On Tuesday, Epic’s independent survival crafting game received its first update, ironing out some of the initial rough patches and implementing a slew of quality of life enhancements.
Since its launch last month, Lego Fortnite has captured our attention, attracting 2.4 million simultaneous players. While on the surface it may appear to be a Lego-styled version of Minecraft, the game actually combines a variety of beloved gameplay mechanics that will feel familiar and comforting to fans of cozy titles like Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley, and Valheim.
After just over a month since its release, players who dove headfirst into Lego Fortnite in December (myself included) were starting to run out of content. Unfortunately, this first major update does not introduce a vast array of new content as some players had hoped. However, it does improve the overall experience by addressing a multitude of minor issues and addressing the concerns of early adopters.
Hi Builders! v28.10 has arrived with new features and a brickload of bug fixes!
- New Launch Pad toy to bounce around
- Village and building improvements
- Quality-of-life changes
- More LEGO Styles
Read all about the new additions to LEGO Fortnite at LEGOFN_Status on Twitter.
First and foremost, getting around the map in Lego Fortnite is now easier with the addition of launch pads, a familiar item for long-time Fortnite players that is certainly a welcome addition. These launch pads should eliminate the eyesore of giant, ugly staircases and also alleviate the frustration of navigating the game’s vast procedurally generated maps without proper vehicles or steering wheels.
The game’s building-oriented players also receive some tweaks to make their gameplay more seamless. Builds will now automatically clear out nearby plants and fit better on slopes, as completely flat ground is hard to come by. Additionally, new floor, wall, and roof options have been added, including smaller pieces that make building more fluid for those who enjoy more intricate designs.
Furthermore, Epic is introducing more Lego-styled skins into the game, such as Ahsoka Tano and Spider-Man, as well as three new villagers: Bushranger, Rustler, and Tomatohead. These villagers will now have the ability to open doors, which is a significant improvement as they often got stuck outside the castle gates at night and couldn’t return to their job of baking pumpkin pies.
For a full list of fixes, it’s worth reading through the entire patch notes. Several major bugs should now be resolved, including the one where players would spawn under a building upon entering the world (though this was not experienced by us, many on the Lego Fortnite Reddit were familiar with it).
Beyond these specific bug fixes, there have also been improvements to stability, performance, and in-game physics. This should make things smoother for ambitious players who may have given up on the game due to frustration (shoutout to my server mate who built us a monorail!). Hopefully, the culmination of these changes will result in a more seamless experience, as some players were experiencing frequent lag and delay even on high-end hardware.
While this update addresses many concerns, it does not necessarily address the core complaints of the game’s enthusiastic early player base. The server cap remains at 15 villagers, discouraging expansion and large multiplayer builds. Additionally, there are no new biomes yet, meaning there is a limited amount of fresh content available. However, it makes sense for Epic to prioritize polishing the game’s core features before introducing new areas to explore. The patch notes do not mention if these fixes will resolve issues with the “high complexity area” errors that many players have encountered, even on modest builds, but we remain hopeful. Lego Fortnite is a fun and engaging game, and we are looking forward to returning to building our pizza oven and open-air frost biome cafe. It’s been refreshing to ignore the temptation of battle royale and instead enjoy the charming and peaceful gameplay of Lego Fortnite, which at its best evokes the same magic as Animal Crossing New Horizons.
The game’s cozy atmosphere is also a crucial element of Epic’s ambitious plans with the title, which joins Fortnite’s traditional battle royale modes, Rocket Racing, and Fortnite Festival as standalone games available within the Fortnite ecosystem. The success of this ecosystem is the ultimate goal, and Epic is working to diversify the types of experiences offered in order to appeal to a broader audience beyond those solely interested in the intense, fight-to-the-death gameplay.
Upon installing Fortnite, players are greeted with a virtual storefront that is stocked with various playable experiences. While some of these are created by Epic themselves, like Lego Fortnite, most are “user-made” using Epic’s robust game development tools. While many games within Fortnite are designed by aspiring amateur game developers, others are branded experiences, such as the recent survival game created by popular YouTuber MrBeast.
In order to continue expanding the appeal of Fortnite, Epic must cast a wide net and attract players outside of the traditional battle royale fanbase. So far, Lego Fortnite is the most compelling alternative experience within Fortnite’s ecosystem, and it is likely to gain even more momentum as updates continue to roll out.
