While everyone’s losing their minds over the Avatar: The Last Airbender collab, Fortnite quietly dropped a bombshell with an Item Shop overhaul that has players scratching their heads.
Fortnite is a free-to-play game that thrives on players’ cosmetic purchases, such as skins, skin styles, gliders, and emotes. Who wants to be a regular soldier when you can play as your favorite anime character or a human-sized banana named Peely? Fortnite has had hundreds of cosmetics for sale in its Item shop over the years, which rotates periodically to showcase new and returning items. These goodies range from your run-of-the-mill Commons to the cream of the crop Legendaries, signified by the classic greens to oranges.
Thanks to a sudden change implemented in version 29.20, the days of rarity tiers and catchy item names are gone for good. Fortnite’s latest move has axed the cosmetic color tiers and tags, leaving players feeling like they’ve lost a crucial part of the game’s charm. Instead, different series of cosmetics will now serve as the guiding beacon for players hunting down their favorite looks.
Adding insult to injury, the once predictable 24-hour shop refresh timer has been scrapped and replaced with individual rotation times tailored to each player’s time zone. While transparency about rotation dates might seem like a step in the right direction, the removal of familiar rarity indicators has sparked a wildfire of discontent among the Fortnite faithful.
Players are expressing their frustration loud and clear. Many feel that the removal of rarities is a sneaky ploy to hike up prices under the guise of equality. “Feels like they did this so they can charge more for skins,” one player said. Another echoed the sentiment, questioning whether the move was player-centric or profit-driven.
While players welcome rotation timers, it seems Epic Games may have missed the mark on this one. The sudden changes have left a bitter taste in the mouths of Fortnite players, overshadowing even the glitzy collab with Avatar: The Last Airbender.
In a landscape where every move is scrutinized by millions, Fortnite’s latest misstep has not gone unnoticed. For now, players are left grappling with the uncomfortable reality of a Fortnite world without familiar rarity markers.
