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Ninja explains why controller on PC shouldn’t be allowed in Fortnite Popular content creator Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins explains why controller players should not be allowed to play Fortnite on PC in the game’s current state. Since cross-platform play was introduced to Fortnite, allowing PC and console players to test their skills against one another, many players have questioned just how level the playing field is for both platforms. Some of the game’s top creators, such as Tfue, have been very critical of controller players having aim assist in Fortnite, claiming that it gives them a significant advantage over PC players in a gunfight. While he was streaming matches on the popular battle royale with his duo Reverse2k, Ninja also shared his thoughts on what changes needed to be made after the pair to lost out a supposed controller player in-game. The Mixer star explained that controller vs mouse and keyboard can lead to some unfair matchups in-game. “If people want to play on controller, then play on the Xbox or PlayStation. […] [Controller on PC] creates these weird little situations and matchups where that guy right there, literally was not going to miss a shot.” “He doesn’t need to have any aim whatsoever, his scar is going to head dink you every single time,” Ninja explained, giving his take on the controversial topic, “so many arguments, listen I understand its a better experience to play on the PC, right? You get better frames. I’m well aware of that, then use the mouse and keyboard.”

Ninja explains why building in Fortnite with mouse & keyboard is “dumb” Epic Games/Ninja[jwplayer 3Vo8lBER] In a recent stream, popular streamer Ninja explained that it’s “dumb” that keyboard and mouse Fortnite players don’t have the same building sensitivity options that controller players do. Building sensitivity for keyboard and mouse players is something that’s been long discussed in the Fortnite community for the past few years now. While some people seem to think that the feature shouldn’t be added, most people tend to agree that keyboard and mouse players should have the same option as players who use controllers. Despite this, however, the feature has yet to be added to the game, causing frustrations for many high-speed players who feel like they can’t build fast enough. Now, Ninja, who just recently returned to the battle royale game, seems feel the same way, if his post-match reactions are anything to go off of. During a recent stream, Ninja claimed that not having the ability to change his building sensitivity, as he’s playing on keyboard and mouse, was negatively affecting his performance in-game. “I’m so sick of not being able to do what I need to do because I can’t do it fast enough” Ninja said. Ninja continued, claiming that he doesn’t understand the lack of support for keyboard and mouse players. “The fact controller players have build sensitivity and mouse and keyboard [players] don’t have build sensitivity…[makes me] wanna punch something,” Ninja said. For those that are unaware, last year, Epic Games said that it was looking into keyboard and mouse building sensitivity, but that it didn’t have any exact plans for it yet. Now, it’s been almost exactly a year, pretty much to the day, and we still don’t know anything about their plans for the setting. At this rate, it seems like the likely of the feature’s implementation is a bit low, however, it could technically still happen. Keep it locked to Dexerto to find out.

Ninja explains why he’s unhappy with Fortnite’s new matchmaking changes Epic Games – Fortnite / Mixer: NinjaThe Fortnite. As a former pro player in the Halo scene, and a Mixer streamer with thousands of hours in Fortnite, it’s safe to say that Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has earned his stripes in the competitive gaming landscape. Despite being embedded in the Fortnite community, even Ninja was surprised to hear about the latest changes coming to the free-to-play video game in the very near future. In a September 23 blog post on the Epic Games website, it was announced that not only would skill-based matchmaking be introduced to the popular Battle Royale title, but also that AI bots will be implemented throughout lower ranks in order to help less skilled players get their wits about them. Read more: Ninja hilariously roasts xQc – Immediately responding to the news, Ninja laughed and expressed that “I don’t know how I feel about this.” Later finding himself in a match of Fortnite while elaborating on the announcement, he expressed that “I’m one of those players where like, if I wanted to, I could dominate and have a bunch of fun in competitive, but like, isn’t this just going to make it easier for people to stream snipe?” That concern stems from an issue plaguing popular streamers, as fans make it their mission to pinpoint a gaming personality based on their location on stream. They then hunt down the streamer and try to get the elimination at all costs. In a sense, Ninja is arguing here that the addition of skill-based matchmaking in Fortnite would only further incentivize stream sniping. Matchmaking discussion begins at 1:21 mark for mobile viewers “I think it’s just gonna be a bunch of smurfs. Good players don’t always want to play against good players. They’re just going to smurf and keep clapping kids.” Smurfing is the term given when players of a high skill rating swap over to alternate accounts and absolutely roll through competition at lower levels. It happens across a plethora of competitive multiplayer titles with similarly structured matchmaking and now it could be an issue facing Fortnite. Fans of Fortnite have recently been treated to a Batman themed update with new skins and items becoming available throughout the Battle Royale game. A new leak has also potentially given us our first glimpse at an entirely new map in Fortnite, if certain speculation is to be believed. You can tune into Ninja’s stream here, as the popular personality recently transitioned over from Twitch to Mixer, in a career-altering move that he “absolutely loves.”

