'Fortnite' Season 8 Buried Treasure Maps Offer an Exciting New Way to Loot

Argh, matey! Piratey treasure maps are now a legitimate part of Fortnite: Battle Royale, and they’re the hottest new way to get the best loot — but not without a little bit of work.

Fortnite version 8.01 update was released Wednesday morning, and along with some slight weapon balancing changes that made Clingers and Infantry Rifles drop less frequently, the biggest new feature added to the game is called Buried Treasure. The official patch notes tease, “Follow the map to uncover hidden loot across the island! Find the X that marks the spot and get to digging.”

This new item is exactly what we predicted it would be when Epic Games first teased the new item via the in-game news feed.

Players can find treasure maps of legendary rarity from floor loot or standard chests, and by going to the “X” marked on the map, players can dig up a special buried chest using their pickaxe. It will contain “a trove of legendary loot.” Players can only hold one map at a time.

When actively holding the map, dotted red lines appear that lead the player towards the treasure, but a large beacon of light similar to a world marker also appears for the player holding it. The Buried Treasure itself looks like a half-buried traditional chest with a small pile of dirt. Once players dig it up, they’re awarded with a lot of legendary items.

Strategically, it seems really risky for Solo players to use these as they won’t be able to defend themselves against enemy players while locating the treasure. For Duos or Squads, however, hunting down Buried Treasure is bound to be a focus in most matches moving forward as a way to get better gear earlier in matches.

These don’t feel like a game-changing addition to the game per se, but they’re definitely a new way to engage with Season 8’s theme in a fun way.

Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 8 is ongoing, with Week 2 slated to begin on March 7.