Whether you love or hate Fortnite, you can’t deny that Epic Games has given the rest of the industry a masterclass in keeping players engaged over time. Between the subtle gameplay tweaks, new weapons and cosmetics, remixing the map or their periodic end of season events, there’s always something exciting and mysterious going on in the game.
Now, season 7 is currently wrapping up (with earthquakes breaking out on the map) and Epic have begun to tease what’s coming in season 8. They outlined the changes in an AMA on Reddit recently, where they revealed a number of minor tweaks to improve the player experience. A lot of these are subtle changes, yet nudge gamers towards a higher skill level by placing a higher emphasis on in-game sound.
So, we’re promised improved weapon firing sounds, with the current mono effects being upgraded to a more natural 2D stereo. There’ll also be a new global reverb coming to the game, with different areas of the map sounding different and other player’s weapons reverberating in different ways. Theoretically, this should let the more skilled among us (or at least the ones with the best sound systems) hear a gunshot and figure out roughly where in the map it was fired.
This sense of tactical awareness also extends to other player’s footsteps, with a distinction being made between those moving up and down staircases, combined with new sounds for players moving in and out of crouch and going in and out of ADS on each weapon. There are several more subtle tweaks planned, too, with the dynamic range of certain sound effects (like the weak-point harvesting crit sound) being cleaned up so it’s “less fatiguing.”
Obviously, these are just a selection of what’s coming with season 8, but it goes to show the granular detail with which Epic are approaching Fortnite. If they keep up this level of quality, then it looks like Apex Legends will have a fight on its hands to claim the crown of best battle royale title.
