Minecraft was not my cup of tea, but I might have felt differently if the sandbox game had been made out of Lego bricks. At least, that's how I felt from my own experience with Lego Fortnite prior to its launch on December 7.
Lego Fortnite made a massive statement for the recently released Fortnite Chapter 5, bringing survival crafting exploration to Epic Games' title for the first time. Fortnite characters transform into minifigs while adapting to the elements of a world 20 times the size of Battle Royale.
This LEGO-based environment forces you to build a camp, fight enemies, and scavenge the food and materials needed to withstand different climates. Yes, the items you collect and develop your community take the form of actual LEGO bricks. And that's what makes this game so fascinating.
If you know the Lego brand and its fans, you know that being true to life is essential, and Epic Game's Unreal Engine supports over 10,000 actual Lego brick pieces in the new Fortnite experience. The Unreal Engine supports more than 10,000 actual Lego brick pieces in the new Fortnite experience. In the virtual world you encounter and build, the structures are all things you could create in the real world with the right blocks.
In addition, LEGO Four Night minifigs are built to resemble existing Fortnite characters, with over 1,200 interchangeable costume pieces and over 100 interchangeable emoticons. I played as a virtual minifig version of Fishstick and was surprised that my character didn't ask me to sacrifice authenticity for Lego or Fortnite fandom.
Nevertheless, the major differences between LEGO Fortnite and the real LEGO bricks I have loved for years became apparent as I got a feel for the experience. In LEGO Fortnite, I did not hesitate to destroy unfamiliar camps. I looted abandoned buildings and collected scrap metal for my own benefit. He slashed ruthlessly at structures outside his own camp with pickaxes and continued to destroy them until they collapsed.
In the real world, it would bring tears to one's eyes to tear down something made of Lego bricks. After all, it is much more difficult to demolish and reconstruct an actual Lego structure. (Side note: Epic Games' hands-on included an impressive supply llama made of LEGO bricks more than twice my height.)
The beauty of this virtual Lego world was that I felt empowered to assemble, blow up, and reconfigure as much as my creativity would allow; I only had about 30 minutes to play, and I could only gather a few people in my camp, complete with bunks and tool tables.
But Epic showed me how those with early access could take advantage of the Lego experience. Some built the ultimate mansion in a lava mine, while other players designed a tiki bar by the water. The more we embrace the world of Lego's Fortnight, the more opportunities we have to engineer from our imagination. That is what makes it worth trying.
To try out Lego Fortnite yourself, go to the lobby screen in the main menu, scroll down to the "Discover" section, and select "Lego Fortnite". Start by inviting a friend to join you and start camping.
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