Many moons ago, I was very hyped for Fortnite. Building stuff, fighting zombies (they’re kind of like zombies right?), and playing with friends seemed like a recipe for a title that could last. Welllllll, unfortunately it didn’t last that long.

The game was fun, but the repetitive activities made it hard to return. “Oh well. Maybe they’ll update it”, I thought. They most certainly did as in September Epic Games added a free update to Fortnite, a spin-off of PUBG, Battle Royale.

I’m a console player so I’ve never had the chance to experience PUBG (I have a PS4, and I know it’s coming to Xbox). Battle royales or last man standing never interested me either because I’m super competitive and not performing well in PUBG would drive me nuts. So when Epic announced this the release of this mode, I blew it off.

At the beginning of November, I jumped into a fellow Twitch streamer’s channel in which he was streaming Battle Royale. To my utter surprise, I was actually enjoying what I was watching. The mechanic’s from Fortnite’s PvE merged with PUBG was an interesting combo, as he would build ramps to flank enemies, hoard materials, and collect weapons of differing varieties. I told him I was going to try it out, (unfortunately he was on PC and I’m on PS4), and 10 minutes later I was participating in my first Solo match.

I did lose the first one, the next one, and the next one. I didn’t get any kills because the aiming drove me nuts, and I basically had no idea what I was doing. But damn was I enjoying myself.

I finally took to the game with my friends, and boy is that just as fun if not more fun as playing solo. We grouped up, deployed together, and actually did pretty well… Well my friends did well, since I struggled with potato aim and learning the meta of this game (tactical shotguns and jumping). I had to get used to the concept that I could build and flank my opponents or vice versa. Supply drops (I keep calling them that because of C.O.D) bring powerful gear if you can clear the areas, callouts are important to survival, and camping isn’t frowned upon.

20 plus wins later, I’ve finally come to accept how addicted I am to this game. Even if I or my squad loses, the fact that it was fun is what matters. There’s an insane rush I get when the circle is shrinking or when I’m in a gunfight and figuring out how I want to handle the matter.

It’s weird that you don’t get a reward for winning a match which is something they should look into, in my opinion. Maybe such as giving V-Bucks (or whatever that currency is called) so you can buy skins especially since most players don’t have the full game, where I believe you can earn said currency.

New additions have added to the longevity of this mode; such as the silenced SMG, the Bush, and the new themed events. Epic Games recently added a 50v50 mode which is sensational to say the least. Who knew giving me 46 (assuming you have a full squad) other teammates could make this just as hectic and fun? Hopefully this mode stays for good just because it’s fun and a nice change of pace compared to participating in the regular Battle Royale.

At first glance, I thought this was a PUBG ripoff. Now that I’ve invested so much time into it, I really appreciate what Epic Games did by adding Battle Royale in. It’s a free mode (which means you can play it even if you don’t have the game), they update it frequently and listen to fan feedback (like keeping that awesome rocket launcher glitch in the game or updating consoles to finally allow for inventory management). They’re also looking into giving PvE the love it deserves, which is a lot. In these times where micro transactions and publishers have shafted us immensely (see: Star Wars Battlefront 2 and Call of Duty World War 2), it’s refreshing to get the treatment gamers deserve.

Would I recommend this? Abso-freaking-lutely. I look forward to seeing you all on the battlefield, and if not, you can catch me on Twitch for some average Battle Royale gameplay.