There's a comet hurtling towards Fortnite

There’s an ominous light hanging in the sky above Fortnite’s verdant battlefield that one might describe as “comet-like”. And it’s getting bigger. Large objects hurtling towards Earth are usually a cause for concern, but Epic’s keeping schtum. Players, on the other hand, well they’ve got some theories.

One hopeful theory is that this is a precursor to the destruction of Tilted Towers. It’s a popular location, fat with guns and loot, and some argue that it’s just not balanced. Perhaps Epic agrees, but instead of just removing it, they’re going to destroy it with a comet. It would certainly be more interesting than simply excising it in an update.

Epic, however, aren’t saying anything about it yet. Though they did respond to Kotaku with a rather telling image. So maybe it’s aliens. Or maybe they’re just trying to get everyone off the scent. Still, I’m more convinced than I am about it signalling the destruction of Tilted Towers. There’s a whole space-theme thing going on with the Battle Pass, including astronaut outfits, so it could be that this has been in the works since before people started getting sick of the area.

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Other unlockables include stickers of explosions and dinosaur fossils, which absolutely seem related to the comet, given what got rid of all the dinos. It does, then, imply something destructive is going to happen. Will it be temporary? Permanent? It’s all guesswork at the moment.

And then there’s the controller rumbling. Players have been reporting that their controllers are randomly vibrating, an issue that Epic has called a bug. But what if it isn’t! One player noticed that the vibrations create a pattern which, when translated through Morse code, spell out “SOS D 5 418”. SOS is self-explanatory, while D5 is the grid reference for Tilted Towers. The final number, 418, could refer to the date: April, 2018. This month.

While some assumed that the comet would strike yesterday, Tilted Towers remains standing.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.