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Controversies related to Fortnite have made numerous headlines. Ever since the video game was released in September 2017, developer Epic Games has had to overcome many adversities associated with it.
While the title is extremely popular now, it has seen its fair share of controversies. Though most of them involve lawsuits directed at Epic Games, some are related to the title's features and gameplay. This article will list the six biggest controversies Fortnite has been involved in so far.
Epic Games has dealt with many Fortnite controversies
1) The FTC lawsuit
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Shortly after Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 1 was released, Epic Games was hit with a massive fine by the Federal Trade Commission. In this record-breaking settlement, the FTC penalized the studio for shady Item Shop practices.
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As a result, Epic Games has to pay $520 million in fines and damages. Fortnite players will also receive a part of this money as a refund since $275 million from the aforementioned amount will be distributed among eligible players.
2) China shutdown
Despite numerous Fortnite controversies, Epic Games' offering has achieved worldwide success. However, unfortunately, this game has failed to capture the audience in China, which is why it was shut down in the country in November 2021.
This was bad news for the developers since that nation has the biggest population and also one of the largest gaming markets. The title being rendered unavailable in the country didn't affect players in other regions, as China's Fortnite version was different and had separate servers anyway.
3) PUBG rip-off
While Fortnite was released in September 2017, it had achieved a lot of success by mid-2018. A lot of people weren't too happy about this, including Bluehole, a company that owns the rights to PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.
The Tencent subsidiary filed a lawsuit against Epic Games, essentially claiming that Fortnite was a PUBG rip-off. In the end, Bluehole dropped the lawsuit against the competitor company, which allowed Fortnite to grow even bigger.
4) Affiliations with Travis Scott and Balenciaga
Epic Games has collaborated with many celebrities and brands to expand Fortnite's metaverse. This is what makes the video game so popular and unique, as there aren't many other games that allow players to use characters or items associated with popular culture.
Unfortunately, some collaborations have been quite controversial. This includes Travis Scott and Balenciaga. In the former's case, Epic received a lot of criticism for having a character inspired by him in Fortnite after a tragedy left several individuals dead at a 2021 Astroworld concert that featured the rapper.
On the other hand, the Balenciaga collab was controversial due to a problematic ad involving children run by the clothing brand.
5) Lawsuits over emotes
Epic Games has released hundreds of emotes for Fortnite Battle Royale over the past few years. These items are very popular, but Epic Games has had to go through a lot of trouble with some of them.
Several emotes, such as Fresh, Floss, and Phone It In, were involved in lawsuits. Even the creator of Orange Justice, an item that was added to Fortnite through a contest, sued Epic for copyright infringement.
6) Epic Games v. Apple
Back in 2020, Epic Games got involved in one of the biggest Fortnite controversies to date. In August of that year, the developers introduced a new payment option for mobile phone users, bypassing Apple's 30% tax. Epic passed these savings onto consumers, decreasing V-Bucks prices from $9.99 to $7.99.
Unfortunately, Apple did not like this and quickly removed Fortnite from its App Store. In response, Epic Games filed a lawsuit against the tech giant and ended up losing it.
Many mobile players around the world still suffer from the lawsuit's aftermath, as Fortnite is no longer available on the App Store and has been banned for five years. Fortunately, iPhone and iPad users can use GeForce Now to access Fortnite.