Ninja explains how new physics engine could “reset Fortnite completely” Epic GamesFortnite superstar Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has reacted to the latest Epic Games blog post about Chapter 2 Season 2, expressing concern over the future of the game due to the new physics engine that will soon be implemented. Fortnite is set to switch things up in a major way over the coming weeks. Announced in a January 24 blog post from Epic Games, Chapter 2 Season 2 will see a major update shipped to the game’s engine. However, the changes has one of Fortnite’s most popular players concerned over just what it could mean for the future of the Battle Royale title. Having remained on Unreal Engine 4 since its release in 2017, Fortnite has undergone a great deal of change over the years. From new maps and countless items, to entirely new mechanics. However, things are set to be shaken up under the hood with the implementation of a brand new physics system. “Beginning with the release of the 11.50 update in early February, Fortnite will be moving to Unreal Engine’s Chaos physics system,” the blog post explained. “At launch, the goal is to ensure that Fortnite still feels like Fortnite. Along the way there will be some bumps, so we’re starting tests with a small group of players.” Reading through the post during a recent stream, Ninja was left in a state of shock as he couldn’t quite comprehend the magnitude of the shift. While no one is yet aware how the drastically moment to moment gameplay will be impacted, the Mixer streamer was quick to voice his concern. “Dude, it’s gonna change everything,” he said. “I have so much speculation, I wonder, man.” The conversation starts at the 25-second mark for mobile users. “Has a game ever changed the engine it’s on? I’m not talking about a sequel, I’m talking about an actual game.” Trying to understand why such a massive adjustment was being introduced, Ninja expressed how he believes the developers want to “reset Fortnite.” In order to re-establish the earlier feeling of the Battle Royale title, he argues that they want to bring back a version of Fortnite “where everyone sucked.” While Ninja recently called for a crazy update to liven up the game, not even Ninja anticipated an overhaul of this kind. Questioning just how significant the update might be, he pondered whether Epic would change the game at its very core. “What if they remove building? I’m being serious, I think we might see some drastic changes,” he concluded. Only time will tell just how significant a moment in time this will be for the Fortnite community, though Ninja is confident that the shift will be enormous. Chapter 2 Season 2 is set to go live on February 20 and while no official details have been revealed just yet, a recent leak might have provided a first look at brand new map changes.

Ninja explains how to easily take out top Fortnite players Ninja, Twitch / Epic GamesTwitch sensation Fortnite players around. The popular streamer, who has over 13.6 million followers on Twitch, once boasted the highest subscriber count on the streaming platform with 269,000 dedicated supporters paying a fee to his channel. Now, though, Ninja has revealed the one key tactic that has allowed him to have the success he’s had on Fortnite’s battle royale game mode, opening up the opportunity for many of his fans to improve. “In any game, any one shot kill item or weapon, dude, you want to master that,” Ninja revealed in an interview during his March 10 Twitch livestream from Poland. “You want to know how you take out top players? You want to know how you take out all of the freaky people who are some of the best builders in the game and have the most amazing game sense?” he asked. “You snipe them in the face.” ‘One shot kill’ weapons have been right at the forefront of recent debate within Fortnite’s online community, particularly before the start of Season 8 where competitive players were seemingly boycotting the game for Apex Legends because Epic Games had not removed the “overpowered” Hand Cannon. However, Ninja says that using a sniper is the most effective way of all to take out top players in the game’s battle royale mode, as you can hit them before they are able to build or heal up. Is sniping really the best tactic to secure wins in Fortnite? He, at least, seems to think so.

Ninja explains how stream snipers turn “gift” of gaming into a “curse” Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has called on Epic Games to ban Fortnite players who watch streamer’s broadcast when in-game with content creators, explaining how stream snipers make his job both a “gift and a curse.” Ninja, alongside FaZe Clan’s Nate Hill and Malachi ‘Reverse2k’ Grenier, were discussing an upcoming Fortnite feature that will allow players to display different skins to opponents compared to what they’re actually wearing in an attempt to stop stream snipers. These snipers load into games with content creators and often target them, ruining the experience for not only the streamer but their audience too. While contemplating the introduction of the tool, Ninja suggested an extreme measure for dealing with these stream snipers, before explaining why their prevalence is so frustrating compared to popular athletes competing in other sports. “You know what they could do?” the Mixer streamer said. “Just ban all the idiots who have our streams up in our matches.” “Gaming is a gift and a curse man. We live in a world where we are the only profession where a little child has the opportunity to get into our match and kill us, or ruin our day. Like if you want to compete against Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, if you wanted to play against them you have to be the best. You’ve got to make it to the NBA, be good enough to start. Not in gaming, you just have to queue up when they do!” Clip starts at 0:21 for mobile users. Stream sniping has been a major issue for Ninja in the past, which comes as part of his role as one of the faces of the popular battle royale title, which saw him blow up on Twitch when the game released back in 2017. The 28-year-old has voiced his anger at Epic Games in the past for not protecting him from these annoyances, and even called the developers during a stream back in August after an encounter with a sniper.

