Fortnite v8.40 patch notes – Air Royale LTM, Infantry Rifles and more

Epic Games have officially released the Fortnite v8.40 patch notes, with the update now available for download on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and mobile devices, with new weapons for players to try out.

The v8.40 update officially goes live at 2:00 AM PST / 5:00 AM EST / 10:00 AM BST on Wednesday, April 17, and will require downtime, which started around 20 minutes before the update went live.

The v8.40 patch brings a host of changes and bug fixes to the game, with the headline addition from the update being the introduction of two new versions of the Infantry Rifle, with the weapons now coming in Epic and Legendary rarities.

Epic and Legendary Infantry Rifles

New versions of the Infantry Rifle have been sitting in the game’s files since February 2019, with fans of Fortnite eager to get their hands on the redesigned Epic and Legendary versions of the gun.

Over two months later, Epic Games finally revealed that the Infantry Rifle’s new varaints were coming to Fortnite via the in-game news feed, which confirmed that they would be available as part of the v8.40 update.

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The new rarities in the Infantry Rifle will offer Fortnite players a more powerful version of the weapon which is already in the game, meaning players will be able to deal more damage-per-shot to enemies while attempting to earn a Victory Royale.

Air Royale LTM

Planes are back in the new Air Royale LTM mode. Players will fly around the map searching for enemy pilots, with each vehicle having three lives. 

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Any players who touch the ground will be instantly eliminated, while parking the plane will cause it to explode after a few seconds. Deal damage to enemy planes and pilots, with the last duo standing declared the winner. 

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Fortnite v8.40 update – Patch notes

BATTLE ROYALE

WHAT’S NEW?

Air Royale Limited Time Mode
Pilot the X-4 Stormwing in this Limited Time Mode as you fight to become the last plane flying! Complete free Challenges to unlock brand new Wraps as you rule the skies.

Infantry Rifle
New rarities for this precise, semi-automatic weapon are available now! Find and wield the Epic/Legendary variants and deliver accurate fire downrange.

LIMITED TIME MODE: AIR ROYALE

Summary
Climb aboard a plane and take to the skies in this fast-paced mode where players fight to be the last one flying!

Mode Details

• Air Royale is lifting off as a Duos-only mode.
• Each plane has 3 lives, players will respawn until they lose their plane’s last life.
• Touching the ground will instantly eliminate players.
• Parking a plane on the ground for more than a few seconds will cause it to explode – stay airborne!
• Hijacking another team’s plane will add that plane to your existing number of plane lives (and cost the team who lost the plane a life).
• The storm has a ceiling that gradually lowers during the match. Be careful not to fly too high late in the match!
• Loot chests of five different rarities will fall from the sky, allowing players to upgrade the guns they are carrying as well as boosting their plane’s weapons for a short time.
  • To receive the contents of a Chest, simply fly through it.
• If players receive loot from a Chest containing a weapon they already have that’s of the same or worse quality, they’ll receive additional ammo.
  • Chests with higher quality guns will automatically replace the lower quality weapon that’s being carried.
• Floating repair kits can also be found, these heal damaged planes and grant health & shields to players.

LIMITED TIME MODE: FOOD FIGHT – DEEP FRIED

Summary

• Two teams on either side of the map. A huge barrier down the middle. Lava steadily rising up from below. Build a fort to protect your restaurant mascot. When the Barrier lowers, destroy the enemy’s mascot and then eliminate the remaining enemies to win the match!

Mode Details

• An impassable barrier will be spawned along the center of the map for the first several minutes. Lava starts rising from beneath the map a few minutes into the match.
• Each team will have an under-construction restaurant near the center of the map. Inside is a giant mascot head representing that team.
• If the mascot head is destroyed, that team loses the ability to respawn when eliminated.
• Players should use the time that the barrier is up to construct a defensive fortress around their restaurant.
• As soon as the barrier lowers, fight to take out their mascot before they destroy yours!
• Special red supply drops spawn at match start. These hold a handful of weapons, ammo, consumables, traps and a few hundred metal building materials.
• Players will respawn when eliminated, keeping their inventory & dropping some ammo and resources.
• 100 percent extra resources are gained from farming.
• Building resources found on the ground increased from 30 to 50 per instance.
• No explosive weapons or items are in this mode.
• A small amount of free building materials are granted to each player every second.
• The restaurants are now much higher, requiring players to build up to them.
• May the best food win!

