New Fortnite competitive mode lets you 1v1 any of your friends

Fortnite has always been about large-scale fights on big maps. 100 people drop into anywhere from Tilted Towers to Risky Reels and fight to be the last one standing. The idea of 1v1'ing a friend on a small map is something reserved for the old Call of Duty games, but it's coming to Fortnite today in the shape of a competitive mode called Arenas.

The battle royale game's new mode sees 16 players, either as eight teams of two or 16 solos, fight in small arena maps to rack up points. The first solo to 20 wins, or the first duo team to 15 wins, is victorious and is crowned the champion of that Fortnite Arenas match.

The faster you win each fight, the more points you get, seeing you fly up the leaderboards. We won't know quite how the ranking system works until the mode goes live, but there will be a worldwide leaderboard, where points rather than individual wins determine how you place.

The single best thing the new mode introduces, though, is the ability to send a '1v1 me' request to anyone on your friends list that's also on the global Arena leaderboard. Just head into the friends list or any player's profile and you'll spot a small '1v1 me' button. Press it to shoot them an invite. The match will be unranked and be fought over seven rounds, with the winner getting nothing other than bragging rights, but it's a fun addition nonetheless.

Arenas Showdown also adds new quests to the game. They'll be live once the mode is, and completing them all will unlock the Builder's Crest Back Bling and Cracked Blueprint Spray.

Fortnite Arenas will be live at 7am EST / 4am PST / 12pm BST  / 1pm CEST on Thursday, April 9, so jump in to be the first at the top of the leaderboards.