When it comes to player versus player (PVP) survivor games online, Fortnite’s Battle Royale leads the pack. The setting is a large island where up to a hundred players have to survive in a terrain of hills, towns, forests, and abandoned shacks. Players battle it out for survival in the face of an approaching storm. It takes skill, nerve and planning to survive, as well as some Fortnite tips and tricks, starting with landing in the right spot.
The Game
Battle Royale from Epic Games is an online multiplayer extreme survival game, available free for play on Xbox, PC, Android, iOS, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. Players can go solo or team up in squads of up to four, as they try and find loot, trap rivals, and build shelters. There are weapons for the taking from other players, and the winner is the last player left standing.
Battle Royale adds crafting and building to the genre of survivor games, adding another dimension to survival. Since its introduction in 2017, Battle Royale has been played by 250 a million fans, making it one of the most popular online games currently in existence. Like games, it has carved out its own place in popular culture.
The Island and the Players
Players start out with a new Battle Pass for each season, which unlocks character customization, weapons, pets, emotes, healing kits, cosmetics, and more. There are several different play modes, including a training mode called Playground. The game opens in a lobby where players can mechanics and resources without engaging with other players.
To get to the island, players skydive from the Battle Bus as it flies in a random path over the island. Choosing the right location to jump is the start of the adventure.
How to Survive
There are some tested strategies for survival that can help players survive and even win. It begins in the lobby, with the chance to test weapons, resources and play modes without being able to kill other players. That means you can’t be killed at this stage either. This the time to modify the layout of the controls as well as the texture of the game. Then it’s time to board the Battle Bus.
Land Right
Choosing the best location to land helps you get a good start. Crowded locations like towns have more weapons and resources for you to gather, but also more competition, and a greater chance of being killed. More remote locations like hilltops have less loot, but it’s there. There are also fewer players around as you get your bearings and feel your way into the game.
Apart from the location, you can also control the speed of the landing, and a quicker descent gives you an advantage on the ground over other players. A fast landing gives you first shot at weapons and resources in the area. It’s always a good idea to land away from other players, making yourself less of a target.
Take cover in the nearest building and start searching for weapons and other resources like ammo belts, healer packs and building materials for shelter and defense. Shiny gold boxes indicate the presence of loot. If the box is open, there may be other players in the area.
Plan for Endgame
When collecting loot, it’s a good idea to do this with winning in mind. Unlike war games, Battle Royale is about survival. So it’s not the number of kills that are important but your survival skills, and you should collect resources with this goal in mind. This makes shelter and healing as important as weapons and ammo.
Health packs, shield potions, and building resources will help you stay alive once the competition is narrowed to a few remaining players. Which brings us to the next step, which is building shelter and defensive structures.
Build Your Defenses
This is a unique feature of Fortnite’s Battle Royale, which sets it apart from other survivor games. Players can use resources like brick, wood, and metal to build shelters and defensive structures. Good building strategy is essential to reaching the endgame. Gathering building supplies come with its own risks and a warning noise, which will alert other players to your presence.
Build your shelters early before other players have time to acquire longe range weaponry. For survival, at the minimum, you will need a long range weapon like an assault rifle or sniper rifle, shotgun, or rocket launcher and a medkit to repair any damage. Emergency walls are a defensive structure that you can use when roaming in search of loot.
Watch Out for the Storm
The storm is no one’s friend, and damages all players it touches. Watch out for the storm and its random progress across the game at all times. You can’t outrun the storm but can stay safe if you find yourself in its center.
Battle Royale is a game of skill and strategy, and you can take your resources with you to the next season. Season 9 opened in May 2019, and the Battle Bus is waiting.
