Fortnite has always prided itself on its loot pool, giving players everything from regular weapons to Grenades that make metal dinosaurs rain from the sky.
Sometimes Epic Games nail it, bringing in a new mechanic that shakes up the meta and players find fun.
And sometimes they fall flat and completely ruin the game, we're looking at you Infinity Blade.
The Introduction Of Mythic Weapons
Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2 saw the addition of Mythic Weapons, which were revamped after the atrocity that was the Infinity Blade.
In Chapter 1 Season 7, the Infinity Blade was added for a short time, granting whoever held it a huge amount of health and shield, as well as the power to eliminate an opponent in just a few clicks, with little possibility for a counterplay.
The Infinity Blade was removed from the game a short time later and Mythic weapons didn't make an appearance until Chapter 2.
Chapter 2 Season 2 saw the inclusion of five new Mythic weapons, with players being able to obtain one per match.
These weapons were;
- Midas' Drum Gun
- Brutus' Minigun
- TNTina's Boom Bow
- Skye's Assault Rifle
- Deadpool's Dual Pistols
Overall, despite being slightly overpowered, they weren't entirely game-breaking.
The Drum Gun was extremely powerful and usually posed an issue to anyone who came up against it.
But the rest were largely fine, with the Minigun and Assault Rifle only having slight stat increases over their regular counterparts.
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Throughout the rest of the seasons, we have seen the various Mythic items come and go, with some being broken but largely they haven't been too overpowered.
Exotic Weapons
Now we are in Chapter 2 Season 5 and the new Exotic rarity has been introduced.
These are similar to Mythic weapons, except they need to be purchased with Gold Bars, meaning players are unlikely to be able to secure them every match as Gold Bars take a while to build up as Bounties and Quests are completed.
This makes the higher rarity items a bit more manageable as players can go multiple matches without encountering one, and most players only have one or two that they'd be happy to exchange Gold Bars for, and most aren't too powerful.
Instead, they have unusual mechanics like a Sniper Rifle that shoots Clingers, causing some unusual fights and situations.
However, some Mythic weapons remain in the game and one has recently been added.
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Mandalorian Sniper Rifle and Predator's Cloaking Device
Chapter 2 Season 5 saw the addition of The Mandalorian, acting as a new Boss NPC on the map.
Once eliminated he drops his Mandalorian Sniper Rifle, which has a thermal scope that can see through builds.
This makes it incredibly easy for the user to line up shots when other players peak.
Basically, if you hear the weapon fire nearby, you know you're in trouble.
In the 15.21 update, another Boss was added to the map, Predator.
Once eliminated he drops his Cloaking Device, allowing players to turn invisible for up to 30 seconds.
While not a completely broken item due to players not being able to build or shoot while invisible, it still creates the disadvantage towards the rest of the lobby.
Helping The Timmy's Get Their First Win
Lesser skilled players, often referred to as Timmy's in the community, play a large part in these broken items and weapons being added in the game.
However, these younger and lesser skilled players also make up a large part of Fortnite's revenue source, meaning it is in Epic Games' best interest to keep them playing, which is understandable.
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The aim of these broken and overpowered weapons, from Mythic weapons to items such as Balloons, Junk Rifts etc, are designed to lessen the skill gap between good and new players, giving everyone a more equal opportunity to win.
Evidence of that was seen with the addition of the B.R.U.T.E in Season X, also the lowest point in terms of player count and viewership for the game.
TimTheTatMan showcased how broken the B.R.U.T.E was by playing the game with one hand, and even turning his monitor off, and scoring double-digit eliminations.
The problem is, a good player will always be a good player no matter what overpowered item is thrown at them.
They will just end up utilizing the item or weapon to their advantage and create an even larger skill gap as they figure out new ways to exploit and use it.
The Solution
While this may have seemed like an incredibly long rant from someone who is salty that they got sniped by the Mandalorian Sniper Rifle, or had a sweat sneak up on them with the Cloaking Device, they have very rarely actually been a factor in the outcome a match for me.
This has been more of an analysis and a plea to Epic Games to stop releasing limited access weapons that are doing more harm to the game than good.
I love Fortnite, millions of other players out there love Fortnite, but also millions of player who love Fortnite also don't play Fortnite any more and are itching to return to it, but they just don't find it fun anymore.
Fortnite, despite being part of an oversaturated Battle Royale genre, is such a unique game due to its building mechanics.
Quite often I find myself playing games, not even competitive games, and my brain thinks to build when in a fight or needing to reach a certain area.
With that and the addition of modes like Creative, Fortnite really is in a position to outlast most other franchises, being able to mould itself to be whatever is popular at the time while keeping its core mechanics and values.
But I, and many more out there, are worried that Epic Games' decisions are driving too many other players away and eventually we will all just move on from the game, and none of us wants that.
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It is about time that Mythic weapons, and any other overpowered weapon, were either removed or at least made accessible to all players.
Battle Royales have always been based on a combination of RNG and skill, the Mythic/Exotics don't provide that.
Trying to bridge the skill gap doesn't make lower-skilled better, it just pushes higher- skilled players away.