS and PC. The worst part isn’t the cross-platform play, though, it’s Sony’s absurd account lockout policy. 

    Sony Holding Fortnite Accounts Hostage 

    Against the advice of literally every industry analyst, Sony has declared outright war on the concept of playing nice with Nintendo and Microsoft. After Fortnite’s Switch launch on June 12th, a number of Switch owners were stunned to see they couldn’t link their Epic accounts to their Switch. If you’ve paired your Epic account with the PlayStation 4, you’re locked out from linking it on the Switch. Or the Xbox One, for what it’s worth, but most people hadn’t ever tried to jump from the Xbox to PS4. Gamers were understandably outraged, though, as Sony had given no indication that accounts linked to the PS4 version of the game would be locked from future ports of the game. 

    Sony’s Response to Criticism 

    Sony has been frustratingly evasive on this matter. When asked directly about it, they elected to boast about user numbers on their platform. Classy, Sony. While Epic has given no indication yet of how they will handle this issue, Nintendo was quick to apologize to their affected fans. Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America, expressed how he wished Nintendo could help, but the issue is out of their hands. Sony has chosen to enter this battle unbidden, purposefully alienating PS4 owners who also have a Switch.  

    For context, Switch and Xbox owners are able to play with any system that has the game, except, of course, PS4. The only thing standing between the world’s most popular game and full cross-platform play across all systems is Sony. This is really a shame, as the company is  driving a wedge between the game’s community over stubbornness. 

    What Can Be Done? 

    Sadly, for the time being, it seems that there is nothing affected users can do. If a user were to make a new account, they could play on Switch. However, their progress and any real-world money spent on their account would be locked on the PS4.  

    Perhaps Epic could allow users to migrate their accounts as a one-time service. Perhaps allowing users to remove PlayStation markers from their account and move to Xbox or Switch. Doing so would be in direct opposition to Sony. However, it would be a reasonable act in light of Sony’s unprecedented stubborn attitude. Until more news breaks, though, PS4 Fortnite users who want to play on Switch are left with few options. That, and a great deal of frustration at Sony. 

  • Fortnite For Switch! Get Ready to Battle on the Go!

    Fortnite For Switch! Get Ready to Battle on the Go!

    Fortnite, the astronomically popular battle royale shooter, is coming to Switch! The Korean ratings board posted their rating for the Switch version, confirming that the game is being ported. This news, ahead of E3, shows that Epic likely planned to announce the port at the large game conference.  

    Fortnite and Switch: A Match Made in Heaven 

    Fortnite, with its cartoony graphics and fast-paced action seems to be a perfect match for Nintendo’s hybrid console. Getting to battle and build while in handheld mode is sure to be hours of fun! Additionally, the Switch has very little in the way of free-to-play games, meaning the game will have little competition on the system. Children are likely to download it, thanks to its free-to-play model and bright graphics. Those same children will certainly then pester their parents for a few bucks to spend on in-game items, thus securing a great revenue stream for Epic.  

    While the demographics of the system make it a natural fit, this move also makes sense from another perspective. Fortnite had already been ported to every other modern console! The Xbox One and PS4 both have versions of the game, as does PC, of course, and even mobile! If the popularity of the game on mobile is any indication, demand for a handheld battle royale game is quite high. 

    Epic in the Headlines 

    Epic has been in the headlines recently thanks to more than just their mega-popular game. PUGB Corporation, the Korean company that makes rival game PUBG, has accused Epic of copyright infringement. To that end, PUBG Corp has sued Epic in Korea. Given just how much money both games make, it seems likely that if a case materializes, it will be incredibly high stakes.  

    In the meantime, though, both games continue to host millions and millions of players every day, all vying for the number one spot. If you’re interested in checking out Fortnite today, it’s free to download and on (nearly) every system! 

  • A Battle Royale Battle: Fortnite Being Sued by PUBG

    A Battle Royale Battle: Fortnite Being Sued by PUBG

    This one’s gonna be big. PUBG’s (short for Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds) parent company PUBG Corporation has filed suit against Epic Games. Epic, who creates and operates Fortnite, is accused of copyright infringement. The stakes here are pretty astronomical, so this is going to be a rather high-profile case. 

    High Profile? It’s Just Some Video Game Companies, Right? 

    Fortnite sported a record-breaking 3.4 million players online at one time in February of this year. The previous record? 3.3 million players, held by PUBG. Both games represent upwards of a billion dollars in revenue for their parent companies.  

