Epic GamesA Fortnite fan called everyone “nostalgia blind” after OG Chapter 1 Season 1 fell short of expectations, but players overwhelmingly disagreed.
In November 2024, Fortnite shattered its all-time concurrent player record during the Juice WRLD event, hitting a peak of over 14.3 million concurrent players. Epic Games capitalized on that momentum by adding OG Chapter 1 as a permanent game mode in December.
However, we labeled this decision a “terrible idea” because it split the player base between different game modes, brought back outdated mechanics, and the original map lacked exciting POIs or sufficient cover for Zero Build fans.
That prediction came to a head as the battle royale only peaked at 4.7 million players in December and fell to 3.7 million in January 2025. Fortnite still averages over 30 million active users daily, but the decline is staggering, and a player has attributed that trend to OG failing.
Fortnite players defend OG becoming permanent
Epic GamesA Fortnite player argued, “I think this mode made everyone realize how boring chapter 1 actually was and that everybody was just nostalgia blind.”
In defense of the take, they claimed the lackluster loot pool held the game mode back, then argued Epic Games would have been better off starting from Season 4.
The comment section fired back with counterarguments.
“I found myself playing this way more than regular br last season,” one player responded.
“Not everyone found it boring. I actually found it to be better than the last season,” a second user added.
On January 31, Chapter 1 Season 2 started, and the loot pool is about to get more exciting. The iconic Boogie Bomb is making a long-awaited return, along with the Chug Jug, Impulse Grenade, and Minigun.
It’s unknown if that will be enough to attract more players, but it’s clear player count numbers don’t tell the whole story of how community members feel about OG.
For more, check out everything we know about the upcoming Cowboy Bebop crossover.
