When Will Fortnite Be Back Online?

Fortnite has entered a dark period, literally. And it still isn't back from the black hole. The game seems to have ended, as promised by Epic Games, as players who were actually in the game or about to be were simultaneously sucked into a black hole -- which only built on the mystery regarding what will follow Season X. Now, as players sit staring at the black hole on their TV screens, they are left with a big question: What now? How long until Fortnite is back online? Furthermore, when Fortnite is back, what will gamers find when they enter a game after this live event finally comes to an end?

UPDATE 10/13/19 at 7pm ET: New Leak Indicates Fortnite Returns on Tuesday

The most likely scenario here is that Epic Games has entered a period of "down time" for Fortnite to apply an update. These down-time periods are routine when new seasons come along and often drop regularly in the early weeks of each season to correct errors sometimes spotted by the millions of gamers experiencing new updates. They typically last between four and six hours. In this case, the period where the game is functionally down might run a little longer as Epic Games seems to be gearing up for an entirely new map (or something even bigger?) following the end of Season X. The maintenance would have begun around 2:30pm ET, meaning that Fortnite could take as long as 8:30pm ET to get back online, if not longer. Of course, the possibility remains that it could surprise its players and come back earlier than expected at any moment.

With the update being applied an fans hungry for Season 11, the common bet seems to be that Fortnite is going to be played on an entirely new map. This would be something brand new to the game which has commonly altered its map through various updates but never completely wiped it out. Apex Legends, another free-to-play game recently launched an entirely new map, which some think influenced Fortnite's decision.

Other rumors point to Fortnite: Chapter 2 launching as what might be an entirely new game. Whether or not gamers will have to download a new game which would operate separately is unclear but also unlikely. Fortnite will certainly see a major facelift when it comes back online but the originally downloaded game will likely still be working -- and the black hole plaguing gamers' screens today will be a thing of the past.

Video captured by gamers shows the moment when Fortnite was sucked into a black hole around 1pm ET.

What do you think Fortnite is cooking up right now? Do you want a whole new game? A new map? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Instagram and Twitter!

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for more updates.