‘Fortnite’ Players Complain About Super-Powered B.R.U.T.E. Robots, Causing Epic Developer To Dial Back

Bruce Haring

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Fortnite’s giant mechs, called B.R.U.T.E.S, will stay in the competitive game, developer Epic Games said today. Although some of the game’s top players have threatened to leave the popular multiplayer because of the difficulty in dealing with the super-powered robots, Epic Games said it would merely power down the unpopular game feature rather than eliminate it, installing a targeting laser.

But the initial reaction to the targeting laser and the company’s lukewarm overall response wasn’t joyous, with online tweets and posts slamming the lack of movement. To potentially assuage the outrage, Epic announced today it has also lowered the spawn rates of Brutes in Arena and tournament play

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The B.R.U.T.E.s, added in Season 10, have high health and can destroy buildings and player structures, features many feel put human players at a distinct disadvantage.

In a competitive update Friday, Epic said it would add a targeting laser to the Brute’s missiles. That will let players know if they are in the line of fire. “We’ve been monitoring the impact of the B.R.U.T.E. in gameplay and are investigating ways to enhance combat feedback when interacting with the vehicle. In v10.10, we will add a targeting laser that will show the direction the B.R.U.T.E. is aiming its rockets while they are being charged. This laser will have directional audio to help indicate when it’s being pointed at you, even if you’re behind a structure. We’ve also fixed a few mobility bugs that was allowing players to exploit its boost mechanic.”

Epic concluded: “The B.R.U.T.E. remains within the core game modes (Solo, Duos, and Squads), select Limited Time Modes, and in competitive Arena and Tournament play. We’ll communicate any future iterations to the vehicle as we’re continuing to investigate a few more areas where we can improve combat interactions.”

Jace Haring contributed to this report.

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