'Fortnite' Nerfs the Baller In Time for the World Cup Qualifiers

A nerf has come through for Fortnite's Baller vehicles that have dominated the competitive and public scenes since they were added. The nerf was hotfixed into the game just in time for the World Cup Qualifiers that start on April 13th, though it's not the nerf that players originally expected to release. Instead of making it so that players can shoot through the glass of the Ballers and harm enemies using the vehicle, the Ballers now simply have less health.

Towards the end of March, Epic Games announced its intentions to nerf the Baller after it said it "noticed a lot of discussion" around the vehicle. Most of that discussion consisted of players being frustrated with the fact that every end-game scenario was filled with Ballers rolling around, protecting their users while giving them some serious mobility. The change that would let players shoot through the glass was ultimately delayed, and it looked as though it might not release in time for the World Cup Qualifiers that were drawing near.

The hotfix was released just in time for the big tournament to begin though with Epic Games outlined its nerf plans in a post on Reddit. You won't find shooting players inside the Baller any easier after the hotfix, but it will be easier to get them out of the vehicles since Ballers now have less health.

"We deployed a hotfix reducing the health of The Baller from 300 to 200," Epic Games said. "In the 8.20 patch notes, we said we would add the ability to shoot through the glass of Ballers in a future update. We've played with shooting through glass and it didn't feel like the right solution."

Though Fortnite players had some time to test the new Ballers in the game's more competitive modes ahead of the Qualifiers starting, it'll be interesting to see how the nerf affects their place in the tournament. This wouldn't be the first time a change was made right before a tournament began, the past instance with the Infinity Blade likely the most memorable one.

Full details on the World Cup Qualifiers can be seen here so you can watch how the Baller handles on the competitive stage after the hotfix.

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