Ninja calls for Fortnite to fix ‘unbalanced’ minigun & heavy sniper Epic Games / Mixer: NinjaMixer star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has called for Epic to nerf the unvaulted heavy sniper, as well as Season 2’s devastating new mythic minigun, adding they’re “not very balanced,” and revealing his idea for how to fix them. Heavy snipers and miniguns have dominated Season 2’s meta. The overloaded power of the golden minigun allows players to melt builds. Follow that up with a few shots from the sniper for the one-two punch, and it’s easy eliminations. It’s no surprise then that Fortnite players are less than pleased with the state of the overpowered guns. That includes Ninja, who revealed he may have figured out the best way to tone down the weapons, without vaulting them entirely. According to the streaming star, Epic should consider tweaking the unvaulted sniper rifle and the minigun slightly. Leave the damage as is, he explained. Instead, make taking them more of a choice for players in any given match. To achieve this, he believes both weapons should take up two slots, instead of the one they currently occupy. This would be a “pretty healthy balance,” he said, especially considering it would be a major investment to carry both. “Making the minigun… and the heavy sniper rifle take up two slots would be a pretty healthy balance. Having a player minigun your builds ‘til he hits you, then heavy snipe into your box is not very fun, or balanced,” he said on Twitter. Making the minigun take up two slots and the heavy sniper taking up two slots would be a pretty healthy balance. Having a player Minigun your builds till he hits you a couple times then heavy snipe into your box is not very fun or balanced. Just a thought, what u think? — Ninja (@Ninja) March 30, 2020 This isn’t the first time Ninja has taken aim at the new Season 2 minigun either. After the gun dropped into Fortnite in update 12.00, the Mixer star suggested it was too overpowered right off the bat. Looks like he was right. The main issue, he explained, was its first-shot accuracy. Ninja believes the “laser” minigun retains its accuracy, even when “full spray.” This goes against Fortnite’s usual design, where guns fire their opening shot where your crosshair is, and subsequent shots bloom, usually with far less accuracy. “This gun is a problem!” Ninja said right after update 12.00. Now it looks like a pretty good prediction. “It cools off, but it’s a laser!” he continued. He also added it was “pin-point” accurate, even when it was firing at full spray. On paper, Ninja’s idea certainly isn’t a bad one, at least from Epic’s perspective. Since they made the call to unvault the heavy sniper rifle in 12.00, and beef up the minigun at the same time, the devs have been getting slammed. This would mean they can keep the guns in rotation — something Epic seem to be aiming for — while not letting them control the meta. The question now is: will the devs listen, or continue to let the weapons run rampant in Season 2?

Ninja explains how Epic can maintain Fortnite as the biggest game in the world Top Fortnite streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins discussed the future of the game and how developer Epic Games can keep it relevant and maintain its popularity. Since the release of the battle royale mode in September 2017, Fortnite has hit numerous record breaking player counts, with a total of 200 million users. It has managed this by continually updating the game with map changes, new cosmetics, limited time modes and other changes which keep the game fresh and have players regularly returning, season after season. One of the recent changes, which Ninja highlights specifically has having reignited his love of the game, was the adjustment to shotguns, making them more powerful once again. More: Fortnite: The first Season 7 teaser has been released and a snow map looks more likely than ever – Weapon balancing and new weapon additions are often the most controversial changes made to the game, but Ninja insists that players must ‘trust’ Epic Games and their decision making. “All [Epic] have to do, is continue to reinvest in the continued success of their game and not sell out and choke with updates, and this game will be on top for a very long time. As long as the skins, the dances and all the emote and stuff stays fresh with pop culture, whatever’s hot, everyone’s going to keep buying those things.” Ninja goes on to say that constant negativity, especially from Fortnite ‘influencers’ will not help anything, even if there are genuine grievances with the game. “Always voice your opinion, but there’s so many people so quick to just jump on the negative bandwagon” he explains, “guess what, you’re still going to play the game, so why tear it apart? I’ve seen it happen too many times, where people just completely destroy the game that they love.” While he doesn’t mention games specifically, Ninja is likely referring to titles such as Halo, H1Z1, PUBG or even Call of Duty, which have very vocal communities – all too happy to voice when they are unhappy with something. While the popularity of some other once dominant games is waining, Fortnite continues to grow, but Ninja knows from past experience how quickly that momentum can stunt if the developers and community move in the wrong direction.

Ninja explains how “abysmal” lag is ruining competitive Fortnite Fortnite Battle Royale star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has taken aim at Epic Games over “abysmal” lag in events like the Fortnite Championship Series (FNCS), saying it’s ruining the game. Competitive Fortnite has had its highs and lows. From the $30 million World Cup in New York, to accusations of cheating in online cups, Fortnite has had a rocky rise up the esports ladder. However, the problems haven’t stopped yet. The popular Battle Royale has been plagued by server lag over the last few weeks of FNCS, its premier tournament, and pros are fed up. Ninja complained after Week 4 of FNCS, saying that not only is playing the game unbearable in its current state, but the lag makes it worse for spectators as well. “After competing in squads and competitive and watching these matches as well, I can’t imagine how much more entertaining these matches would be for the audience if we could actually flex talent and not have to deal with abysmal lag,” Ninja said. Players struggle to show off their full potential on laggy servers, and at times it can feel like the team who lags the least wins, rather than the best team. After competing in squads and competitive and watching these competitive matches as well… I can’t imagine how much more entertaining these matches would be for the audience if we could actually flex talent and not have to deal with Abysmal lag. Really pray @FortniteGame fixes — Ninja (@Ninja) November 24, 2019 Ninja isn’t the first Fortnite pro to complain about the game’s lag during FNCS and Solo Cash Cup matches. Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney and his squad were complaining about lag during their second-place finish in Week 3 of FNCS, with players jumping all across the map during the matches. Week 2 of FNCS was also plagued by performance issues with some players being unable to connect to the servers, and others not having the points calculated. Fortnite caster Arten ‘Ballatw’ Esa has backed up Ninja’s claims, saying that lag has been a “perpetual issue” since the beginning of competitive Fortnite. Perpetual issue regardless of mode – some sort of lag in every mode, squads, trios and even solos at WC. It’s been improving slowly, but definitely wish it was a priority. Their improvements have shown its possible! — Ballatw (@Ballatw) November 24, 2019 Some players have reasoned that most of the lag has to do with the Fortnite Chapter 2 update. The new map and associated visual elements that came with it have reduced performance significantly, with Tfue describing it as feeling like “playing at 100 ping.” Regardless of lag or server issues, Ninja’s FNCS Week 4 didn’t go to plan. While he finished in seventh in the first round, round two saw Ninja’s squad fall to 61st and fail to qualify for the final round. After weeks of complaints about lag though, Epic will be more than aware of server issues during their massive tournaments, and will be looking towards solving the problem.

