Epic Games in a riddle-like manner has given the new battleground of Fortnite a sneak peek and the players’ reactions are already coming out the roof. The official Fortnite tweet came with a short, wonderfully designed view of a new site on the map and the phrase ‘Preparation = Victory’ next to it as if it were a slogan. The players are the ones that have reacted to the whole thing and they are already comparing it to Grand Theft Auto which is a very large part of the discussion up to now.
The teaser that features a character walking into a bright place full of palm trees instantly resulted in a stream of comments linked to GTA. User ‘denzyooo0’ wrote, ‘GTA spawning animation? palm trees? 👀👀👀👀👀’ and he was not alone. ‘wild_ghost556’ asked, ‘What in the GTA ah loading screen is that,’ while ‘LadoDeadpool’ even wanted to know is this a ‘GTA V collab?’. The similarity to the game by Rockstar was so big that ‘missrashfordx’ even said, ‘It’s giving GTA…. lol it looks like the rumors of Hollywood/Cali coming to Fortnite were true.’ The atmosphere is undoubtedly very much Los Santos, and players either like it, or they are at least curious. ‘mlkshkle11’ was incredibly enthusiastic and declared, ‘please say we play fortnite on the gta 5 map that would be fucking awesome.’ That is quite a significant request, but the visual style is implying more like a stunning urban or coastal area which is astonishingly different from the past environments.
Nevertheless, it is not just about the excitement and the dreams of GTA. The replies are extremely loud, and the loudest part consists of one single request that keeps coming back: #BringBackOMPP. This stands for ‘Old Movement Animations and Pickaxe Pullout,’ and the players are writing it constantly. ‘AceOfD3ath’ was quite straightforward, ‘Bring back old movement animations or we will not play,’ and ‘Nova8955’ and ‘Soowkacz’ are backing him. This is not a new nor a fresh complaint, but acquiring a new map has triggered the issue of Epic reverting to the older, maybe more loved, player movement feel again. The case is almost a mirroring one where the community demands more new things but also the older, comfort food-like, mechanics to come with it. They want the bright new toy but don’t wanna let go of the old one, you know how it goes.
Apart from the GTA comparisons and movement requests, there is a mess in replies with a crazy mixture of requests, hopes, and fears. Some players are starting to worry the map is going to be too big and ‘theSquirrel0919’ is cautioning, ‘It better won’t be as huge as ch6 map was.’ Others are taking the chance to ask for specific collaborations, such as ‘Justaner’ requesting a ‘CaseOh Collab’ and ‘FrogForFortnite’ coining their ‘Day 469 of asking @Fortnite to add Tsuyu Asui to the game.’ There is even some argument going on in the comments section about past chapters with users ‘ShrekLepre16063’ and ‘Justlookingog’ engaged in a discussion over which chapter had the best biomes and art style. Honestly, it’s just like a whole world history lesson within the comments section.
The line ‘Preparation = Victory’ is doing a mighty operation for the hype. No doubt it is signaling a major new season or even a new chapter, the new environment needing new strategies. Is it going to be a dense, urban warzone that is completely different from the open fields we are used to? The palm trees and what appears to be a modern city in the background signify a shift from the medieval and mythical themes of the previous seasons to a new one. Not to mention, this could result in more close-quarter battles, more heights with the skyscrapers, and a totally new meta. Player ‘Anonymongoose_’ even took it as an opportunity to bring up a long-rumored feature: ‘Any chance at the photo mode that has been in the works? Would be great for the new map to show it off.’ See, people are already planning how they are going to keep up with this new setting.
As expected, alongside the new Fortnite reveal, there will always be a group of players who are… not so impressed. ‘coshuloser’ brutally criticized the new reveal and said ‘it looks like shiiiiiiiit God can you change the art style for once it’s been 2 years.’ And ‘PizzaYT19’ has already prepared himself for disappointment by tweeting ‘Better not be a paradise palmsb2.0,’ a reference to a popular but sometimes controversial location from Fortnite’s past experiences. It is impossible to make everybody happy, especially in the competitive battle royale genre. The game is also available on PlayStation and Xbox platforms.
