What was the Fortnite season 9 release date? After the volcano erupted, the islanders sheltered in bunkers until the coast was clear. By the time they emerged, the landscape was completely changed, with wind-powered tubes providing the loopers with easy transportation across the island.
The trailers had us chomping at the bit to see what was next for Epic Games’ world-conquering battle royale game. We also broke down what Fortnite season 9 map changes were and how the Battle Pass would look. Since getting access to loads more cosmetic goodies and a glimpse at the refreshed battlefield is easily the most exciting part of a new season, we explored those features in the greatest detail while also keeping this guide nice and up-to-date, naturally. So, here goes: this is everything we knew about Fortnite season 9.
Fortnite season 9 release date
The Fortnite season 9 release date is Thursday, May 9, 2019.
This Fortnite season 9 start date was revealed by Epic Games in the tweet below.
Fortnite season 9 trailer
Based on the Fortnite season 9 trailer footage, we could see that this season has a futuristic theme, and plenty of locations had a sci-fi spruce up. The new Battle Pass overview also detailed the ‘Fortbytes’ collectible items that defined that season.
The image in this tweet suggested that the Fortnite season 9 theme would be something futuristic long before its release. Not only is the character’s garb somewhat sci-fi-like, but the tweet’s caption was “The Future is Unknown”.
Fortnite season 9 teasers
Season 9 teasers landed in the usual time frame (10am EST) in the days leading up to the new season day. The sci-fi theme continued in the second tease.
The third and final teaser now completes the word ‘NEO’, and, once again, we were encouraged to think about the future of Fortnite, perhaps foreshadowing the coming of Chapter 2. The tweet also specifically mentions Tilted Towers, now destroyed after the volcano erupted as part of the Unvaulting event.
Fortnite season 9 Battle Pass
In life, we can be certain of three things: death, taxes, and a new Battle Pass with each new Fortnite season. As ever, we expected 100 tiers to progress through. Plenty more new cosmetics were available to add to your already-bulging collection if you bought the Battle Pass all over again, which once again cost 950 Fortnite V-Bucks.
That said, you could get a free Fortnite Battle Pass at the end of last season by completing special Overtime challenges. These missions kept us going between the final weekly challenges of season 7 and this current season commencing. At the time, this was seen as an attempt for Epic to combat the rising tide that is Apex Legends. Either way, we can’t be sure if Epic will ever repeat this gambit. Also, according to dataminer @Guille_GAG, players might be able to gift each other Battle Passes, which was confirmed upon release.
Fortnite season 9 map changes and theories
Thanks to the various season 9 trailers that dropped and the Fortnite season 9 patch notes, we knew heading in that fan-favorite locations, Tilted Towers and Retail Row, returned following their near-total destruction after the Unvaulting event. Following their cyberpunk refresh, we actually got both Neo Tilted and Mega Mall. They were found in the same place as the old ones were before, but now they come packing air vents, bounce pads, and slipstreams.
If you need reminding about all the exciting stuff that kicked off before season 9, here’s a quick summary. It all started with the various Fortnite dig sites that appeared across the map, but especially interesting was the Fortnite Loot Lake vault. Then, mysterious runes started moving towards five different slots.
When the site opened, the Unvaulting event allowed players to vote on which vaulted weapons – like the Drum Gun and Tactical SMG – they wanted to see return to the game. However, something certainly doesn’t look like it’s coming back. Following the Fortnite volcano eruption, old Tilted Towers was decimated by lava. The entire world was covered in smog-filled blackness as molten rocks were launched in all directions, smashing into Polar Peak and Retail Row. Much changed ahead of the Fortnite season 9 map, and more changes would come later in the seasons ahead.