Ninja explains why he hates landing in Fortnite’s Pleasant Park with a passion Ninja, Twitch / Epic Games, FortniteIt’s no secret that where players choose to land in Fortnite can have a significant impact on their in-game success – but popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins hates one location more than the rest. Ninja explained his hatred for Fortnite’s Pleasant Park during a livestream in early March, after allegedly landing there for the first time since Season 6. As the streamer began to build, he came across another player and attempted to dispatch them – but he ended up being quickly eliminated, instead. [Timestamp: 0:09 for mobile viewers.] “I hate Pleasant Park more than anything!” Ninja frustratedly said of the locale. “It is the worst place on God’s freaking green earth to land, dude. It is nothing but a complete and utter cluster-f, man.” He went on to explain that Pleasant Park’s close cluster of homes make defensive play nearly impossible, as enemies have ample angles from which to aim at other players. “You get shot from every house in every direction because its a freaking cube of houses that everyone has an angle on,” Ninja continued. “You just get shot from everywhere dude.” That’s not the only reason Ninja isn’t fond of the Park; players can’t build off the sides of houses in the area, leading to a significant strategic disadvantage for some users. “Dude, I hate that place, man,” he argued. “I hate it so much. All the houses you can’t build walls on because of those effing roofs!” While Ninja has hated Pleasant Park since Season 6, the streamer likewise poked fun at Fortnite’s Season 8 update, comparing it to popular battle royale game Apex Legends and even action-adventure title Sea of Thieves.

Ninja explains “how far he’s come” in competitive Fortnite after FNCS Fortnite Battle Royale star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has reflected on his rapid growth in competitive Fortnite after a top-10 placing in the Fortnite Champion Series squads finals on December 8, saying that he’s “back up to par” with the best of them. After consistent performances throughout the five-week season, Ninja and his squad of FaZe Clan’s Nate Hill, Trevor ‘Funk’ Siegler, and TSM’s ‘Reverse2k’ climbed to the top of the squad ladder to get a top-10 finish in the FNCS finals. While they weren’t able to take the title out for themselves, Ninja said he was proud of his efforts as he looks to climb back up to the top of competitive Fortnite. The streaming superstar has been working on getting back into the esports side of the battle royale, and results like these demonstrate that he’s on the right track. “We played out of our minds, we played super well,” he said, describing his team’s performance in the finals. “Reverse disconnected in the first game, but we were able to come back, clutch up, and get two 16-point games back-to-back after that. Read more: Fortnite pro baffled after ban during FNCS – “We didn’t a single half-half zone which is super unfortunate because you need to get at least one of those to dominate and perform and win, and we got max distance pulls every time, but we played well though.” It wasn’t just growing together as a squad though. Ninja himself has dedicated more time to improving and making sure his skills are up there with the best of them. “I’m happy with how I played and how far I’ve come in terms of my individual talent,” he said. “I definitely fell off a lot when I really wasn’t focusing on competing. “I wasn’t practicing my building, my editing, literally anything. Now I definitely feel like I’m back up to par with every single top player and it feels good.” The Fortnite Champion Series was the streamer’s return to competitive play, having not competed in an official capacity since June’s World Cup qualifiers. After failing to make the finals of the prestigious event in 2019, Ninja’s sights are firmly set on sitting on stage at the World Cup in 2020 in either solos, duos, or squads. He has stated that he “will be continuing to compete” in Solo Cash Cups and the next season of FNCS, which is expected to start in the coming weeks, and continuing to improve as a player until he reaches the top.

Ninja explains why Fortnite should revert controversial v8.20 update changes Twitch streamer, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, has voiced his concerns after Fortnite released their controversial v8.20 update which removed one of the game’s most popular mechanics. The latest patch included a host of new changes that completely changed the dynamic of the game – adding in a ranked arena mode as well as reverting the popular siphon settings in the default playlists. The move has been met with plenty of opposition from players who loved receiving health and materials on eliminations as well as benefitting from a 40% increase in farming rate which made games far less tedious. Earlier in the update, Ninja played devil’s advocate and believed that Epic Games did have their reasoning behind the change as they looked to cater to casual players. However, he raised his concerns with the latest patch in a video uploaded to Twitter. “Firstly, I don’t like the infantry rifle becoming hit scan,” Blevins said. “The shield upon killing people – boy I really want that back, I think everyone wants that back. “I understand why they’re doing it – it was 100% to make solos, duos and squads a place of safety for newer players hence why they’ve introduced the arena mode,” he explained. My thoughts on the most recent Fortnite update. I could have rambled on for 10 minutes but this is the simple vid. pic.twitter.com/QjCwwUkQyd — Ninja (@Ninja) March 27, 2019 The competitive Fortnite community have called for a ranked move after the regular pop-ups proved popular among the top players – a feature that was finally added in the latest update. However, while Ninja agrees with the decision – he fears that content creators and streamers could suffer when reaching the higher point brackets due to the long queue times. “I like it [arena] – my fear is when you get high up enough it will take forever to get a game. I can’t play arena to get health and shield on kills because it takes 20 minutes to find a game,” he said. The former Halo professional also stated he wasn’t happy with the current state of squads as the game mode has ‘gone’ with everyone getting ‘thirsted’. Blevins went on to respond to a tweet from NICKMERCS on how Epic could have slowed the game down better rather than removing the siphon mechanic. “First of all, they could have made it 25 shield or mats,” he continued in response to the 100 Thieves member. “Or they could add a respawn system. You could have clutched up and grabbed everyone’s banners to bring them back.” Ninja ended his reply with a subtle jab at his friend saying: “We’re back to half mats NICKMERCS, and that’s a world no-one wants to live in.” It remains to be seen whether Epic Games will revert their changes, with Ninja the latest popular streamer to voice his concerns.

