Fortnite has actually provided us with patch notes for the latest v12.50 update.
The patch notes came in the form of an email sent to players.
Below you’ll find the full email and important changes from the v12.50 update in Fortnite.
Here’s the email Epic Games sent for patch v12.50
Party Royale. All chill, no sweat.
Party Royale is a new experimental and evolving space. Leave your weapons and mats behind. We plan to run some tests here this Friday @ 9pm EST. These are subject to change, but feel free to come by and check it out.
The party’s just getting started.
Operation: Payload
A new spy mode debuts in this build. Use your current spy tech, as well as new tech in this release, to defend/escort the payload against the other team which tries to stop you — then switch sides. The mode takes you to different parts of the island, check it out and have fun. We’d also like any feedback you have on the spy tech this season and the progression system.
Heavy Sniper Damage
Ghost Agents have tampered with Heavy Snipers to retune their effectiveness.
Adjusting Aim Assist
This build includes an AA change which makes 240hz AA act like 60hz AA, which does impact target acquisition. Investigations and tests are ongoing regarding aim assist, and your feedback is appreciated.
The important changes in v12.50
There are two changes that really stand out here: aim assist and Heavy Sniper damage.
Both aim assist and Heavy Snipers have been a hot topic in the world of Fortnite, particularly at a competitive level. And it seems like Epic Games has been listening and now they’re making changes.
The problem with aim assist was that it’s more powerful when you played with a controller on a PC with higher frames per second (FPS) in Fortnite and had a monitor with a high refresh rate (Hz).
You see, high FPS in tandem with a high refresh monitor makes you better at Fortnite for a number of reasons. But the strength of aim assist and the impact on target acquisition meant that controllers on PCs were imbalanced.
The changes in v12.50 will make aim assist on 240 FPS/Hz act like 60 FPS/Hz and this will reduce the strength of using a controller on a PC.
It will be interesting to see how this changes things at a competitive level because many of the best keyboard and mouse users in Fortnite were switching to using a controller. And more controller on PC players were dominating the standings.
Are we now going to see these players switch back to using a keyboard and mouse and less controller players at the top?
It’s important to note that Fortnite players that use a controller on a console (PS4/Xbox) will be unaffected by these changes since consoles are limited to 60 FPS.
Now let’s briefly talk about the Heavy Sniper.
Many players thought the Heavy Sniper was overpowered because it could one-shot kill you to the body, even if you had 100 health and 50 shield (from mini potions or a single big potion).
One solution to the problem of the Heavy Sniper would be to change it from taking up 1 slot to 2 slots, like the Bandage Bazooka. So that players would have to sacrifice a slot in their inventory if they wanted to pick one up.
Instead, Epic Games have decided to directly nerf the damage.
Here are the new damage values for the Heavy Sniper:
- Legendary Heavy Sniper: Damage reduced from 157 to 132
- Epic Heavy Sniper: Damage reduced from 150 to 126
So now the Heavy Sniper will no longer 1 shot you to the body if you have 100 health and 50 shield.
But the Heavy Sniper still deals a devastating amount of damage and will 1 shot you if you have less than 126 effective health. And the Heavy Sniper will still be able to 1 shot you if you get shot in the head because the Heavy Sniper has a headshot multiplier of 2.5x.
Bug fixes in v12.50
According to the Fortnite Trello, the following bugs should be fixed in v12.50:
- Framerate and resolution drops
- Local challenges not appearing when entering new area
- “Block damage with a Kingsman” challenge not tracking progress
- Video playback disabled on Android
- Extra Build buttons display Wall icons
- Ping marker displays 0m
Conclusion
I think it’s great that Fortnite are giving us patch notes again, even if it’s in the form of an email.
But it does raise the question, why not release the patch notes in full on the official website for everyone to see?
Something I don’t like, though, is how vague they were in regards to the Heavy Sniper.
“Ghost Agents have tampered with Heavy Snipers to retune their effectiveness” isn’t very specific and it could actually mean they have been made more effective.
Why not just tell us the exact numbers instead of being cryptic about it?
When there are competitive tournaments with money on the line, it’s important that players know the exact value changes of weapons so they aren’t surprised.
Anyway, it looks like we are getting some new modes to keep us entertained as Chapter 2 Season 2 is being extended.
Party Royale looks to be a whole new map where you can have some fun playing mini-games with friends.
And Operation: Payload reminds me of a game mode in Overwatch where you have to defend/escort the payload. I think this could be a lot of fun, and it’s cool to see Fortnite experimenting with things outside of Battle Royale.