Fortnite Chapter 2 is available to play – though you'll need to download it first

(Image credit: Epic Games)

Fortnite Chapter 2 has begun! The next chapter for the battle royale Fortnite is now available to download for PC, consoles, and mobile – ending the stressful two days of waiting and staring into the abyss of a black hole for the millions of Fortnite players worldwide.

To download on iOS or Android (mobile), you'll need the APK launcher from the Epic Games website – though you can find all that info in our Fortnite mobile guide. Fortnite Chapter 2 will require a 5.27GB download, compared to 13GB on consoles and 14.9GB on PC.

If you can't stand waiting for it to download, then the official Fortnite Twitter account was currently live streaming a playtest of the refreshed Fortnite Chapter Two game on a brand new island map – though now you'll need to head to the DrLupo Twitch stream to see it. And from the looks of it, Fortnite Chapter 2 has come with a bit of a visual upgrade – with DrLupo saying in the stream that "The graphics genuinely makes it look like a brand new game".

While the quick four-person game is over, the streamers are now looking through the refreshed item screens and Battle Pass to see what's on show – with a host of new character skins and items to gawk over.

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What's all this about?

Epic has a history of letting high profile streamers gain access to certain modes and Fortnite events before the general gaming public. 

Dr Lupo is the only streamer currently visible in the live stream, though the Twitch stream shows he's also playing with a number of other streamers: "DrLupo is Squad Streaming with CouRageJD, SypherPK, JordanFisher". You can see the full squad's third-person views in the Squad stream here.

And if you haven't been following the Fortnite news, then what you need to know is that a massive black hole blew up the old Fortnite island map, and servers have been down for two days.

The stream shows off the new island map, which is a lot more water-themed with various beaches, rivers and lakes – and the newfound ability to swim! We'll be updating this piece and our Fortnite Chapter 2 guide as we learn more.

Henry St Leger

Henry is a freelance technology journalist, and former News & Features Editor for TechRadar, where he specialized in home entertainment gadgets such as TVs, projectors, soundbars, and smart speakers. Other bylines include Edge, T3, iMore, GamesRadar, NBC News, Healthline, and The Times.