Ninja explains how FaZe Jarvis could get unbanned from Fortnite Mixer star Tyler ‘Ninja‘ Blevins shared some ideas on how FaZe Jarvis could get his Fortnite ban lifted, and explained why he still thinks the suspension shouldn’t be permanent. On November 3, Jarvis uploaded an emotional video to his YouTube account where he revealed he had been permanently banned from Fortnite after openly using an aimbot in some of his videos. The harsh punishment had many in the streaming community torn. While Ninja initially came out in strong defense of the FaZe Clan streamer, the Mixer star now thinks that he should be punished, but also believes the young Fortnite player should also be given a path to redemption, and during his broadcast shared ideas on how he could do that. The Mixer star is one of the most popular streamers in the world with over 2.6 million followers. Ninja opened up the discussion by admitting that he changed his opinion on the Jarvis situation. “I’ve had a lot of time to think about my original opinion on the whole Jarvis situation, and there definitely can’t be any exceptions. But I do think his age and his status should be considered,” he said. When his streaming partners argued that the FaZe clan streamer knew what he was doing, Ninja replied, “Right. But hopefully it’s not permanent. Maybe six months, one year.” The Mixer star then shared an idea for how the young streamer could make things right. “There’s got to be some kind of punishment other than being banned. Community service, I dunno. Maybe a fine too.” When his friends pushed back at the idea, Ninja quickly countered and exclaimed, “You telling me if Jarvis donated 50k to a children’s hospital, you think people would be upset about that?” He continued to push the idea of redemption, and said that believed there can be “creative and positive ideas” used as alternatives to banning people. “You are banned from Fortnite, unless you donate 50k dollars to a charity. Everyone wins!” he finished. Ninja took heat for his initial defense of Jarvis Upon hearing about the FaZe Clan streamer’s ban, Ninja initially argued that banning a regular hacker is different then banning a content creator, which effectively ends their ability to make money. “You ban that kid, nothing happens. You ban Jarvis, the stakes are different, it should be handled differently,” he said. However, after receiving some backlash, the Mixer personality said he regretted it on Twitter when he replied to a user who quoted his initial defense. “Yeah, about 20 minutes after that I realized I was wrong and regretted saying that. Won’t find that in any article or YouTube video,” he tweeted. Yea, about 20 minutes after that I realized I was wrong and regretted saying that. Won’t find that in any article or YouTube video. — Ninja (@Ninja) November 8, 2019 While Ninja’s opinion on the whole incident has changed, the Fortnite star still thinks that Epic Games’ punishment of Jarvis was too harsh, and would like to see him given a chance to redeem himself. After giving his ideas on how the young streamer could make things right, he clarified further to his audience, and said, “He definitely needs a suspension. No matter what. Obviously don’t cheat, chat.”