WEAPONS + ITEMS

• Egg Launcher
  • Everyone’s favorite egg-themed Grenade Launcher skin is back!
  • This is a visual only change for the Grenade Launcher.
• Infantry Rifle
  • Added Epic and Legendary Infantry Rifle variants.
  • Deals 42/44 damage.
  • Can be found from Floor Loot, Chests, Supply Drops and Vending Machines.
  • Uses Medium Ammo.

GAMEPLAY

• You can now pet the dog… and other Pets!
• The Battle Pass Friend XP Bonus has been upgraded!
  • Instead of giving a small XP boost to each friend in your party, you now get a larger XP boost for partying with one or more friends.
  • The overall total XP Bonus remains the same (120%) and will now be much easier to keep active
  • In short, play any match with any number of friends and you’ll be getting the same amount of XP as someone who’s been playing with a full squad of Battle-Pass-owning friends.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where the Season 8 trailer wouldn’t play in some cases.
• Fixed an issue where the embers from environmental Campfires would linger if the floor they were attached to was destroyed.
• Fixed issue where Coconuts could not be pinged.
• Fixed an issue where turbo building could stop if you ran out of the current type of material you were using.
• Fixed an issue with Traps being be placed inside walls, making them difficult to see.
• Fixed an issue with Traps being placed inconsistently when auto-placed.
• Fixed ‘Emotes’ not playing when bound to specific keys.
• Fixed an issue when using ‘Replay Last Emote’ before using any other emote, so it now plays the emote in the default slot.

COMPETITIVE

• New Tournament – April 20 & 21: Fortnite World Cup Online Open Week 2 ($1,000,000 total prize pool!)
  • Top performers in each server region will qualify to the Fortnite World Cup Finals in New York City.  Full Fortnite World Cup details and official rules can be found here: https://www.epicgames.com/fortnite/competitive/events/world-cup
  • Duos Game Mode
  • Participation in this event requires both players to have reached Champion League in Arena.
  • Region Lock is in effect – players may only participate in the qualifier for a single server region each week of the Online Opens. The server region of the first match entered for that weekend’s tournament will be the one the player will be locked into for that entire weekend.
  • Format:
    • April 20 – Round One: All Eligible Players.
    • April 21 – Round Two: Top 1500 Teams from Round One.
• Added Fortnite World Cup Qualifier slots onto the prize breakout for Online Open tournaments.
• Visual improvements for Lobby panel during Online Open tournaments.
• Updated how Anonymous Mode works in tournaments to provide an improved experience for stream viewers while still protecting streamers.
  • When a player is eliminated, their name will be shown in the elimination feed.
  • When a player eliminates an opponent, their name will be shown to the eliminated player only.
• Maximum Screen Aspect Ratio can no longer be greater than 16:9.

PERFORMANCE

• Resolved a performance regression occurring on PCs with less than quad-core CPUs.
  • If you’re still experiencing performance issues on PC, try manually adding the “NoRHIThread” to the Epic Games Launcher settings for Fortnite.

ART + ANIMATION

• Increased the size and intensity of the Boom Bow explosion effects to better represent the damage radius.

AUDIO

• Adjusted the attenuation of the Reboot Van cooldown and Reboot Chip ambient looping audio, so that it’s not as loud.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue that would cause the Shotgun equip sounds to occasionally not play.

UI

• Mimic!  When bringing up your emote wheel there’s now an option that appears if you’re looking at another player doing an emote you own, to allow you to play the same emote.
• When hiding HUD elements in the options, some of them now collapse to free up the space they were taking up – the minimap for example.
• There’s now a HUD UI option to hide the vehicle control hints.

Bug Fixes

• The Limited Time Mode Victory screen is no longer pushed out of place on mobile/Switch.

REPLAY

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where drone speed was not saved when scrubbing
• Fixed an issue where scrubbing a replay while in Drone Attach mode would result in the camera being left behind.

