Lapsed Fortnite players, it’s time to hop back in

After a dizzying barrage of souped-up monster trucks, Magneto gloves, and the power of literal Greek Gods, Fortnite is returning to its roots. On Nov. 7, the the developers launched the Chapter 2 Remix season. This patch reboots the 2019 Chapter 2 Season 1 map and introduces a few new locations and twists from the original version. Its slightly-stripped down item pool, simpler map, and new cast of rappers like Ice Spice, Eminem, and Snoop Dogg make this season a great time to hop back into the game even if you’re an irregular or casual player.

Here’s why this season is so good, as illustrated by an anecdote from playing.

In duos, my friend (wearing the Vi skin from Arcane) and I (dressed as a girl wearing shark PJs) made a last-minute decision to land at the Dogg Pound. After a failed face scan, we got pulled into a gun fight with Snoop Dogg himself, won, and then recruited him as an NPC ally to join our team. Together, we plundered his granite and gold-gilded mansion for weapons, and then celebrated by dancing on a pile of records in the rapper’s vault. We left the compound to head closer to the next storm circle, but upon approaching a beach, a character wielding a gun that rattles off Eminem verses instead of bullet sounds, killed us. It was glorious.

Fortnite quite literally changes with the seasons. Depending on the item pool, map, and overall concept, a certain version of the game might appeal to different kinds of players. For me, a good Fortnite season is one that isn’t afraid to lean into silly, playful elements, but doesn’t overwhelm players with a chaotic item pool. I like unique and thoughtful items — like the Eminem minigun — but it’s pretty easy for the developers to go overboard.

The team at Epic Games has to walk the tightrope that is trying to get Fortnite right. It’s an absurd game that often benefits from “doing the most,” i.e. smashing together tons of elements together to produce some kind of joyful fever dream. But between being driven over by monster trucks, and being obliterated by Magneto’s Power Gloves, and so… many… other… super-powered items, I just couldn’t deal with it anymore. Even when I loved the theme, like Avatar: The Last Airbender, it felt like the core of what I like about this game got a little bit lost in the sauce.

There was also a lot going on outside the formal battle royale game. In the past year, Epic Games has launched all kinds of other games on the Fortnite platform. Suddenly, players had the option to play a rhythm game, a racing game from part of the Rocket League team, and a whole dang Minecraft-esque Lego survival game. (And this is all in addition to an entire slew of other player-made creations, and other experimenting with games like Fall Guys.) It’s nice to offer new options, but at the end of the day, none of those games changed the fact that I logged on to play a goofy shooter.

I’m not even nostalgic for the OG Fortnite. I just think it’s better. It gives the developers an excuse to return to much of the core gameplay of the shooter that makes it shine by literally turning back the clock and restoring some of the old map and items. By adding some new elements — like Snoop Dogg and Eminem items and locations — the developers have struck a great balance between old and new content. And personally, I think it’s a good enough reason to round up all my pals to drop on it for this shortened month-long season.