Ninja explains why his competitive Fortnite career has been “so unlucky” Fortnite professional career, and how difficulty balancing married life, streaming, and rigorous scrims means he may skip the game’s 2020 World Cup entirely. As one of the biggest names in Fortnite, Ninja has become near-synonymous with Epic Games’ global sensation, streaming his adventures across the battle royale to hundreds of thousands of fans every week on broadcast platforms like Mixer. While Ninja is no stranger to competitive gaming — the blue-haired star first made his name playing for teams like Halo pro scene — and holds the record for most duo wins alongside Reverse2k, success at Fortnite’s highest has eluded him. According to the Mixer star, his struggles to really make an impact in the professional scene for Epic’s title isn’t so much that he hasn’t tried, or can’t find his rhythm. Instead, he explained, it’s all come down to “being unlucky so many times” in tournaments. “My competitive career is a joke in terms of how unlucky I am,” Ninja said. “I’ve had rules that have f*cked my out of a tournament placing, and out of a tournament, that everyone realizes how bad a rule or ruling it was, and the rule changes because of what happened to my team. It’s a joke, it happens to me in every single game I play. “The tournament organizers say “Oh Ninja’s team, that’s against the rules!” and kick us out, and the next event they’re like “We’ve changed and updated a rule,” and it’s the rule that got us kicked out of the tournament in the first place!” Ninja unloading on his luck in the competitive scene came after server issues bumped the Mixer star out of his Fortnite Championship Series qualifiers yesterday, while many other pros were still able to play, and collect more points in the Week 2 event. The server problems, which known hacking community Lizard Squad claimed was them limit-testing their botnet’s strength, all but ruled Ninja out of scoring any meaningful points in the second round of the qualifiers, and delivered a heavy blow to his early FNCS chances. “That’s what happened yesterday,” he said. “We were vibing, 30 points, just chilling, and then the servers go down for 30 minutes, and they come back up but they weren’t down for everyone so some people have their points still… whatever dude.” Ninja’s luck isn’t the only thing that’s keeping him from diving head-first into the competitive scene, and potentially finding the same success that he did during his stint in Halo 4, where he scored four first-place finishes, and seven top-three placements in eight tourneys. There’s also the fact that he’s nearly 30 years old, and tied the knot with longterm sweetheart Jessica Goch in 2017. Between balancing his Mixer streaming career, his home life, and his competitive ambitions, he’s feeling stretched thin. “I’m not going to be able to compete forever,” he admitted when talking about whether he would be contesting the 2020 World Cup qualifiers. “Jess and I are already feeling the stress of competing when you’re married.” For mobile readers, the relevant segment begins at 1:54 below. Part of the problem they’ve found is when he was streaming regular day-time hours, they would be able to spend time together from 7pm onwards, and “go get dinner” or “see a movie,” to make sure they could maintain their relationship. Now, however, scrims begin around the same time as those plans would normally start for the Blevins, and while Ninja admitted he is “still having fun” with it all, it’s something that will put a strain on his relationship in the long-run. “I had my schedule done, I would get off around 6 or 7, we would have the night together,” he said. “Now I’m competing again, and scrims start when I’m supposed to get off, and I’m scrimming for 4 or 5 hours. It’s not fun for us together.” For Ninja, however, the grind continues for the moment. There’s every chance he may call it quits sometime in the near future, especially if playing in the FNCS qualifiers are putting stress on his home life, but for now, he’s giving it his best crack. As long as he can avoid Lizard Squad server attacks, competitive rulings, and the regular stream-sniping he often suffers, maybe he can even keep the promise he made to his fans to make it to the 2020 World Cup — maybe even as a swan song for his competitive career.

Ninja explains why Apex Legends and Fortnite can’t be compared Epic Games / Ninja, Twitch / Respawn EntertainmentPopular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has given his consensus on the Apex Legends vs Fortnite debate – and he has a surprising opinion on the matter. While Ninja is primarily known for playing popular battle royale game Fortnite, he, like many other streamers on the platform, has jumped into the recently released Apex Legends – but he doesn’t feel that the two titles can truly be compared. Ninja explained his stance on the matter during a livestream on February 16, where he argued that neither game is “better” than the other. “It is not a question of Apex OR Fortnite,” Ninja said of the debate. “[It’s] Apex AND Fortnite. I know this is crazy, but you can like more than one thing, alright?” While Ninja argued for the success of both games, he personally prefers Fortnite over Apex Legends, feeling that the former has more to offer than its newer counterpart. “Fortnite, in my opinion, is just a better game, because I just love it,” Ninja continued. “…it offers more right now because of the cross-platform. You can play with friends from wherever you are.” Ninja went on to explain that he is currently playing Apex Legends due to its status as a “fresh” release, while simultaneously having a blast with the new title – which garnered over ten million players in a mere three days after its initial release. In fact, Apex Legends has grown so popular that Fortnite pro FaZe Tfue fears that streamers are leaving Fortnite behind in its wake (although Fortnite still takes the lead on Twitch, with a reported 26 million views over its rival).

Ninja explains why Tfue is hurting Fortnite by claiming it’s “dying” Fortnite star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins explains why popular content creators such as Tfue could be hurting the growth of the game. Since Fortnite’s release in September 2017, the battle royale game has broken into mainstream culture as one of the most popular games in the world. However, like with many titles, the hype around Fortnite has begun to die down over time and one of the game’s biggest streamers, Ninja, explained why some of the game’s top creators could be partly responsible for its decline. Ninja was discussing what changes needed to be made to the matchmaking system with his FNCS squad when they started to point out the way many content creators would respond to problems they come across in-game. Despite the fact that many are unhappy with the current state of Fortnite, Ninja explained that simply complaining about the game is not the right way to go about solving the issues. “There’s such a good way that you can do it without making everyone think that the game is dying or dead,” he explained, “I really wish that a lot of content creators who have a lot of followers and are really big influencers were more aware of that.” The popular streamer revealed that even he would find himself being influenced by what some of his fellow creators complain about and highlighted a specific moment where Tfue was criticizing the game. “He was getting like 60 or 70,000 viewers and he’s talking about how the game is dogsh*t and stupid and it’s dying,” Ninja revealed, “he’s a perfect example, dude you’re literally pulling in more viewers than anyone on the platform right now, playing a game, and your drilling the game into the ground.” Tfue has been quite vocal about some of the changes that have taken place since the release of Fortnite’s Chapter 2 and has even called it the “worst update ever” after suffering from in-game ping issues. Although Ninja seems to remain positive about the popular battle royale game, whether or not his words will influence his fellow content creators to give constructive criticism will remain to be seen.

