Fortnite fans say chapter 2 is a huge grind

Fortnite Chapter 2 debuted earlier this week, and the refresh brought with it a number of changes, including a brand new map. One big change, according to Epic Games, was the promise of having “more fun, less grind.” To that end, the battle pass progression system was tweaked to try and give players more ways to level up, such as opening chests, and farming materials.

It’s a nice idea in theory — who wants to spend ages making small incremental progress to unlock something new? — but it’s not quite working out that way, according to fans who have now spent the better part of a week with the new system.

On social media, Fortnite aficionados are complaining about how long it’s taking to make progress in the battle pass. Some are even sharing graphics that break down why chapter 2 is shaping up to be a huge grind so far:

Using this example, and given that a Fornite season usually lasts 10 weeks, you’d need to play approximately 15-16 matches every day to be able to hit level 100 before the end of the term. Of course, you could always purchase tiers and bypass the grind ... but players don’t like feeling as if they’re being forced to do so.

The result? People are complaining. The Fortnite Twitter account, which at one point said the words “less grind,” has a good number of replies where people dispute the allegation.

“I play a considerable amount farming, getting high kills etc all for the XP but I’m honestly not seeing the reward,” one Fortnite player said on Twitter.

“The amount of XP you have to gain to reach the next level seems like it’s increased x10,” another Fortnite devotee said.

Part of what’s adding friction to the experience is that Epic Games has changed the way challenges work. Where before, a slate of challenges would unlock every week, now there’s only a set amount at the start — three, in fact. Players can’t do the full batch of new challenges until they clear the initial existing ones.

It used to be possible to clear the simplest or most attainable challenges in a new set to make progress, but now you have to do the specific ones Epic has outlined for you first. It’s a system that impedes progress, rather than allowing players to get further in the Battle Pass however they’d like.

Epic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.