Season 8 of immensely popular battle royale Fortnite has arrived today, adding a fiery new pirate theme. Season 8 is available now along with a new purchasable Battle Pass for the battle royale game mode. Watch the new cinematic trailer above.

The new season brings in some major map changes, as teased in the trailer. An entire volcano has risen up to replace the Wailing Woods section of the map, surrounded by jungle. Lava will deal damage and bounce players off the surface, while volcanic vents will provide a massive air boost to players and vehicles. The jungle area includes several ziggurats in a new area called Sunny Steps. A new pirate cove called Lazy Lagoon has appeared nearby in the central northern section of the map.

Pirate cannons have also been added. They can be pushed around the map, aimed, and fired over a great distance. You can also climb inside and launch yourself! Cannons deal massive damage and are found throughout the environment.

Gameplay improvements include a Party Assist option. Party members can now progress toward daily and weekly challenges together. Daily quests will now be automatically claimed once completed and rewards delivered.

Season 8 also brings back the 50 v 50 limited time mode, as well as a close encounters mode – shotguns and jetpacks only.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aMtD0Klp2I

The new Battle Pass adds another 100 cosmetic items to unlock for 950 V-Bucks. Upon purchasing you get instant access to the Blackheart and Hybrid progressive outfits. Progressive means the outfits can level up and unlock new styles. If you managed to complete the 13 overtime challenges during the Share the Love event last month, you can now claim your free season 8 battle pass in game.

As expected, many of the previous season’s seasonal items have been vaulted, such as the Stormwing plane and chiller grenade.

In non-battle royale news, Fortnite Creative has been given a new jungle theme to build with. New quests that unlock new heroes have been added to the original Save the World mode, along with an overhaul to hero loadouts.

Fortnite Season 8 is available now and ends May 8. Fortnite is rated T for Teen.


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Eric has been writing for over nine years with bylines at Dicebreaker, Pixelkin, Polygon, PC Gamer, Tabletop Gaming magazine, and more covering movies, TV shows, video games, tabletop games, and tech. He reviews and live streams D&D adventures every week on his YouTube channel. He also makes a mean tuna quesadilla.