Epic Games, with its latest move, has rather surprisingly jumped and brought a new item from the past for Fortnite players, which is quite fascinating. The ‘Heart Breakers’ spray which was introduced during the Valentine’s event in 2021 is now up for grabs for players at just 8 Points. Yes, you have read it right. The item that had been lying in the game files for over three years and remained unidentified all this while is now finally visible. It is a weird move by the company, but on the other hand, it is good for the collectors who are keen on items.
The update, by all appearances, is in line with the traditional data mining sources and has caused quite a different reaction within the gaming community. The happiest ones would be the gamers. For instance, one of the tweets from Sunshine, “Yesss a spray 🥰❤️” is very much in tune with the feeling of anyone who has been trying to complete their Valentine’s set. Further, another player, plants_potss, called it “the hardest… spray I’ve seen in a hot min lowk”. Strong praise it indeed is coming from the world of Fortnite cosmetics where the market is very saturated and everybody has seen everything.
On the other hand, there is also the contrary opinion. Epic’s bringing back the old times is not seen as a good thing by all. One user, Fanelsis, went on to make a rather inflammatory remark: “Running out of ideas 😁 Last year, they were releasing all the bottom of the barrel scraps that had been buried for years unreleased in the game files.” Ouch! His rancorous feeling was echoed by others too as Mr. whopper gaming not only replied to him but also reminisced about a time when Epic was liberating too much from the files back during Chapter 4 and 5. One is left to wonder what the situation is like there.
The entire matter sparked a mini-debate in the replies. Either a blessing or a signal of the end of creativity was the question. Chrome_HeartTag took the opposite view, saying “I mean this as a good thing; these unused items are finally getting released. I don’t see how it’s running out of ideas.” And they are right. For those players who are into data mining and every leak, there is a peculiar sense of happiness in seeing an item they uncovered years back finally getting unwrapped. It is like saying, oh, hello there-is that thing I had overlooked.
The mystery surrounding the reason for the selection of this particular spray is also quite intriguing. JonesyyMakes informed another user that “The spray was scrapped from the event” in 2021. So it was indeed on the list of planned items, then taken away, and now it is a reward for completing a simple challenge. It gets one to speculate about how many live events have been planned with the content never reaching the public. The vault must be enormous.
Humor and references, of course, were not long in coming. PositiveFN player saw the ‘Heart Breakers’ and instantly diverted the talk towards the “Kanye West reference. And I don’t refer to the song.” which is… an obscure reference but still funny. A new thread started with people talking about what other long-lost items might resurface; Heeheehahahoho made a jest “We’ll be certain when they drop the Shave the Date emote lol”. That is the magic of Fortnite—every old file is a potential new release, and the community is always there to remind it.
In fact, it is very trivial. Just one spray. But still, it communicates a more profound thing about Fortnite’s battle royale live service model. The game keeps living and maturing together with its history that is buried in the code. Every now and then, Epic decides to go back and take something out of the past, maybe to create a new reward track, to appease the completionists or simply because they found it and thought ‘why not’. For the players, it is a simple unlock that comes with a little bit of decoration. For the critics, it is proof of the company being behind the recycling art.
Eventually, whether you are logging in this week or not, a piece of 2021 that was never there will be open for you. It’s an amusing little detail in the endless chapter of Fortnite. Whether you regard it as attractive or a sign of doom, it most likely depends on your attitude towards digital spray cans. But the price of 8 Points? It’s nearly like being donated free of charge. You may as well take it and stow it away in your locker. Who’s to say what other treasures lie hidden, patiently waiting for their time? Maybe the disco llama emote from 2019 will be the next one to be released next month. With this game, you can never tell. The community is always debating, whether it’s about a new PlayStation crossover or an Xbox release.