    Those mind-boggling numbers are further augmented by the tremendous success of streamers, gamers who air their gameplay for entertainment. Both PUBG and Fortnite streamers can pull in thousands upon thousands of viewers while playing the battle royale games.If judges agree to look at the Korean company’s suit, it could be on the same scale as the recent Samsung and Apple case. Ironically, that case featured an American company suing a Korean one over patent claims. 

    Complications for the Suit 

    This case will be an odd one. For one thing, while PUBG went live before Fortnite in March of 2017, Fortnite is much older. It entered development seven years ago, in 2011, as a zombie survival game. However, after being released in July of 2017, Fortnite wasn’t performing as well as Epic had hoped. To bolster the player numbers, they introduced a free-to-play battle royale mode that proved immensely popular. 

    What’s more, Epic games created the Unreal Engine, the game engine PUBG runs in. This isn’t contentious in and of itself and is quite typical of the gaming industry. It is, however, an interesting wrinkle.  

    PUBG’s Claims 

    It does seem, however, that the plaintiff has some valid points. Both games feature a large map where 100 players are dropped from an airplane. Those players then scavenge for weapons and attempt to remain alive until they are the last man standing. They have somewhat similar user interfaces, although PUBG tries to appear quite realistic. Fortnite, by contrast, is cartoony and whimsical.  

    The only problem? Battle royale, as a genre, might not be an easy copyright to defend. To wit, PUBG itself is clearly based entirely on Koushun Takami’s 1999 dystopian novel Battle Royale. Takami’s novel quite literally lays the groundwork for the moment-to-moment gameplay of PUBG, down to the random locations of weapons and the ever-shrinking battleground. Any serious attempts by PUBG Corporation to defend their game as a wholly original work are thus a bit humorous.  

    Takami, for his part, has been rather influential in pop culture. The Hunger Games series, for instance, also bore striking resemblances to his novel. Takami himself was rather gracious about the other series’ success, stating “every novel has something to offer.” This leads one to believe he would have a similar attitude with regards to the battle royale video game craze. However, the point still stands: PUBG Corporation accusing someone else of copyright infringement is a bit ironic. 

  • Beau’s Number 1 App Review: Fortnite

    Beau’s Number 1 App Review: Fortnite

    Beau’s App series. Each week, I install whatever is the No. 1 bestselling app on the iOS or Android store and review it, to save you the effort in case it’s total waste of life. This week a game called Fortnite is not in the top spot but  Im taking it on anyways. How did it get to No. 1? it didn’t, its number 2. Love Balls has been holding strong for over 3 weeks now.. Also because it’s free, because it just came out for phones, and because it’s  already crazy popular console game.

    Fortnite is the latest battle royale style game that is taking the world by storm. Developed by Epic Games, the people behind Unreal Tournament (and the Unreal Engine), the game takes the battle royale format that is made popular by PUBG and brings it to everyone by being free to play everywhere. Today, we are taking a look at the mobile version, which although launched before the mobile version of PUBG, was invite-only for a while.

    The battle royale version is similar to PUBG, you know all about PUBG from the last Beau’s Number 1 App Review. 100 players compete on one island to be the last man standing. During the course of the game, players have to survive by scavenging items such as weapons and health packs, and killing others before being killed themselves. The area of the island is constantly shrinking as time goes on to encourage confrontation and avoid camping. The last person to survive wins the game.

    Some Cool Fortnite Features

    Fortnite actually supports cross-platform multiplayer gaming across iOS, PS4, PC and Mac. There is also a function over PUBG that allows you to build objects with wood, metal and brick you collect through the game. They also have a much varied wepon and character spectrum. Thanos and the infinity gauntlet where recently added as a feature weapon. So think of this as PUBG with Minecraft and a touch of Ratchet and Clank.

    iOS Functionality

    Fortnite runs great on iPhone, delivering the same experience we’ve seen on PC and consoles. Touch controls work fine, but the weapons you usually pick-up during the matches don’t fit well with the manual fire approach.​  Fortnite definitely functions on mobile, although players will have to refine their tactics and become deft with virtual controls that often work against them in the heat of battle. But it looks nice, it’s fun, it’s graphically stable and, if you’re signed into a regular Epic account, XP is shared across PC, mobile and console – so if you’re playing on the train or during your lunch break at work, you’re leveling up for when you get home. You see, it’s productive.

    The Final Thought

    Its a really great game, very exciting and fun. There is a lot more too this game but it isn’t quite as intense as PUBG. I prefer PUBG although it has been dethroned as the top battle royale game in the app store.