Fortnite is headed for a big change with the release of the impending Chapter 5 Season 2 update.
Epic Games' ever-popular battle royale continues to thrive nearly seven years after its initial release, with its biggest content update to date having hit the game back in December 2023.
The ushering in of Fortnite Chapter 5 brought about some major changes to the games-as-a-service. It added to not only the ongoing battle royale mode but also debuted three new games within the Fortnite platform in Rocket Racing, LEGO Fortnite, and Fortnite Festival, with the promise of more to follow for each of them.
The Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 2 Release Date Confirmed
In the lead-up to the update, Epic Games officially confirmed when Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 2 will be released.
The hotly-anticipated new season will debut on Friday, March 8. This will come after a few hours of scheduled downtime for the Fortnite servers.
This is in line with previous release expectations, as the Chapter 5 Season 1 Battle Pass was set to expire on March 8 at 2 a.m. ET.
Traditionally, the season switchover has happened around 2 or 3 a.m. ET, with the update taking roughly an hour before the servers come back online.
That means by the time gamers wake up stateside on March 8, the new season should be up and running with a new Battle Pass to chase and content to enjoy.
Gamers looking to get in on the action as soon as possible should make sure their consoles are in standby mode and automatic Fortnite updates are turned on.
Here is a list of expected release timings across several time zones for Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 2:
- 2 a.m. - 4 a.m. PT
- 5 a.m. - 7 a.m. ET
- 9 a.m. - 11 a.m. GMT
- 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. JST
Chapter 5 Season 2 Battle Pass Skins Leaked
Days ahead of Chapter 5 Season 2's debut, many of the new Battle Pass skins leaked.
Subtitled "Odyssey," Fortnite Season 5 Chapter 2 is expected to tackle the world of Greek Mythology with its new Battle Pass.
This comes after a giant hand emerged on the Fortnite Battle Royale map to end Season 1 holding a giant mysterious chest.
After days of trying to crack the vessel, players discovered it was not just any ordinary chest but Pandora's Box and it had been opened, unleashing the powers of the gods on the world of the hit multiplayer game.
According to Fortnite leaker HypeX, the Chapter 5 Season 5 Battle Pass will feature skins for icons from Greek mythology like Zeus, Cerberus, Medusa, and many others.
The full list of leaked Greek god Battle Pass skins can be seen below:
- Zeus
- Cerberus
- Hades
- Aphrodite
- Poseidon
- Medusa
- Artemis
- Ares
- Odyssey
These Greek gods are also supposedly set to debut alongside the return of the Kratos skin from the popular God of War PlayStation series along with the debut of his son Atreus in the game, as shared by @ShiinaBR on X (formerly Twitter).
Leakers have also said that outside the Greek god and (in Kratos' case) god-killing theme, the upcoming season will also reportedly feature skins from the uber-popular Persona series of RPGs; however, when and where they will appear in the Season remains unclear.
A New Movement Mechanic Coming to Fortnite
While players have been running, jumping, and (more recently) mantling across the Fortnite Battle Royale map for years, Chapter 5 Season 2 is seemingly set to add a whole new movement option... Flying!
The game's various social channels have been teasing wings of some sort coming to the title for players to enjoy for weeks.
Teases like "Don’t fly too close to the sun..." have been commonplace on Fortnite's X account, adding fuel to the fire.
One post even went as far as to say that players will be doing "something else" other than the typical "walk or sprint when competing" in Chapter 5 Season 2:
"You know how you can walk or sprint when competing? Let’s say you’ll be able to do something else…"
It remains unclear how flying will come to Fortnite as a mechanic, but the most likely scenario would have wings appear on the map as a discoverable resource like some other movement gimmicks in the game before it (i.e. The Grapple Glove and Jetpack).
Changes Coming to Fortnite's Other Modes
After first being introduced in Chapter 5 Season 1, Fortnite's new modes (LEGO Fortnite, Fortnite Festival, and Rocket Racing) are all assumed to be getting updates as a part of the introduction of Chapter 5 Season 2.
A couple of the game modes like Fortnite Festival run on a different Seasons schedule than the popular Battle Royale vertical.
Festival kicked off its second season in late February, welcoming a special event centered on the music of Lady Gaga. Fans can expect new tracks as well as other special bonuses as a part of Fortnite Festival Season 2 which runs until April 22.
As for LEGO Fortnite and Rocket Racing, it remains to be seen what exactly is in store for Season 2 of each of the new Fortnite off-shoots.
However, if Season 2 is anything like the first, gamers will likely see new skins as well potential crossover with the Battle Royale mode's Greek mythology theme that is set to debut in Chapter 5 Season 2.
Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 2 kicks off on Friday, March 8.
