One of the most controversial additions to Fortnite in the game’s short history was the introduction of the Infinity Blade, a “Mythic” weapon, where there was only one on the map, and it granted its wielder superhuman movement and damage abilities…until they were killed and the next person took up the sword.
Players hated it. Epic tried to nerf it. Players still hated it, and ultimately Epic removed it within the same week, saying they were taking their concept of Mythic weapons back to the drawing board, implying there were going to be more to come, but perhaps no longer.
A new leak in today’s monster v7.20 patch says that a sword is returning to Fortnite, but it’s not the Infinity Blade, and it’s not a Mythic weapon, either. Rather, it’s called the “medieval sword,” and it appears like it’s going to be a regular weapon, as in, one that simply takes up an inventory slot like anything else, though presumably without Infinity Blade-like superpowers.
Melee weapons seemed inevitable in Fortnite eventually, as there are only so many guns you can put scopes or suppressors on, and you have to start thinking outside the box. It’s a little confusing in Fortnite however, as the fundamental item of the game is your mining tool, which was originally a pickaxe, but has grown into all manner of actual weapons depending on the skin you own, be it a sword, mace or axe.
But presumably melee weapons would differ. Pickaxe damage is light and there are no “moves” you can do with your mining tool, just hack. My guess is that we might see some Infinity Blade “lite” stuff here, ie. dash moves, jump moves with the sword. Maybe they have a limited number of charges, and break after frequent use like we’re in Breath of the Wild or something.
This opens up a whole word of possibilities for Fortnite in the future. You could have a samurai sword that slashes quickly and grants the user increased footspeed. You could have a greataxe that is slow to wield, but does huge, AOE damage to structures. The mind boggles thinking about how this stuff could be implemented, but it would be a whole new balance challenge for Epic as they try to shake up the meta with a new weapon type.
Still, I think the game needs it. Just because the Infinity Blade was a disaster doesn’t mean the entire concept of melee weapons should be abandoned. The problem with the Infinity Blade was that it was a Thanos-type one-place-only weapon that completely dominated the game and should not have been included in the base game mode. But if everyone has access to toned-down melee weapons instead? I could see that working for sure.
This may arrive as soon as next week, and I can’t wait to see what it’s like in practice. Stay tuned.
Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Read my new sci-fi thriller novel Herokiller, available now in print and online. I also wrote The Earthborn Trilogy.
