Fortnite is back with 'Chapter 2' and a new map and new features after its extravagant black hole stunt

Epic Games

A promotional screenshot for Fortnite Chapter 2.

• Epic Games has announced Fortnite Chapter 2, a major update for the wildly popular multiplayer shooter game.
• It includes a new map, new functionality, and the ability to upgrade weapons.
• The update comes after Fortnite's original map was "destroyed" by a black hole that left the game deliberately unplayable for two days.
• The event, dubbed "The End," built extreme levels of hype among gamers for what would come next.

Fortnite is back with an all-new map and a slew of new features.

Two days after the wildly popular online shooter kicked off a stunt that saw the entire game nominally "destroyed" and left deliberately unplayable, developer Epic has announced "Chapter 2" - a major new update for the game.

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The headline addition is a new map that players battle to the death on, as well as new gameplay features like swimming and motorboats, new teammate functionality, weapon upgrades, a new progression system, and more. 

Fortnite is a free-to-play online shooting game in which 100 players drop onto a virtual island, collect weapons, build structures, and battle to be the last one alive (in its most popular game mode, at least). It has been an extraordinary pop culture phenomenon since its launch in 2017, is arguably the most popular game in the world today, and has made its developer Epic bucketloads of cash.

The game is structured around so-called "seasons": While anyone can play for free on anything from the PS4 to the iPhone, it also runs 10-week seasons that tell a broader story and modify the game map, and which players can buy a "battle pass" for that helps them unlock cosmetic skins, items, and dances for their characters.

The black hole that destroyed the original map on Sunday was the culmination of Season 10, billed "The End," and was the most drastic change Epic has made to the game to date. It built wild levels of hype for what might come next, with millions of users tuning it to watch it live.

The latest iteration of Fortnite, dubbed "Chapter 2," is also restarting the season counter, launching a new "Season 1" on Monday.

Here's the full trailer for Fortnite Chapter 2: