Showdown Act III: Moving into the next era for Zero Build
Zero Build has always been about one thing: pure gunplay. As we head into Act III, we want to push that identity further. With tomorrow’s update, the team has cooked up a Zero Build experiment for the rest of Season 2, and we want your feedback shaping where it goes in Season 3 and for other modes beyond Battle Royale!
Here’s what’s new:
- New ‘Pocket Items’ have replaced the old Build button. Pocket Items are unlimited-use utility items with cooldowns; you start every match with one equipped and can swap at Vending Machines around the map. Shockwave Grenades, Med Mist Grenades, and Shield Bubbles are the three Pocket Items available at launch.
- All players now start matches with a Pistol, a Small Shield Potion, and their Pocket Item.
- You can now rush to the ground from the Battle Bus. Instead of auto-deploying your Glider near the ground, you can manually cut it and free-fall the last stretch. Be careful!
- Glider Redeploy returns from elevated positions for cleaner rotations across the map.
- Holding your Pickaxe grants unlimited Stamina so you can cover ground without burning out.
- Eliminations now restore your Overshield, rewarding aggressive play.
- Environmental structures now take significantly less damage from weapons. A boulder, a tree, a random shed will all now hold up as much better cover
- Reboot Van timers have been reduced so you can get the squad back in faster.
NEW ITEMS AND LOOT POOL
The Zero Build loot pool has been rebalanced with more defensive and utility items in rotation. There’s also new, Zero-Build exclusive items:
- Improved Smoke Grenades give you better coverage and more utility for the moments that matter, covering a revive, breaking a sightline, and resetting a fight.
- Brick-a-Bunkers are Zero Build’s version of Port-a-Bunkers, deploying with a full ramp and doors on either side of the walls. When you need a wall, you have one.
NO MORE FALL DAMAGE ELIMINATIONS
For the third act of the Showdown, lethal fall damage is gone. Would-be fatal falls now trigger a Splat animation, drop your health to 1 HP, and remove all shields and overshield, giving you one last chance to survive. This change is now in both Build and Zero Build.
Design Note: As we enter Act III we asked ourselves the question; what should fall damage look like in 2026? Is it fun or funny to get eliminated from falling? Are there other ways we can create a consequence that doesn't involve getting eliminated in a single-life mode? What would, or should, be inherently Fortnite?
So alongside this large Zero Build update comes a big global change*; players in Unranked matches (i.e. *NOT competitive play), will no longer be eliminated from fall damage. Instead, the punishment now is that if the fall would have eliminated the player, they will now see a unique animation of the player falling on their face (splat!), their health will be reduced to 1HP, removing all other health and shield, and there will be a short delay as they stand back up - making them vulnerable.
Take it for a spin and let us know your feedback!
EVOLVING ZERO BUILD
It has been over 4 years since Zero Build was first introduced in Chapter 3 Season 2: Resistance. Since then, the mode has stayed fairly constant: a reliance on Port-a-Bunkers, Shield Bubbles, and Overshields, for example. The Zero Build meta is long overdue for a refresh, achieving a parity with Build gameplay in terms of mobility and defensive agency.
We are excited to experiment with new, innovative changes to how players experience Zero Build gameplay (some of which will break muscle memory, and others will feel as if they were “at home” since 2022). As always, we appreciate any feedback as players help shape the evolution of Zero Build in Chapter 7.
See you in the new game update!
- The BR Dev Team