Fortnite’s new B.R.U.T.E mech was added so that more players could win a match, says Epic

You’ve got your season 10 Battle Pass, a well-worn controller and an itch to hop into Fortnite for some of the ol’ battle royale sandbox with murder LEGO. Business as usual, right? Well not exactly, as the last couple of days have seen some players hit the field with a slight advantage: A gigantic mechanised war machine that allows for even the scrubbiest of players to get a few kills in.

Season 10 of Fortnite began with the unveiling of the B.R.U.T.E, and its addition has been controversial to say the least. Some Fortnite players love it because its wonderfully silly, others hate it the B.R.U.T.E because it can provide an overwhelming advantage, especially in competitive play. So what’s the point of these mechs? To give some players a leg up in competition, according to Epic.

“The mission of Fortnite is to bring players of all skill levels together to have a fun experience where anyone can win,” Epic wrote in a blog update.

Another part of the mission is to provide spectacle and entertainment when playing Fortnite. Bringing these moments to the game every week means there is always a new way to enjoy and experience the game. The B.R.U.T.E. was added at the start of Season X with this mission in mind. Since then, we have seen players who had previously struggled with getting eliminations acquiring more, while the number of eliminations earned by more experienced players remained steady.

B.R.U.T.E. encounters should feel like a unique engagement and not be the dominant experience during a game. We made adjustments to the B.R.U.T.E within Arena, in line with that goal. Specifically for Arena we made the change to spawn rate in order to reduce late-game encounters. This is due to a higher number of players surviving to those circles compared to non-Arena modes. We’re happy with the results and the below graphs represent the current state of B.R.U.T.E. eliminations across both Arena and core modes.

So what does this mean for anyone who demands to see a graph right now dammit of B.R.U.T.E engagements in two different game modes? According to graphs, the mech have racked up a larger number of kills in Duos mode while Arena Solo has had surprisingly fewer kills with the robotic beast:

It’s a fine line then, between Fortnite’s more competitive players and those who just want to hop in for some quick giggles while engaging in some spectacle along the way. I can understand the sentiment, because even if you’re playing regularly there’s no guarantee that you’ll ever win a match thanks to hotshot players diving around the screen and instantly erecting barricades with ungodly skill and popping your head with a single shot as if it were a papaya left out in the sun.

That, and just the mere mention of being given a chance to drive ED-209’s big brother through the face of some snotty tween halfway across the world actually makes me want to pick up Fortnite again. Mission accomplished, Epic.

Last Updated: August 16, 2019