Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 2 to stop working on many Windows devices, check your eligibility

With Fortnite's next season set to be released in a few hours, loopers are eager to say goodbye to Chapter 4 Season 1, which introduced several improvements to the game. Players were given a brand new perk system called Reality Augments, which had a significant impact on both the Battle Royale and Zero Build game modes.

In tandem, Epic Games released Unreal Engine 5.1, which relies on Lumen for the creation of global environments and other graphical aspects. The additional realism brought on by Lumen enhanced the already impressive capabilities of ray-traced visuals to a whole new level.

Lumen reworked the visuals for Chapter 1 by making the river and other reflections more realistic and by making the trees look more lifelike than ever before. However, these changes can't reach their full potential without some serious processing power.

As a result, Lumen may be played in its entirety on both next-gen consoles and high-end computers equipped with a top-tier RTX graphics card. Furthermore, it requires an OS that can handle the increased CPU and GPU utilization.

Keeping this in mind, Epic has made a pivotal move that effectively limits the options of the OS versions available to a large number of Windows PC users that enjoy playing Fortnite. Here's what they have to say and who may be eligible to play the game in the forthcoming second season of Chapter 4.

---

Players will now require Windows 10 and above to play Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 2

In a recent tweet from their official Status Twitter handle, Fortnite announced a significant change that would affect players who play the game on Windows PCs. Starting with Chapter 4 Season 2, players will be required to use Windows 10 or higher versions of the OS to continue playing the game natively on their PCs as an officially supported method.

This major decision was made because Epic intends to test the limitations of Unreal Engine 5.1 throughout the following season, in which greater focus will be placed on leveraging Lumen to radically rework both the game itself and in-game cosmetics, both of which currently rely on low-level graphical aspects.

Additionally, users of unsupported operating systems, such as Windows 7 and 8, will be barred from accessing the game via the Epic Games launcher. While they can employ a workaround that lets them play the game, it'll be at a lower quality than the native alternatives.

An official solution was revealed by Epic for PC gamers who are unable to update to Windows 10. Users of Windows 7 and 8 may use the cloud gaming service NVIDIA GeForce NOW to gain access and play the game by purchasing a subscription.

More than 1,300 games are available through NVIDIA's cloud gaming service, all of which are stored on the company's servers and streamed to customers' devices in the form of video. In the past, fans have used GeForce NOW to stream Fortnite on their iOS devices, which don't have a dedicated launcher for the game.

In general, players have utilized this service to enjoy video games on unusual platforms, such as a Tesla electric vehicle and an Android-powered fridge monitor. However, this option doesn't include the improved visuals and Lumen, which allows players to enjoy the most recent season of Fortnite in all its splendor.

The servers will be taken offline on March 10, 2023 at 2:00 am ET in preparation for the release of Chapter 4 Season 2. By midnight today, all ongoing missions and Battle Pass progression will be turned off. For a smoother transition to the next season, Epic Games has already begun vaulting several items, including the Shockwave Hammer and Slurp Juice.