Fortnite season 6 changes: Shadow Stones, music packs, Pets and more

Fortnite season 6 is here AND YOU CAN HAVE PETS. And some other stuff BUT MAINLY DOGS. Oh okay, there are new Shadow Stones that turn you into some sort of dark wraith like spectre, new music packs to change your soundtrack and more map changes - what has happened to Loot Lake? Let’s break it all down. 

How much does the Fortnite Season 6 Battle Pass cost? 

As ever the Fortnite Season 6 Battle Pass costs 950 V-Bucks for the lowest entry level. In real money that's $9.99 / £7.99. That unlocks 100 tiers of rewards you then have to earn through completing challenges and gaining both XP and Battle Stars. However, if you want to stump up 2800 V-Bucks for the Battle Bundle you can get the Battle Pass and unlock the first 25 tiers straight away. Your call. 

In terms of what’s new in the Battle Pass, this is a quick run through of all the new things: 

Here's the Fortnite season 6 opening cinematic

There are now Fortnite pets ready to fight alongside you

There are now three pets you can unlock that are basically a kind of extra cute Back Bling. Bonesy the dog and Scales the dragon have upgradable styles (basically colour changes) while Camo the chameleon comes in one flavour. They add another layer of character to your game by reacting to things you do as you play - watching Bonesy growl over your shoulder as you aim is just too adorable. 

The Fortnite Shadow Stones turn you into a temporary ghost

You can now find Shadow Cubes, mini versions of the cube, that turn you into some sort of spooky ghost thing. While in that form you can’t shoot, only ‘phase’ through solid objects. You can be killed though, making it an odd ability. You're able to move fast and pass through things but you’re otherwise defenceless. 

There are now Fortnite music packs to change how your game sounds

So far there are only three music packs: Squeaky Clean, Eerie and OG remix which change the background music while you’re in the menus. The first is a slightly trancey version of the Flossing emote music, while the other two are new versions of Fortnite’s usual music. It’s not clear yet whether there will be more via the Item Store but it’s a new equipable thing in your locker so I’m going to say yes. 

The Fortnite season 6 map has changed (again)

It’s hard to miss the most obvious changes on the Fortnite map which is that the house at in the middle of Loot Lake has been lifted skywards by the Cube. That’s now surrounded by an energy field that’ll float you skywards - either to the raised building, or to redeploy your glider to cover distance quicker. The other big changes are a series of corrupted spots where the Cube previously left runes behind. These are now rocky areas, barren save for the Shadow Stones and some chests. They’re generally craggy and an uneven terrain and, interestingly, some have what were previously leaked as lava spewing craters. They’ve currently inert and lifeless so potentially these areas could change over time. Some other changes include a spooky castle that now overlooks Haunted Hills and a new bunker under the maze in Wailing Woods, where someone appears to be experimenting on a rift. It looks a little like the Villain's Lair so maybe their work is not yet done...

If you're committed to Fortnite then here's the new Fortnite tier 100 skin. It's called Dire and lets you level it up from a fresh faced human all the way through to a full on werewolf.

Leon Hurley
Managing editor for guides

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for guides, which means I run GamesRadar's guides and tips content. I also write reviews, previews and features, largely about horror, action adventure, FPS and open world games. I previously worked on Kotaku, and the Official PlayStation Magazine and website.