Fortnite patch 4.5 adds Drum Gun, fueling Season 5 theme rumors
Fortnite‘s latest patch dropped yesterday, adding a new weapon for Battle Royale. The Drum Gun, previously revealed in various leaks, resembles a 1950s-era Thompson submachine gun, better known as a “Tommy Gun.” When originally leaked, many players wondered how the Drum Gun would fit alongside existing weapons. With a number of assault rifles and submachine guns already available, Epic opted to list the Drum Gun as a hybrid of the two categories. The weapon “combines the stopping power of a rifle with the suppressive ability and fire rate of an SMG” and is available in both Uncommon and Rare variants. The two options deal 26 and 27 base damage, respectively, and both have a capacity of 50 rounds. Otherwise, this latest update is pretty nondescript. The game’s PvE mode, Save the World, received a few new items and heroes, but there were no further gameplay changes to Battle Royale.
How the Drum Gun drums up further theories for Season 5
Thematically, this weapon is a perfect fit for the new “Hardboiled” skins recently added to the game. Added last week, the outfits introduced a noir aesthetic to the game. The items are as follows:
- Noir outfit- 1,500 V-Bucks
- Gumshoe outfit- 1,500 V-Bucks
- Sleuth outfit- 1,500 V-Bucks
- Magnifying Axe Harvesting Tool- 800 V-Bucks
- Viceroy Mark I Glider- 1,200 V-Bucks
These changes signify a greater impending shift for the Battle Royale mode. Some attentive players realized that the map is beginning to mirror this theme as well, as one of the buildings in Retail Row is now labeled as a Detective Agency. Though Epic Games often introduces themed sets of skins, these changes rarely impact the landscape of the map itself. First noticed a couple weeks ago by Reddit users, the inclusion of the Agency bears new meaning following last week’s global event. For those who missed it, on Saturday, June 30, Epic Games fulfilled a long-awaited mystery by launching the rocket located at the villain’s lair outside Snobby Shores.
The future of Fortnite, and why it may involve the past
Last week, thousands of players spectated as the rocket jettisoned into space, awaiting its imminent crash back into the map. However, despite the rumors that locations such as Moisty Mire would be destroyed, the rocket never came back down. Instead, a module from the rocket teleported around the map, ultimately leaving a large crack in the sky. Not only did this crack remain, it appears to be growing. Furthermore, a number of smaller, orb-like entities have appeared at numerous points of interest across the map. These rifts, as many players call them, are also growing. Most recently, the rift near Tomato Town has destroyed the iconic Tomato Head adorning the location’s central shop.
As the map continues to change, the prevailing theory is that Season 5 of Fortnite will involve time travel of some sort. Season 4 began with a meteor ravaging the landscape, obliterating Dusty Depot and leaving pockets of meteorites interspersed throughout other locations. The in-game narrative suggests that the Visitor arrived on the meteor, and the most recent rocket launch adds further mystery to the character’s overall plan. With the abundance of rifts appearing, players believe that these rifts are sears in the fabric of the space-time continuum. Existing locations are slowly being destroyed, and many believe that Season 5 will involve the absorption of these old locations and the introduction of new, historically-themed ones.
So far, the slow inclusion of 1950s noir elements supports this theory. Season 5 launches on July 12, so Epic still has a week to build upon the mystery they’ve created. As intrigue spreads, we will likely see further changes to the map, and potentially more themed weapons and skins. How these changes will affect the core gameplay remains unknown. Will we see the removal of some of the more futuristic weapons? Time will tell.
