A long-running game like Fortnite may enjoy the luxury of unmatched relevance, but at the same time, it becomes extremely easy for it to end up in the middle of controversy. Sometimes, there is not really a way for the developer or publisher to get out of such a situation or to justify its actions, especially when drastic backlash from the game’s fanbase and community is involved.
Which only leaves the option of directly and openly admitting to the mistake and trying to fix it as soon as possible, and fortunately, Fortnite‘s recent skin restrictions annoyed enough players and generated plenty of online buzz for Epic Games to respond just two days after introducing the infamous feature.
Epic Games Admits Its Latest Fortnite Blunder After Backlash
For those unfamiliar with the latest Fortnite controversy that took the community by storm and frustrated a lot of fans, the developer and publisher of the popular battle royale title, Epic Games, decided that it would be a great idea to introduce a brand new restriction involving various skins according to the players’ in-game ratings.
That basically meant that there were some skins that could only be selected and used on creative islands with a T rating, such as the Claire Redfield skin, borrowed from the Resident Evil franchise. Since that skin, for example, has a holstered pistol placed on her thigh, it could not be equipped while playing Fortnite on islands that had a lower rating than Teen.
Naturally, that did not exactly land well with the Fortnite community, with many players feeling quite upset and angry, especially considering how many of the skins in question cost between $10 and $20.
Since many people actually paid for these in-game cosmetics to play with them in whatever mode or island they please, this new update proved to be less than an ideal hit because it meant that now they could not use these purchased avatars or characters during their desired battles on their chosen battlefields.
To make matters even worse for Fortnite, Epic Games went a step further into clarifying the update, stating that only seven percent of the skins would be usable on the aforementioned islands with a Teen rating, which sent the game’s fanbase into a complete frenzy of rage.
Due to the justified extreme backlash from numerous Fortnite players, it was inevitable for Epic Games to officially comment on and take control of the situation, as it took only two days for the developer and publisher to release a much-required statement.
Epic Says New Fortnite Skin Restrictions “Didn’t Hit the Mark”
To address the controversial new skin restrictions update, Epic Games took to the official Fortnite X account and admitted that it absolutely “didn’t hit the mark.” Starting off its statement with “Welp,” it was clear that the developer and publisher of the famous battle royale game was somehow surprised with all of the mass disappointment that followed the infamous announcement.
Epic further stated that its “plan for cosmetics with the ratings update” for Fortnite obviously did not receive the response that it was hoping to get from the player base.
In the hopes of getting the Fortnite fanbase back on its side, Epic Games continued by saying that it is currently “working on a few new options” to put into “place” that would be more acceptable by the community. The post then teased the players with “some sort of big in-game event” that could potentially arrive very soon, so fans should get some positive developments and better content to look forward to in the near future.
Epic did not say anything else about the Fortnite update or the future of the battle royale game, simply ending its statement by writing:
Stay tuned, we’ll keep you posted.
Considering how Chapter 4 of Fortnite will be coming to an end soon, the “event” that Epic Games is referring to is probably the chapter finale, until the game prepares for Chapter 5 with probably a new map and fresh cosmetics along with other collaborative content.
For now, Epic’s statement has proven to be effective, with fans appreciating it for admitting its mistake and trying to fix it. It just goes to show that even a massive community like Fortnite‘s can be won back over if the developer shows that it cares.
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