Epic Games Reduces Helicopter Spawn Rate In Competitive Playlists

Epic Games implemented a significant change to competitive playlists much to the delight of competitive players.

Fortnite Chapter 2 – Season 3’s competitive landscape is beginning to take shape. One week after the season’s release, Epic Games released a tentative schedule including Trio and Solo Cash Cups, announced Daily Trios Cups and some exciting third-party tournaments.

Much like we’ve seen in the past, Epic is dishing out millions of dollars in prize money over the next two months. It’s an exciting time to be a competitive Fortnite player in many aspects. However, the game itself is proving difficult for many of the top players to overcome.

For one, the presence of helicopters, dubbed Choppas, in competitive playlists threw players for a loop. It was not a vehicle anyone expected to see in Arena Mode or tournaments for that matter. As players continue to work toward reaching the Champions Division, many Arena lobbies featured players taking flight in said Choppas. It was a problem, and Fortnite’s competitive team has addressed it with hopes of improving the overall product.

Choppa spawns reduced in competitive

We’ve pushed an update to reduce Choppa spawn rates in all competitive and tournament playlists.

— Fortnite Status (@FortniteStatus) June 26, 2020

Presumably, after reviewing the multitude of clips on the Internet, Epic made the executive decision.  Choppas will now spawn less frequently in Arena and tournaments. It’s a win, albeit a small one, but a win nonetheless for competitive players across the world. Although many would like to see Choppas disappear altogether, a reduced spawn rate is a step in the right direction.

Choppas have no place in competitive Fortnite, especially given how players can abuse them. Players can easily rack up placement points by idling in Choppas. It’s not exactly conducive to the pulse-pounding competitive end games that we all know and love.

A Reddit user grabbed a screenshot of in-game files

Still more work to do

Spawn rate decrease for Choppas is most certainly a positive for competitive Fortnite. However, we have a long way to go considering the current state. Server performance is still at an all-time low, which makes end games even more unpredictable than ever. Let’s not forget that damage dealt to the Marauder non-playable characters (NPCs) still counts toward a player or team’s storm surge. The list is seemingly endless.

Fortnite is far from what it should be at this point. Hopefully, Epic Games will act quickly to answer and adhere to many of the concerns from competitive players. Only then will competitors take Chapter 2 – Season 3 seriously.

Stay tuned to ESTNN for more Fortnite news and updates!

Featured Image: Epic Games