MOBILE

• Updated the Baller controls on default and custom HUDs.
  • Baller controls are available to be adjusted in the HUD Layout Tool for custom HUD players.
• Audiovisual shot indicators will no longer display for players in the same vehicle.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue with the Android app icon being incorrectly displayed.
• Fixed an issue with Voice Chat while spectating
  • Push-To-Talk button is also no longer hidden while spectating
• Fixed an issue where Auto-run would not activate in vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where the Reboot Card description was missing.
• Fixed an issue where the Arena overview panel was not displaying.
• Fixed an issue with the FPS counter being shown twice.
• Fixed an issue where the weapon icon would not display in inventory hot bar sometimes.
• Fixed an issue where textures would appear stretched when on a Creative Island.
• Fixed an issue that displayed a checkmark icon on certain commands of vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where a second storm wall would appear in the desert biome during the first closing period.
• Fixed an issue where some chests could not be opened.
• Fixed issues where weak wifi halted gameplay and could cause some disconnects.

CREATIVE

WHAT’S NEW?

Explosive Device
Destruction and demolition are made easy with The Explosive Device, now in Creative Mode.

Scoreboard Customization 
Customize the in-game scoreboard in new ways! Open the “My Island” menu to discover the different possibilities.

ISLANDS

• When on the Hub, Featured Island portals now appear as doorways to these featured games.
• Simplified the text above the portals to show the Creator’s name and the Island’s name.
  • Approaching the portal will cause a description for the game to animate into view.

GAMEPLAY

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where the player’s character would face the wrong direction when starting a game.
• Fixed an issue where games could be started simultaneously on different islands when initiated by a player in the same server.
• Fixed an issue where players could damage each other after the scoreboard appears.
• Fixed an issue where players who join a match that’s in progress would not see progressive Outfit changes on the Peely Outfit.
• Fixed an issue where some players were unable to aim down sight when playing games.
• Fixed an issue where players would be scored as “Knocked Down” while spawning into a game in progress.
• Fixed an issue where Reboot Cards were incorrectly appearing in Creative games.

WEAPONS + ITEMS

• Infantry Rifle
  • Epic and Legendary Infantry Rifle variants
    • Deals 42, 44 damage

CREATIVE TOOLS + PHONE

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where a bright blue light would appear while copying and pasting objects with the Phone.
• Fixed an issue where players could not enter Build Mode when the Phone was equipped, while using a controller.
• Known issue: Delete sound effect plays twice when deleting an object.

PREFABS

• Updated Car Gallery A with a Submarine, Arctic Submarine and Helicopter.
• Updated the Jungle Temple Props Gallery with 3 different sized Moai Statues.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue in the Military Behemoth where external wall vents could appear to be floating.
• Fixed an issue in the Military Behemoth where players could unintentionally drop off some stairways.
• Fixed an issue where Military Gallery B Blue had a couple of building pieces showing up as red.
• Fixed an issue where the collision box was too large around some assets in the Ring Gallery.

DEVICES

• All new Explosive Device
  • When damaged during a game, the device will explode and damage objects and players around it
  • Limited to 100 Explosive Devices per island
  • Modify the following options:
    • Player Damage – The amount of damage inflicted on surrounding players (0, 2, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, elimination)
    • Structure Damage – The amount of damage inflicted on surrounding structures (0, 5, 25, 50, 100, 500, 1000)
    • Damage Indestructible Buildings – Turning on this option will destroy buildings, even if “Building Damage In Game” is “Off”..
    • Health – The health of the Explosive Device (1, 25, 50, 75, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 1000, 2000, 5000)
    • Blast Radius – How far the explosion will reach from the point of origin (0.25, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3)
    • Knockback – How forceful the explosion will be at knocking back players (off, low, medium, high, very high, super high)
    • Ignore Team For Damage – Turn on to ignore a specified team when dealing damage (none, 1-16)
    • Explode on Proximity Range –  Turn on to explode when a player is at a set distance from the device (off, 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
    • Ignore Team For Proximity – Turn on to ignore a specified team when entering designated proximity range (none, 1-16)
    • Time To Detonation From Game Start –  Turn on to start a timer for automatic detonation when a game starts (off, 5 sec, 10 sec, 15 sec, 30 sec, 1 min, 2 min, 5 min, 10 min, 30 min, 1 hr)
• Creature Spawner has been updated to visualize the spawn radius around the device.
• Added a “Spawn Through Walls” option to the Creature Spawner.
  • Turning this off will prevent creatures from being spawned on the other side of walls.
• Added “Preferred Spawn Location” option to the Creature Spawner with “At Max Distance” or “Random” options.
  • “At Max Distance” will spawn creatures at the edge of the Max Spawn Distance.
  • “Random” will spawn them at random points within the spawn radius.
• For the following devices, turning “Visualization” off will hide the device immediately upon starting a game, instead of waiting for the game start countdown to finish.
  • Barrier
  • Damage Volume
  • Player Checkpoint Plate
  • Player Spawn
  • Item Spawner
  • Radio
  • Music Sequencer

