Fortnite was the first Battle Royale game to bring the genre to worldwide popularity. With around 80.4 million active monthly users, it is currently one of the most popular games in the world.
It was released into open beta in 2017, and there have been many patches that have increased the complexity of the game, and given players new ways to learn and grow.
To win your first Victory Royale in Fortnite, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with the Fortnite basics such as finding a weapon as soon as you drop in, the which items to pick up, and building familiarity with the map.
If you’re new to the game, you’ll probably notice right away that you have some learning to do. Fortnite is a complex game that combines third-person shooting, dynamic movement, structure building, and inventory management; pitting players against one another to be the last one standing.
Veteran players have learned how to make the absolute most out of the game’s mechanics. And whilst it’s easy to play, it can be very difficult to win against somebody with more game time than you.
That’s where we come in! In this article, we’re going to be outlining everything there is to know about how to win a game of Fortnite. We won’t be able to play your games for you, but if you follow the advice we give you may find your chances going up!
Fortnite Basics
We’re going to start with the basics of the game. This might be information you already know, but take a read anyway just in case there’s something you missed. Fortnite doesn’t come with an extensive tutorial, and a lot of the mechanics are found by shared knowledge or experimentation.
There are a few different versions of Fortnite, but for the purposes of this article, we’re going to be taking you through the ‘build’ version of the Battle Royale game mode. The premise of this is simple.
Your character is dropped into a map with 100 other players, and the map slowly shrinks as a deadly storm comes in from the distance. You are tasked to survive and kill other players to be the last one standing.
Finding Loot and Resources
There is only one winner in a game of Fortnite.
In order to get a chance of winning, you’ll need weapons and equipment. You can find all of this either lying on the floor or within sparkling chests dotted around the map. There are lots of different weapons in the game that you can pick up, and some are much better than others.
A lot of the game is about collecting the best weapons you can so that when you come up against your foes, you’ll be able to win more easily. The unique aspect of Fortnite that sets it apart from other Battle Royale games is the player’s ability to build.
By collecting resources (wood, stone, metal), you are able to quickly create structures that will either shield you or be used to overcome an enemy. This is one of the most difficult parts of the game and something we will outline in detail below.
Weaponry & Items
We’re going to start with weapons and items as this is the first thing you’ll need to focus on when you land into a game.
Most players look for 2-4 weapons and a series of shields, healing or utility items that will help them win the game. You want to get a weapon as soon as you land because without it you are mostly powerless.
As the game continues, one of the central loops that you’ll be going through is trying to find the best items you can. The better items you get, the more damage and health you will have available, and the more likely you will be to win a fight should you come across different players.
There are two main types of players in Fortnite – those who loot and survive, and those who go looking for fights so that they can take the items of other players. Both are equally good ways to win, but they require fairly different skills.
If you’re new to the game, we recommend going with the more passive option of only fighting when you have to. Focus on looting, find what weapons work for you, and try to survive until the late game. You are also going to want to make sure you have shields and healing items.
Just like weapons, these change per patch. But generally larger shields are better unless you’ll need something quick to chug in the heart of battle.
Map Control
The second thing you’ll need to learn about is the storm. As the game progresses, a deadly storm will start to engulf the map.
This storm starts off doing a little damage to you should you get caught in it, but does a lot more as the game progresses. All players will attempt to avoid this storm, so it’s important to keep checking your map. The map will show you not only where the next safe zone will be, but also the towns/structures around you that will contain loot.
You’ll want to keep a close eye on where you are on the map and where you’ll need to be once the storm gets closer.
Good Fortnite Players will have a good understanding of the map, as well as the most likely places where players will be.
This is something that takes a lot of time to learn, but providing you keep track of everything you’ll be able to predict where other players will be, and the safest (or most dangerous, if you’re looking for fights) spots on the map.
There is a lot to learn about map awareness. However, generally, you’ll want to keep checking your map throughout a game so you know where the storm will be. And then how you can use this to your advantage.
Combat And Building
This is the main gameplay of Fortnite, and the hardest part to get good at. That’s because other players will be out to get you. If you haven’t played Fortnite before then you might not know quite how aggressive other players can be.
Usually, as soon as somebody spots you, they’re going to be taking steps to come and eliminate you from the game. This is one of the most exciting parts of the game, but also the most dangerous. You’ll need to learn to always expect a fight to happen at any moment and have a good game plan for when those attacks begin.
Weapons in Fortnite
During combat, you’ll want to make sure you know the weapons you have available and what the win condition for each flight will be.
Let’s say you have a shotgun – in this case, you’re going to want to get as close as you can because you’re useless at long range. Similarly, if you have a long ranged weapon, you want to stay far away and use its range to your advantage.
The unique aspect of Fortnite that is without a doubt the most difficult to learn is the concept of building.
Good Fortnite players are very practiced at building complex structures in the heat of battle. And as a new player, it can be very frustrating to start fighting only to have an enemy build a tower and kill you from the top of it.
So then, you have to learn to build. There are countless tutorials on YouTube that will allow you to learn the mechanics of building. But the main advice we would give you is to learn to build at the beginning of combat. This will allow you to put cover between you and your enemy before the fight begins.
After this, you can start to learn to build more complex structures that will help you reach your opponent. Or it helps keep them away depending on what you need at the right time.
Final Thoughts
This guide has only taken you through a small portion of the game’s central mechanics, but we think we’ve covered all of the overarching things you’ll want to keep in mind. One thing that’s important is a quality gaming mouse and keyboard.
We would like to leave you with one extra piece of advice – and that’s all to do with luck. A good Fortnite player can win 8 times out of 10, but there is at least a small portion of wins that come as a result of luck. Perhaps you got lucky in a loot box and got a mythic weapon right away. Alternatively, you may have been lucky enough to avoid players for most of the game.
In any given game you have a chance of winning, it’s just that there are ways of adding to this percentage. We’re sure that if you keep playing and learning, sooner or later you are sure to win a game!
We hope that this article has told you everything you wanted to know, and you now have a basic understanding of how you can win in Fortnite. We wish you the best of luck in your future games and are sure you’ll get that Victory Royale sometime soon!
