Epic Games address changes for season 9 competitive

The Pump Shotgun has been banished to the vault.
Image via Epic Games

Epic Games has underlined changes to competitive play in Fortnite: Battle Royale season nine—including the Unvaulting of the Drum Gun, Limited Time Modes (LTMs) as tournaments, disconnecting duos, and major gameplay developments.

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“You can expect to see the Drum Gun in this weekend’s Tournament playlist. In the v9.00 update today we’ve adjusted the spawn rate of the Drum Gun to be more in line with other similar items,” Epic wrote.

This comes in response to criticism from the community on the Fortnite subreddit. The gun is popular and was chosen to be Unvaulted in The Nexus event, however, some considered the Drum Gun’s spawn rate to be too high. This new change should put the gun in a more balanced spot.

Meanwhile, in the weeks leading up to the Fortnite World Cup Finals, Epic has revealed it’s experimenting with adding additional non-Battle Royale events. This includes Creative modes and LTMs to the weekly tournament rotation. “This will open up a more dynamic competitive scene that allows for more paths to win,” Epic wrote. “We encourage you to hop in, try out some new modes, and have a good time while we gather learnings each week.”

Epic has also taken the steps to fix an issue where duo partners were disconnecting from tournament matches. Since the second week of the World Cup, players reported their partners were unable to load into the match, while they could still participate. This was cause for concern because duos weren’t officially earning points.

“In the v9.10 update, we are planning to add specific new in-game messaging and options to address the rare cases where a teammate disconnects while loading in the pre-match island,” Epic wrote. “This messaging will provide you with the option to confirm leaving the match, or the option to decline and play through the match as the solo remaining player.”

In advance of the v9.00 update today, Epic has addressed a number of major gameplay changes and tweaks coming to the game. This includes the vaulting of multiple weapons, such as the Pump Shotgun, the return of legacy items, and the addition of a new Combat Shotgun.

“We want the beginning of each Season to feel fresh and allow for a new gameplay experience along with all the new Seasonal content,” Epic wrote. “Rather than nerfing the Pump Shotgun to a point where it no longer lives up to its fantasy, our preference is to return it to the vault, giving us an opportunity to revisit the general balance of the item, while introducing a new shotgun.”

Fortnite season nine kicks off today.


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Jerome Heath
Jerome Heath is a senior editor at Dot Esports.