Fortnite Reload’s popularity helped Battle Royale reach lowest player count ever

Fortnite Reload came as an unexpected surprise when Epic Games announced it last week before releasing it the next day. The new mini Battle Royale is Epic Games’ first attempt at using UEFN to bring a main game mode before the main Battle Royale mode is moved to the engine. So far, the new mode has been a huge hit with players, so much so that it is now affecting Battle Royale player numbers.

HYPEX noted that the main Battle Royale mode, including Zero Build, has now reached its lowest concurrent player count since Epic Games began reporting numbers in March 2023. In the image, we see that only 331,700 players were playing Battle Royale compared to 440,400 in Fortnite Reload. So far, Fortnite Reload has peaked at over 1 million concurrent players each day, so that number will increase as the day goes on.

This follows the most recent update which saw the addition of Duos to Fortnite Reload, with Trios expected to follow soon. The new mode was a huge hit with players, with many enjoying revisiting an OG-inspired map as well as the faster mode which allows for quick restarts to bring teams back into the game and keep the action flowing.

Epic Games has not announced whether the mode is permanent or an LTM, but due to its popularity it is unlikely to be removed and all indications are that it will be a core game mode alongside Battle Royale, Festival, LEGO, Rocket Racing, Team Rumble, and Save the World.

If the new mini Battle Royale isn’t your thing, there’s still plenty to do in the game, with Metallica being the featured artist of Fortnite Festival Season 4, bringing 11 songs to the game and being immortalized in skins . A new Pirates of the Caribbean collaboration is set to debut on July 19 and will bring a new mini Battle Pass that will allow players to unlock the iconic Captain Jack Sparrow.