New Fortnite update adds weather system, tornadoes, and more in Chapter 3 Season 1

Fortnite released a weekly update today. While it was primarily a hotfix, speculation was rife about whether any significant changes would come via this update. The alternative was that all the big changes (new NPCs, POIs melting, flare gun, weather system, and more) would arrive in the v19.10 update.

While that update is set to arrive a week from today, a few changes were nonetheless snuck into today's Fortnite update. Here's everything new players can expect when they get online.

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Fortnite weather update finally arrives in Chapter 3 Season 1

According to HYPEX, three big changes have been added to the game today. The update was supposed to go live at around 9:00 am EST, which is just before the time of writing. Players should now be able to head in and experience a tornado, try out the flare gun and see lightning strike.

Also according to HYPEX, the tornadoes will be much more frequent for the first week. From now until the next update, tornadoes will be very common and keep throwing players for a loop.

Tornadoes and lightning are part of the new weather system that Epic Games is adding. They were both teased in the initial Chapter 3 trailer but had yet to arrive and impact gameplay. Beginning now, Fortnite will never be the same.

The flare gun is one of the most highly anticipated additions this season. It will deal 60 damage and set the surrounding area on fire. It will also act as a shakedown and reveal enemies in that same area.

Flare guns will be added to the game once again in today's update (Image via Epic Games)

The flare gun has the potential to be a very popular weapon, though this isn't the first time it's been in the game. It was also included in patch v13.20, so it has been in the game for a while. It is also the first gun from a previous season to make its way into Chapter 3 Season 1.

There is no downtime for this update, so players can get in immediately and check out the tornadoes, lightning, and flare gun. Many bugs were also fixed with this patch.