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where the Billboard had improper collision when reloading the Island or copying with the creative tool.
• Fixed an issue where the Item Spawner “Time Before Initial Spawn” option was not functioning as intended.
• Fixed an issue with the Shooting Gallery that would prevent players from hitting the bullseye on some targets.
• Fixed an issue with the Shooting Gallery where you couldn’t hit the bullseye until you had started a game.
• Fixed an issue with the Shooting Gallery that prevented sniper rifles from being able to register hits on the bullseye.
• Clarified the units of time (eg. seconds, minutes) for related options on the Target Dummy Track in the Shooting Gallery.
• Fixed an issue where the Target Dummy “Proximity Pop Up Range” setting only triggered at half the expected distance.
• Fixed an issue where the Billboard was causing stretched textures to appear on player’s Islands when playing on mobile devices.
• Fixed an issue where the player character’s head would appear floating over the Cannon when attempting to fly while inside.
• Fixed an issue with the Capture Area device having inconsistent collision around the base.
• Fixed an issue where the Creature Spawner destruction animation would trigger even though visibility was set to “Off”.

UI + SOCIAL + AUDIO

• “UI Settings” can be found in the “My Island” menu.  Providing the ability to modify various user interfaces.
  • Time – Choose whether the clock counts down or up
  • Score Display Time – The amount of time the scoreboard is displayed after a match (Don’t Show, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 seconds)
  • Winner Display Time – The amount of time the Winner UI is displayed (Don’t Show, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 seconds)
  • HUD Type – Choose the optimal heads-up-display for the type of game you created (Default, Creature Elimination, Score)
  • Scoreboard Stat 1-5 – Choose the statistics that are tracked and shown on up to 5 columns on the scoreboard at the end of the match (None, Eliminations, Assists, Knocked Down, Collect Items, Health, Creature Eliminations, Score, Objectives, Time)
    • These statistics will serve as a tie-breaker (in sequential order) in the case that there is a tie under the primary rules of the game
• The end of game Scoreboard has received a visual makeover to coincide with the new scoreboard options available for creators.
• Winners are now prompted with new celebration animations, similar to the Victory Screen in Battle Royale.

Bug Fixes

• You should now be able to see team member names over their heads based on the My Island Options.
• Fixed an issue where placed trap sounds overlap and were very loud when spawning into a game.
• Fixed an issue where vehicle destruction sound effects would play loudly when spawning into a game.
• Fixed an issue where favorite Island codes could not be removed from the Featured Island Code list when using a controller.
• Fixed an issue where the Fly Up prompt shows ‘Unbound’ in the Tooltip when using a controller.
• Fixed an issue where the ammo count wasn’t displaying as infinite on weapons when infinite ammo was enabled.

PERFORMANCE

Bug Fixes

• Fixed various performance and stability issues.

SAVE THE WORLD

WHAT’S NEW?

Bunny Brawler Luna
Make an egg-plosive entrance with this new Soldier!

Dashing Hare Ken
Poach the Husks with this new and egg-citing Ninja.

MISSIONS + SYSTEMS

• Beta Storm Test the Limits returns!
  • The number of race gates has increased from 4 to 6.
  • A cinematic has been added to clarify when the race begins.
  • Watch out for the Husks! Prevent them from destroying the gate or you won’t be able to earn a platinum badge during your race.
    • This occurs after earning the Gold Medal.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue which caused BluGlo Siphons to be mislabeled on the map in Refuel the Homebase missions.

UI

• The Hero Loadout picker panel now has a button callout for “Cancel”.
• The Hero Loadout “Clear All” button is now available when only a gadget or team perk has been selected.  

