A Tear Is Growing In Fortnite‘s Space-Time Continuum

Last weekend, a rocket blasted off in Fortnite Battle Royale and cracked the sky. The cracks have grown larger since then, leaving players wondering what happens if the sky completely shatters.

Fornite’s rocket launch was a long time coming. The seeds were planted during the lead —up to Season 4, when a giant meteor loomed in the sky before crashing into Dusty Depot. The meteor was quarantined and exhumed over the course of the season, allowing players to unlock the Stranger skin, which featured a Destiny-like spaceman. The game’s background plot moved towards the weekend’s missile launch and cracked skies, hinting at what some fans speculate is an alien escape attempt that signals the arrival of Season 5 on July 12th. These long term narratives—which help make the game so popular—leave plenty of room for speculation. With the crack sky’s continued expansion, players are eager to come up with theories regarding what’s next for Fortnite

Much of the speculation is tied to an alleged leak that show Wild West themed assets. Regardless of their veracity, some players wonder if the next season will involve different historical periods and a radically transformed map. On community forums like Reddit, some players wonder if areas underneath the cracks might be altered or even replaced with strange, ahistorical monuments. The newest crack stops at a mountain right outside of Snobby Shore, and it’s unclear if this marks a spot where the map could change or if the crack will snake off elsewhere.

While players were looking up at the sky, plenty of things were changing on the ground. Strange anomalies are showing up in locations like Tomato Town and Lonely Lodge. These range from odd glowing effects around landmarks to smaller cracks forming in front of buildings. Whatever is going to happen could affect multiple areas on the map at once. Adding to the time portal theory is a tweet from Epic’s worldwide creative director Donald Mustard.

Be excellent to each other.

— Donald Mustard (@DonaldMustard) June 30, 2018

“Be excellent to each other,” is one of the catchphrases of the time traveling Bill and Ted from the 1989 cult classic Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. And while players probably won’t be partying with Socrates and Abe Lincoln, they might want to read up on some history before the start of Season 5.