Sand tunneling is back in Fortnite. Epic Games released a new update last week and along with several bug fixes and improvements, and the new patch brought the popular, yet troubled feature back to Fortnite.
Sand tunneling was first introduced into the game at the beginning of Chapter 2 of Season 5. Not long after the feature was introduced, it had to be disabled as Fortnite players noticed several bugs and glitches surrounding it. While Epic originally said it would be alerting players when the feature was officially live again, it appears it was quietly added alongside a January 20 update. The addition in the patch meant sand tunneling was inoperable for about a month.
After the update notes on Epic's Trello board showed that Fortnite players could expect the feature back, players including Twitter user CreamDollar posted clips showing them using sand tunneling again. Whether or not Epic has ironed out all the problems that have caused the feature to be disabled several times since its introduction is unknown, as it's only been back for a couple of days.
Fortnite has been adding features and skins since the beginning of Season 5. Along with those updates, the game has seen problems and bugs here and there. Having to briefly disable a new addition to the game after bugs are discovered isn't a new development, as the game receives several updates a month and has a rather large player base.
Players tend to point out that while Epic has its fair share of harmless or even funny glitches, there's a difference in Fortnite between accidental flying cars and exploits that allow users to gain an unfair advantage. Because of the bugs surrounding sand tunneling, some experienced players were able to take advantage of the feature in ways that were reportedly never meant to be present. That appears to be the reason the developers disabled the feature for a period of time.
Sand tunneling, when it works right, is considered a quick way to move around parts of the map that feature a desert area. It can also be used to hide from opponents, as long as the person using the feature remains motionless. It is activated by standing still on a sandy area for approximately three or four seconds on a sandy area. When sand tunneling is activated, the player's character will begin sinking into the ground, though that sinking will be interrupted if the character moves at all. Once players sink all the way into the sand, they can move about in the desert quickly, or can continue to stay still and attempt to hide underground.
Fortnite is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X