What This Rumored Feature Could Mean For The Future Of Fortnite

While few games receive as many substantial content upgrades as Fortnite delivers on a regular basis, changes to the mechanics of its popular battle royale mode are rare. However, trusted leaker HYPEX posted on Twitter that a significant change could be on the horizon in the form of Weapon Mod Slots.

So far, HYPEX is the only source on this major mechanic change to Fortnite's battle royale experience. In the tweet, HYPEX says, "[E]pic started testing a new thing called "Weapon Mod Slots" lately and it seems like it gives the weapon abilities/attachments." While that may not be a lot to go on, HYPEX has correctly leaked new Fortnite features before, such as the recent Winterfest Snowmando NPC and the Slurp Bazooka.

Moddable weapons are standard in other battle royale games such as Apex Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone, although each approaches the modification process differently. In Warzone, players modify their weapons as a part of a loadout that includes perks, which they then purchase in-game. In Apex Legends, character choice determines perks, while modifications are picked up in-game and then added to weapons.

These different avenues of weapon modifications throughout the battle royale genre have inspired speculation and even some community concept art for how they might appear in Fortnite. If the modifications are added in-game, it will allow players to alter their weapon abilities on the fly by adding a scope to their favorite assault rifle or a silencer to a pistol. However, how this would affect specialized items such as the Silenced Pistol is unclear.

Another possibility is that the weapon modification system is based on Fortnite's Save The World mode's current crafting mechanics. By modifying weapon abilities using the Perk Recombobulator, players could add specialized abilities such as dual elements to certain weapons to fit their preferred playstyle.

Another question raised by the community is whether these potential weapon modification changes could affect the rarity mechanics that categorize items in the game. Some have even raised the question of whether these rarity values will be eliminated altogether, although this seems unlikely considering how Epic Games just introduced exotic weapons in Fortnite's new season.

Fortnite fans will have to wait and see how Epic decides to manage weapon customization in the future, although it certainly introduces some interesting potential changes. For all of its constant updates, Fortnite is a carefully balanced game. Letting players adapt the weapons to their playstyle could either disrupt that equilibrium or help level the playing field.