The vault has been opened, and the second season of Fortnite: Chapter 2 has been released, ushering in a slew of changes to the battle royale phenomenon. Fortnite, doing its best James Bond impression, is all about spies, secret agents and stealth this season. Before a player even drops into a game, they're given a choice between two warring factions of spies, one known as "Ghost" and the other the mysterious "Shadow." Once a choice is made, it's final -- there's no going back.
At DreamHack Anaheim, where some of the biggest names in professional Fortnite competed for an overall prize pool of $250,000, we asked the best about their thoughts on the new season that dropped as they arrived in Southern California and what they think of the current Fortnite landscape.
On Fortnite: Chapter 2, Season 2
100 Thieves' Martin "MrSavage" Foss Andersen: "It looks really chaotic. I haven't played it that much, but I'm excited to learn what the meta is going to be like. It's going to be interesting."
Misfit Gaming's Cody "Clix" Conrod: "I've really not played the new season yet, but I think it's 100% going to be really good. They added launchpads and that's [going to benefit] me. Back when I qualified for the World Cup, I qualified with launchpads and no traps. If there were traps, I'd W-key jump them and launchpad away. So with this season and new meta, I'm going to be back on top of the competitive scene."
Gen.G's Tina "TINARAES" Perez: "[This season] is definitely a huge change for many people the whole meta has shifted from box fighting to practically W-keying and forcing people to fight outside the box. I'm excited for this season because box fighting has always been my weakness so this new meta has been designed for me along with my new teammate MoqiiZK! I can't wait to get home and start grinding the game ASAP."
Rogue's Austin "Morgausse" Etue: "I'm stoked for mobility being brought back into the game, and that with traps being vaulted and so many good guns being unvaulted. It will be an exciting meta to watch, as more aggressive gameplay will be punished less/rewarded more."
TSM's Malachi "Reverse2K" Greiner: "I played that for a day or so before I flew out here to Anaheim. A lot of new [locations]. The grappler and the mythic items are in the arena so I wonder what [Epic Games'] thoughts are about that competitively. Other than that, it looks great. Fun times."
Gen. G's Maddie "Maddiesunn" Mann: "I've only played two days of it. I don't like spraying meta, just because there are too many controller players now. But you just gotta adapt and get used to it. I'm just ready for something new that isn't solo competitive anymore. I'd rather go back to team modes, that's what I'm looking forward to the most. I'm just ready to grind again that isn't solos because I've been really lonely the last two months."
Cloud9's Joseph "Keeoh" Winkler: "I like the new season a lot, definitely more content-oriented than competitive-oriented, which is more fun for me as I am a content creator. But it's still a lot of fun, so I think it'll mix things up and be interesting for the viewers for sure."
If you could change one thing about Fortnite, what would it be?
Keeoh: "I'm definitely not a fan of C4 and grenades, especially in competition. I just don't think it's something that is super competitive that you can just die out of nowhere. Other than that, I think the game is going to be in a pretty decent state. It's going to be really exciting going into Season 2."
Clix: "Well, the thing I thought they needed to change was mobility, but since they added that I don't really think there is anything I can say. Maybe add shadow bombs? That's one thing I really enjoyed."
Reverse2k: "The biggest thing is mobility. A lot of zones can factor where you place in a tournament standpoint, but if you have mobility, zones don't mean anything."
Maddiesunn: "I'd separate the keyboard and mouse [players] and ones who use a controller. I know cross-platform was a really great way in-game to get everyone involved, but competitive-wise, it is not balanced between either of them, so I think they should be completely separated. Or at least somewhat balanced."
What is Epic Games doing right?
Maddiesunn: "They just know how to keep things entertaining. I think they keep everything new, fresh and just different. There are a lot of mainstream [influences] like dances from TikTok that go into the game and they just started bringing creator skins into the game. There is always something new happening which keeps people entertained."
Clix: "With the new season, they added the launchpad, so that was 100% right the play. We needed mobility in the game or we'd have to roll through our [materials] to be good, so Epic made a really good decision by adding [more] mobility to the game."
Keeoh: "I love the [constant updates to the game.] It keeps the game fresh and new, even though there are some updates I don't agree with and they should address them a little quicker. Like when they introduced mechs, they should have toned them down within a couple of weeks instead of a couple of months. But other than that, [Epic] keeps the game really, really fresh."
Morgausse: "I think Epic Games is making the right choice of fluctuating their game mechanics and loot pools again, although I hope it has its limits on the competitive pool specifically. The randomness/chaos of the Fortnite meta is what makes it unique as a game, and I think it appeals to the content [and] casual players, which is undoubtedly healthy for the game."