Ninja explains why Epic Games shouldn’t allow stretch resolution in Fortnite tournaments Ninja/TwitchTwitch star Tyler ‘Fortnite by denouncing its use and claiming it could actually give you an unfair advantage. Like many other games, Fortnite gives the option of changing the game’s resolution. The switch can offer players a larger field of view which gives slightly more info on the battlefield. During his broadcast Ninja and his duo were discussing the viability of the option when the Fortnite streamer vehemently decried using anything but the native resolution in game. After admitting that he sometimes loses track of an opponent in build battles, Ninja gave a scathing remark on using a stretched resolution during events. “It’s so stupid, I hate that,” Ninja said on the use of stretched resolutions. “I hate that people are allowed to do it to… Come dude, you get a clear advantage.” (Timestamp at 0:48 for mobile viewers) Ninja wasn’t hating on people using stretched resolution, later saying it was “amazing that Fortnite” let’s people compete with different view ratio. Read more: How to play Cizzorz’s $10,000 Fortnite competition for DeathRun 3.0 – access code, rules, video – The streamer said he had never played on anything beside the native resolution, noting it might be his “weakness” since he would have a much better chance of tracking players during intense fights. It seems like Ninja isn’t a fan of the option, especially in competitive environments where the stretched resolution can have a crucial impact on a match.

Ninja, DrLupo, Timthetatman consider ditching Fortnite over BRUTE mechs Twitter: Timthetatman/Epic GamesStreaming stars Tyler ‘Fortnite’s BRUTE mechs, and are considering playing different games until they are removed. The BRUTE Mechs, which were added to Fortnite with the start of Season X, have become one of the most controversial additions in the short history of the battle royale title. Competitive star Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney has already raged about them on more than one occasion, even stating that he was considering uninstalling the game and launching a tirade at Epic Games. Yet, some of the biggest content creators in the Fortnite scene are also considering a protest of sorts. The BRUTE in Fortnite has already cause plenty of anger from players – both competitive and casual alike. During their August 8 stream, the trio opened up about heading to other games instead of sticking around. “I just can’t believe they put them in the game – put them into arena,” stated TimTheTatman before Ninja asked: “Why are they here?” It didn’t take long for other ideas to come up. Ninja and DrLupo immediately turned their attention to possibly playing PUBG duos, while TimTheTatman explained that he would go back to Overwatch for some vintage streams if that was the case. “As long as mechs are in this game,” TimTheTatman concluded, “This is officially a Classic WoW waiting room.” Despite their veiled threats towards a boycott, the trio, alongside FaZe Clan’s Dennis ‘cloak’ Lepore, soldiered on for a few more hours of Fortnite play before calling it quits later in the day. Yet, after hopping off, DrLupo returned with a late-night solo stream and followed through on his promise of a different game. Lupo hopped into matches on PUBG, seemingly trying his hand at another battle royale to gauge his skills compared to Fortnite. He also noted that he might have hopped into Apex Legends but dying over and over on Erangel put an end to those hopes. not playing fortnite tonight, rather not get stepped on by mechs for a little bithttps://t.co/ailLCW1JCt PUBG then Apex maybe 🙂 — DrLupo (@DrLupo) August 9, 2019 It remains to be seen if Ninja and TimTheTatman will follow suit and dive into different titles – or if they will carry on with Fortnite. Last time they all boycotted Epic Games’ title, they headed to Uno alongside Jack ‘Courage’ Dunlop and gave fans some of their most entertaining content in a while. Whether or not that they do that this time around though, nobody is quite sure just yet – but the possibility might have their viewers salivating at the thought.

Ninja and DrLupo mock Fortnite’s controversial harvesting changes Fortnite’s current meta with a hilarious roast of the excitement levels they feel when harvesting materials. Fortnite has become one of the most popular games of all time since its release, becoming one of few titles that has truly crossed over into popular culture thanks to the inclusion of dances and emotes. However, recent changes to the game’s core mechanics have Fortnite fans annoyed, including streamers like Ninja and DrLupo who have been massive supporters of the game throughout its lifespan. What changes did Epic Games make to Fortnite? Epic Games recently reverted some of Fortnite’s core game mechanics, that saw players receive health and shields when they eliminated an opponent. Players were also previously given a much higher farm rate when acquiring materials, meaning it was much easier to fill up your inventory ahead of possible build battles, however Epic Games reverted this back to the original, much slower, version. What did Ninja and DrLupo say about Fortnite’s material harvesting? While playing duos with DrLupo, Ninja put on a fake accent, and started talking to his fellow streamer about the idea of grinding for materials. “Hello Ben,” Ninja said. “Would you like to keep farming for about a solid five minutes, to make sure we have enough materials to survive a potential fight?” DrLupo was clearly less than enthralled by the idea, making loud snoring noises down his microphone to voice his displease, joking: “Sorry, I fell asleep smacking trees.” Why do Fortnite fans dislike the changes? Fortnite fans believe the changes made to the game no longer encourage players to play offensively, as there are no longer any rewards for picking up eliminations other than the removal of an opponent from the match. This change has made the game much slower, as many players are now happy to sit and wait in the hope that someone else will take opponents out for them. Fortnite fans have been begging Epic Games to revert the changes, but the developers are yet to respond to the unrest, so it seems unlikely that there will be any major changes in the foreseeable future.

