CouRage, Cloak, Chap, and more react to Fortnite finally nerfing BRUTE mechs

A number of prominent Fortnite community figures have responded to the eventual nerf of BRUTE mechs in Fortnite, following weeks of community outrage. 

BRUTEs were added to Fortnite at the start of August with the inception of Season 10. Despite the fact Epic clearly had hopes for them to become an integral part of the game’s meta, the community quickly denounced them as overpowered and unbalanced. 

Despite the backlash, Epic stood firm on the mechs, explaining that they were conducive to lesser skilled players achieving victories. However, the backlash appears to have become too significant and, on August 22, Epic finally announced a meaningful nerf to the mechs in Fortnite. 

The BRUTEs received nerfs to a number of their strongest attributes, including mobility and the number of missiles fired simultaneously. Feedback has generally been positive, but a few more cynical members of the community argue that the change has only come in as players flock to other games. 

• Read More: Daequan explains why he quit competitive Fortnite

Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop has been one of the most outspoken critics of mechs in Fortnite, even quitting the $400,000 Twitch Rivals tournament in protest at the vehicle’s frustrating power. He passionately responded to news of the nerf, tweeting “good riddance”. 

Good friend of CouRage, Tim ‘TimTheTatman’ Betar, has also criticized the mechs and has been seen to play games such as Overwatch with more frequency of late. 

He responded to the news with a video of him repeatedly shouting “Yes!”, in a cathartic display of emotion.

However, Dennis ‘Cloak’ Lepore, long-time duo of Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney, remained critical of the developers, stating that it “shouldn’t have been in the game in the first place”. 

This was a view shared by other players, such as Liquid Chap, who is still pushing for their complete removal from Fortnite.

Popular Australian YouTuber Lannan ‘Lazarbeam’ Eacott tweeted that they (Mechs) got nerfed “hard, (is) Fortnite fun again?” 

Eacott was one creator who, like CouRage, had been spending increasing amounts of time on Minecraft as a result of the mechs in Fortnite. 

Some more cynical users remained critical of the game, stating that the changes have only come about as creators (and players) move away from Fortnite due to the mechs. 

• Read More: Summit1g shares damning opinion of competitive Fortnite

Similarly, some suggested that the nerf has come at a time when it will disrupt other games and encourage players to return to Fortnite. For example, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Gunfight Alpha released on August 22, just hours prior to the nerf being announced. 

While some users clearly don’t think the nerfs are enough and that they took too long to come about, others are simply grateful to see the giant robots become more balanced. 

We’re sure a general consensus will emerge as players spend longer with the adjusted mechs.