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue with Hero rewards showing Survivor related descriptions on the XP bar when in the Command tab.
• Fixed an issue that caused the ‘Manage Player’ panel to show an incorrect banner and power level while in the lobby.
• Fixed an issue that caused the item details panel to have incorrect information when fast switching between inventory screens.
• Fixed an issue that caused the “reward icon” and “earned reward” screens to not update properly when players skip the animation.
• Fixed an issue that caused the tiles on the mission select screen to not refocus when party members level-up or evolve Heroes and Survivors.
• Fixed an issue that caused Hero names to flicker when using a controller in the Hero Loadout select screen.
• Fixed an issue that caused the reset menu to lose functionality when switching to a different Hero while the reset menu is open.
• Fixed an issue that caused the power level notification to not show up when a new player joins your party.
• Fixed an issue that caused the player to not see the respawn button prompt when falling off the world.
• Fixed an issue that caused the looted items notification to have large spaces in the text.

PERFORMANCE

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue that caused players to hitch when accessing the boosts menu during gameplay.
• Fixed an issue that caused players to hitch when opening the Armory tab.

HEROES

• Introducing Bunny Brawler Luna, a new Legendary Soldier!
  • Standard Perk: Eggs-plosive Entrance
    • Shockwave drops 3 egg bombs, which each deal 54 base damage to nearby enemies.
  • Commander Perk: Eggs-plosive Entrance+
    • Shockwave drops 3 egg bombs, which each deal 162 base damage to nearby enemies.
  • Available in the Event Store on April 17 at 8 PM Eastern Time.
• Introducing Dashing Hare Ken, a new Legendary Ninja!
  • Standard Perk: Eggs-termination
    • Kunai Storm throws 3 egg bombs, which each deal 37 base damage to nearby enemies.
  • Commander Perk: Eggs-termination+
    • Kunai Storm throws 3 egg bombs, which each deal 111 base damage to nearby enemies.
  • Available in the Event Store on April 17 at 8 PM Eastern Time.
• The Legendary Soldier Rabbit Raider Jonesy Returns!
  • Standard Perk: Sure Shot
    • Increases Sniper Critical Damage by 75%.
  • Commander Perk: Sure Shot+
    • Increases Sniper Critical Damage by 225%.
  • Available in the Event Store on April 17 at 8 PM Eastern Time.

Bug Fixes
Fixed an issue where T.E.D.D.Y would not go on cooldown if the ability was interrupted mid-throw.

WEAPONS + ITEMS

• Easter Egg Launcher
  • Lobs egg mines that explode on contact with enemies. Maximum of 6 eggs active at a time.
  • Available in the Weekly Store from April 17 at 8 PM Eastern Time until April 24 at 8 PM Eastern Time.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where the Broadside trap’s cannonballs weren’t being destroyed by the Super Shielder’s shield.

GAMEPLAY

• “Auto Equip Better Weapon” now equips based on Power Rating instead of Weapon DPS.

Bug Fixes

• The Cannonade Launcher has been reclassified as a cannonball weapon, allowing it to get damage buffs from the Avast Mateys perk.

ART + ANIMATION

• Storm Shield and mission loading screens are now biome based rather than mission based.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed a large gap that could be found in some Autumn Cities.

AUDIO

• Updated the audio when Med Bot revives a downed player.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue that caused the in-game music to continue playing after skipping the victory and defeat cinematics.
• Reduced volume on the Nailer weapon to be consistent with other weapons.

 

GENERAL

UI

• Updated the Main Menu Party Bar in Battle Royale and Creative modes to simply be a list of players who are in your selected voice channel.  
  • Interacting with mouse or controller will perform a “Toggle Mute” on that player.
• The icon for your selected skin or hero loadout now appears in the top left of the Social Panel.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue in Battle Royale and Creative that would sometimes cause your lobby character to not reappear on your pedestal.

SOCIAL

• Updated lists for Save the World, Battle Royale and in-game Social Panel to more logically identify Party Members before the game starts, and Team Members once in-game.
  • We also display any Party Members that are not in-game with you when applicable.

GAMEPLAY

Bug Fixes

• Fixed emote hotkeys so they correctly play emotes.