In November, I got to attend a special preview event for Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 1 Pacific Break in Los Angeles, CA. After an extensive hands-on with the new season, here are six reasons I think Fortnite CH7S1 might be one of Epic Game’s best updates yet.
A Perfect-Sized Map
One of the biggest complaints about Fortnite Chapter 6’s map was that it was too big. Sure, on paper Oninoshima Island seemed like a dream come true. You had beautiful POIs based on Japan, demon portals, and traveling ronin boss fights. However, because the map’s size, you spent a lot of time traversing long distances without seeing another player.
The Fortnite Chapter 7 map is, in my opinion, the perfect size in comparison. At least in my playthrough it felt like Epic Games nailed the balance between a large and medium sized map. As a result, gameplay action felt a lot more consistent and intense. Honestly, the best way to sum it up is it feels like one of the earlier Fortnite Chapter maps but with modern POIs and gameplay elements.
However, the most important change in Fortnite Chapter 7 is the game’s mobility. Unlike previous Chapters, Pacific Break hits the ground running from the jump. For example, there is now a wingsuit item that lets you fly around the sky and glide to new locations. Throughout the map you can also find hot air balloons that you can untie to let you soar over large areas quickly. All of this leads to faster-paced matches, which are far more engaging than Chapter 6.
No More Battle Bus
Perhaps one of the more shocking changes in Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 1 is that its battle royale mode no longer has a party bus. Yes, you read that right. It’s a new mechanic called storm surfing. Instead of dropping into the map, players now spawn in on a surfboard. The entire map is surrounded by this giant tsunami wave, which eventually sends you flying into the air to land on one of the map’s POIs.
Despite what some leaks have claimed, it’s not true that you can’t strategically pick a POI you want to land on. As soon as you spawn in on your surfboard, you can choose to go left or right on the wave. If you time your jumps, you pick up speed riding down the wave, and you can absolutely position yourself in front of a section of the map to land on. It’s unclear if this new surfing mini-game will be temporary, but I personally loved how different it felt.
You Can Transform Into Map Bosses
One of the coolest features in Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 1 is the “Be the Boss” mechanic. Unlike previous Chapters, map bosses no longer just drop medallions. Instead, you get the ability to transform into the boss itself. Once you shapeshift into the enemy NPC, you now have a unique Mythical weapon and a power ability. In my play session, I took on Beach Brutus and Hush.
After killing them, I gained the power to summon two NPC guardsmen who shot anyone that got near me. There is a cooldown for the power, and the soldiers you spawn in are really only good for close-combat encounters with another player. Still, it opened up some really interesting strategic moments in battle. Being able to transform into the bosses themselves with unique powers is a big step up from medallions in my opinion.
Rift Anomalies
My personal favorite Fortnite Chapter 7 feature is rift anomalies. During a match, there is a chance a portal opens up which triggers different effects. In my game session, an anomaly opened up where everyone who crouched or stood still turned invisible. As you can imagine, this quickly turned the rest of my match into complete chaos.
The final circle in particular was interesting, because everyone was trying to use the power to their advantage. I’m not sure if there are more anomaly effects that will be added in the season. But the potential to really shake up matches is there. Like seriously, imagine all of the possibilities of randomized buffs or debuffs Epic Games could add to the map feature.
Revive System Changes
Perhaps the biggest change in Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 1 is how revives work. Yes, leaks were actually right. CH7S1 will in fact feature drivable reboot vans. This means you can hop into them in the middle of a sweaty battle and drive off somewhere safe to revive your friend. And yes, it also means you can destroy the reboot van with damage. Unfortunately, not all reboot vans are drivable. At least in my preview, it seemed to be a 50/50 split on the map.
So no, you won’t be able to steal every reboot van in your match and crash them into water. The other major change is Fortnite Chapter 7 has self-revives. It’s essentially a rare item drop that takes up an inventory slot on your character. If you get downed, you can then select the item and, well, self-revive. I don’t have to really explain what a huge game changer this is. Essentially, a player isn’t dead until they are actually dead. So when you knock someone down, you might want to finish them off right away.
Kill Bill Fortnite Crossover
If you are a big fan of Quentin Tarantino like I am, then Fortnite Chapter 7 Pacific Break is a dream come true. In the CHS71 battle pass, you get the Bride (Uma Thurman) in her iconic yellow jumpsuit. The new Chapter will also feature a Gogo Yubari skin, as well as a cosmetic for the new Kill Bill character Yuki Yubari. To launch Chapter 7, Fortnite actually teamed up with Quentin Tarantino to make a short animated film called The Lost Chapter: Yuki’s Revenge.
However, Fortnite Chapter 7 also has a Kill Bill mechanic in the battle royale itself. Throughout the new Pacific Break map, you can find “Sacred Vow Sword Rifts,” which allow you to obtain the Bride’s iconic Hattori Hanzo katana weapon. The rift not only plays music from the film, but you also have to take on members of the Crazy 88, including Gogo Yubari. As I said, if you are a fan of Tarantino, Chapter 7 does an incredible job paying homage to the iconic director.
Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 1 is, in my opinion, shaping up to be one of the best Chapters the battle royale has seen in years. I really think Epic Games has gone back to basics in terms of the map design. But they are also taking some pretty major risks to shake up the formula by adding some of Fortnite’s biggest gameplay changes to date.
As someone who has played the battle royale since 2017, I walked away from my early preview session of Fortnite Chapter 7 Pacific Break feeling really excited for the update. CH7S1 launches on November 29, after the Zero Hour live-event.
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