Fortnite's dumpsters are sending players into orbit

Be careful where you hide: Fortnite's new Hideouts are sending some unfortunate players flying.

Fortnite: Chapter 2 arrived in spectacular fashion last week. With it came a new tactical option in the form of Hideouts. By hopping into a dumpster or haybale, players can now evade spicy firefights, or set up opportunities for ambush.

Unfortunately, there's a catch. Some players have discovered that invading an occupied Hideout sends them blasting into the stratosphere, as demonstrated by Redditor BigDog-475's unfortunate clip.

Judging by the way the player's model vanishes in a puff of smoke, we reckon Fortnite still believes the player is buried inside the bin. Players are claiming it turns players into "Dementors", thanks to the grimy smoke cloud's apparent likeness to ghostly prison wardens from the Harry Potter flicks. Other players won't see you launch from the trash can, and you gain a startling perspective of the entire map. So what's the downside?

Unlike Potter's pesty poltergeists, gravity becomes a pressing concern for jettisoned players. What goes up, must come down - sans parachute.

Clearly this isn't working as intended. Somehow, we don't believe Epic Games is teasing a Harry Potter tie-in either. While pro players could likely figure out high-level strats by launching a teammate into orbit, it's not a fun way to lose a run. Fortunately, an Epic employee stepped in to confirm that the developer is looking into the issue.

It's not known whether this also affects hay bale hideouts. However, we'd steer clear of Hideouts for the time being. Until then, here's some time-tested advice both in Fortnite and the real world.

Bin diving is neither safe nor cool.