What is Fortnite Reload, exactly? The new season takes Battle Royale to different places, and a lot of players are left searching for a replacement to the more classic Fortnite. Somewhere you can play with standard guns, builds, and not worry about collabs or any of the other bigger features. If you’ve been more interested in BR for a while, you might have missed how big Fortnite Reload has become.
The game mode is now one of Fortnite’s most popular. Players regularly go for it over the normal Battle Royale, thanks to its more gun-focused gameplay. The same Fortnite skills help here, but without the collab mythics and so many survival tactics. What makes Fortnite Reload different though?
What is Fortnite Reload?
Fortnite Reload is another Battle Royale within Fortnite. It was first added in Chapter 5. It’s a more traditional take on the game. You get the building and a more core set of weaponry compared to the current Battle Royale. It’s also quite a bit more fast-paced, with players being able to Reload once dead and stay in the game.
Fortnite Reload was originally an answer to the car combat of Chapter 5 Season 3, or maybe the untraditional season just proved the best time to release a mode like this. In either case, it worked. The Fortnite Reload maps were a hit.
The game mode’s focus on real guns was a hit, especially when Battle Royale was doing Mad Max cars or Marvel superpowers.
One of the big differences is that this is a smaller Battle Royale. It’s only built for 4 players. It’s a smaller map. Less chests. Less players. Fewer POIs. However, the ability to return to the game after death, without needing a lengthy reboot van process, means it’s much more action packed. Players are able throw themselves into fights without worrying too much. It ends up feeling more like a death match than normal Fortnite.
At one point this was a side mode, but at times it’s just as prominent as the main Battle Royale. Like during the Star Wars season, where Reload took over for Fortnite tournaments instead of Battle Royale. It isn’t really in competition with the main mode. Offering players a different version of Fortnite that might be closer to what they prefer. Fewer novelties like collabs and bosses, more action.
The Reload Mechanic
Out of the Fortnite Reload maps, the biggest change for the mode is the Reload Mechanic itself.
This is a second chance system. In the game’s originally bigger team sizes, it meant you could respawn until your team was eliminated fully. Or if you made it far enough in, when the lobby had few enough players in it. While you won’t always be able to grab your old loot back, the Reload mechanic means you can keep on playing. This is the main difference if you’re wondering what is Fortnite Reload.
The Fortnite Reload Mechanic has a different cut off depending on team size. Obviously, Solos works quite differently. This is how it works:
- Trios and Duos – You reboot until your whole team is dead at once, or only a handful of players remain.
- Solos – You reboot twice. At the end of the reboot period, your remaining lives turn into overshield. This gives a real advantage in the end game!
The Solos version of the Fortnite Reload mechanic is pretty useful. You can get a lot of overshield if you hoard them until the end of the game. It’s not rechargeable, but that extra HP comes in very handy for the end of the game.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that reloading in the other team sizes has its own drawbacks. You lose your best loot, lose part of your game in getting re-looted. It’s still a setback. Although, in team games you do get more help when you die.
Fortnite Reload Maps
Another key difference you’ll run into looking at what is Fortnite Reload is the map changes. Unlike Battle Royale, more than one of the Fortnite Reload maps is in focus at once. While Battle Royale has a set map that gets new POIs and updated, Reload keeps all of its maps. Players can find a different one depending on when they play.
There are three maps in total, and they’re available on a rotation. These are the Fortnite Reload maps:
- Venture – A map based on Chapter 1. With mini versions of the OG landmarks. Big attraction has to be Tilted Towers which dominates the center of the map.
- Oasis – The desert map! A collection of the desert POIs from all across Fortnite, with shrunk versions. Central part is the Shady Springs hotel and beach area.
- Slurp Rush – The newest map, one based on the early chapter 2 map. With Slurp barrels everywhere.
Each of these is available for a short period, then the next goes up for play. Players can always see all of the Fortnite Reload maps this way! The map rotation is a big part of what Fortnite Reload is these days. Having access to each of them means things are kept intresting.
We’ll likely see a lot of Slurp Rush in upcoming tournaments. Like the games played by the Pro-Am FNCS teams this season.
