Fortnite Players have a lot to Celebrate: Building is Back and Players contributed over 144M to Ukraine Relief

Building has returned. Fortnite has re-enabled queues for its signature building feature; it was temporarily removed as part of the game’s latest season, which launched on March 20th. The absence of building was balanced out somewhat by the addition of mechanics designed to make the game more mobile, including climbing and a faster sprint. These changes were part of a string of mobility-related upgrades dating back several years.

However, as The Verge reports, while building is back, the combat-focused spirit lives on in the previously-introduced Zero Build mode. For now, the two versions of the game live side-by-side with queues for both regular and Zero Build available for Solo, Duos, Trios, or Squad battle royale combat.

The ability to harvest materials and build defensive structures has long been a defining trait of Fortnite — and part of what helped differentiate it from other battle royale games like PUBG and Apex Legends — which made its temporary removal all the more surprising.

On a global level, Fortnite players have another reason to celebrate: Epic Games has announced the end of its Ukraine humanitarian drive, with Fortnite players raising over $144 million USD.

The drive saw all proceeds of Fortnite sales generated from in-game items go towards a number of charities through April 3, all of which were supporting humanitarian efforts in the wake of the war in Ukraine. Launching alongside the Chapter 3 Season 2 release, players raised the massive sum in just two weeks for charities like Direct Relief, UNICEF, United Nations World Food Programme and more.

Epic and the Fortnite community were joined in their Ukraine war relief effort by Xbox, and Phil Spencer responded to the announcement via Twitter. He said “Really incredible to see how the gaming community can have impact beyond the playing of games. Thank you (Fortnite) for putting this together, inspiring to see the results.”

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