Fortnite’s floating sphere exploded, leaving the island covered in snow and zombies

Fortnite’s latest mystery is finally starting to unravel. Not long ago a floating sphere made of ice appeared in the game, leaving many players to wonder just what was going on. Now we have an answer, sort of: it exploded and a mysterious figure inside called the Ice King created a massive storm, which covered the entire island in snow.

It was a dramatic moment that included a towering, ghostly apparition appearing around Polar Peak, which kicked off the storm. In addition to the shift in weather, there are now ice monsters in the game — called ice fiends — which spawn from glowing blue stones scattered across the map. The new creatures also come with a new set of challenges where players can earn wintery gear and other bonuses.

Developer Epic teased that something big was going to happen with a countdown that appeared in-game yesterday. It showed up on various TVs found on Fortnite’s island, and included the phrase “weather warning,” which fits well with the wintery season seven that kicked off back in December. Later in the evening the mysterious figure could be spotted inside the sphere, suggesting something significant was on the way.

Today’s event is reminiscent of the strange mystery that surrounded Fortnite’s giant purple cube, which was initially birthed from a lightning storm in August. It then proceeded to roll around the map, changing things as it went, and by the time Halloween rolled around fragments of the cube had spawned murderous monsters, introducing the first PvE element to the battle royale mode. Things capped off with the cube disappearing in a dramatic, one-time-only event in November.

When it comes to the sphere and storm, expect much more to happen over the coming weeks and months.