Ninja and DrLupo lose their minds over ‘game-breaking’ Fortnite glitch Fortnite players are used to dealing with a number of annoying glitches, but it looks like the latest one has caused Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Ben ‘DrLupo’ Lupo to become completely fed up. Fortnite has always had its share of bugs since but it seems like things have gotten a bit worse since the start of Season 8. There have been things such as instadeath locations, problems with the new Baller vehicle and this building glitch that claimed the life of DrLupo in a recent match. The glitch refers to some funky building mechanics that don’t always work the way you want them to. Read More: Ghost Gaming Fortnite pros Bizzle and Dmo win $10,000 Code Red Duos tournament – recap, final standings, info – Lupo goes to put down a floor but is suddenly teleported on top by his enemy where he is quickly eliminated. “What the,” Lupo said. “Tell me somebody saw that.” Ninja fell victim to a similar situation where his opponent just flat out phased through his wall. These aren’t just isolated issues as many other players experience these same bugs. Players have been complaining about phasing through structures for several seasons now it seems like and the problem still hasn’t been fully fixed. (Footage of the glitch at 1:51 for mobile viewers) In the above video, at around 1:51, you can see Ninja trying to protect himself from a player by building a 1×1 structure. It just looks like his opponent walks right through his wall and eliminates him before succumbing to the storm himself. Fortnite is still trying to make its mark in the esports world and bugs like this, ones that are so prevalent, certainly don’t help the cause.

Ninja, Dr Lupo and Co discover new Fortnite map rotation tactic with the Baller and Cannon The new Baller vehicle has opened up many new opportunities in Fortnite, as evidenced by Ninja and his squad. Fortnite’s v8.10 update added in a brand-new vehicle called the Baller. If you’re a fan of Overwatch, it will be hard to not think of a certain hero. It is almost certain Fortnite took inspiration from a recent Overwatch hero by the name of Hammond as the vehicle looks and almost operates the exact same in both games. In what could be a commercial for Season 8, Ninja, Dr Lupo, TimTheTatman and ItsFearItself gather three Baller vehicles and use one of Fortnite’s new cannons to pull off some great maneuverability plays. Ninja, Lupo and Tim all get in a Baller and latch onto Fear as he launches himself out of a cannon. Can’t wait to see this next-level pro-player top-tier rotation strat in the World Cup, @itsfearitself, @timthetatman, and @ninja. pic.twitter.com/xRdwSdEInL — DrLupo (@DrLupo) March 12, 2019 This clip reveals players will be able to soar through the air in the Baller just as long as they have something to attach to. We’d hate to bring it up but could you imagine the players that could have been made if one of these Ballers were able to attach onto a plane? It’ll be interesting to see how future players use the Baller vehicle as it’d presumably work the same way with a Jump Pad or Glider Redeploy as it does when you shoot out of a Cannon. Outside of this mobility, the Baller doesn’t seem to be very effective in combat situations as it deals little damage and represents a big target. Fortnite seems to have gotten away with have vehicles being all-powerful things like the Plane was, so this might actually be a blessing. Members of the Fortnite community appear to be enjoying the Baller so far which is certainly good news for a new vehicle.

Ninja doubts that top Fortnite mobile player is playing “legit” Mega-popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins isn’t buying the validity of a Fortnite mobile player’s score in the recent Pop-Up Cup. AdamXLegend, a solely Fortnite mobile player, racked up 36 points in the December 24 Solo Pop Up Cup, impressing fans with his insane in-game skill. He posted a video of his achievement to Twitter – showcasing the clip that got him to magical 36 points mark. got 36 points in today’s pop up cup. this is the clip that got me to 36. Is this the most points for a mobile player in the solo cup? pic.twitter.com/o4xNAs06Cs — Gank_AdamXLegend (@AdamXLegendYT) December 25, 2018 However, Ninja wasn’t buying it and hinted at the fact that AdamXLegend could be using a device other than his mobile phone to make him a better player such as a Gamepad. A Gamepad allows players to plug in their phone into a portable controller that looks like an Xbox pad, using that instead of their touchscreen. After Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop asked him on stream had he seen the clip, Ninja replied: “I saw it. I mean, is there video proof of him like holding a phone?” implying that something did not sit right with the video. “Apparently, it’s legit,” replied CouRage, defending what AdamXLegend had achieved. “I mean, how do you know it’s legit? Have you seen it?” asked Ninja. “There are GamePads, dude. I wouldn’t, unless I saw the dude playing on Mobile – GamePad free – I wouldn’t trust any mobile [score/player].” It remains to be seen if this suspicion from Ninja forces mobile players to reveal if they are playing on their device normally or with some sort of external help such as GamePad or Bluetooth controller. Read More: Fortnite Season 7, Week 4 challenges and how to complete them – Fireworks, Expedition Outposts and more – AdamXLegend has not posted a response to Ninja and has not tweeted since December 26. However, if there is a response you can be sure to get all the updates right here at Dexerto.

Ninja is done playing Fortnite competitively: “I don’t want to get sucked back in” Twitter: NinjaDespite soaring to new heights in gaming culture and breaking viewership records on the back of his success in Fortnite, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has no intention of a competitive return anytime soon. As one of the most popular internet celebs of the past decade, it’s safe to say Ninja has done alright for himself. He boasts the most-followed account on Twitch, has his own sneaker deal with Adidas, and brings home a good chunk of change every month, regardless of what he may be streaming. During his extraordinary rise to the top, however, you would have been hard-pressed to find him playing anything other than Fortnite. Day in, day out the blue-haired sensation had tens of thousands tuning in to watch him excel at the most popular battle royale on the market. He wasn’t just a funny personality either; Ninja was genuinely good at Fortnite, often holding his own against the world’s best at huge events. While his competitive edge saw viewership skyrocket, he’s taken a much more casual approach of late. In fact, he’s pulling the plug altogether: Ninja has made it clear he has no intention of competing in Fortnite again anytime soon. “Will you ever return to Fortnite comp?” he was asked during a mellow Final Fantasy XIV broadcast. After a moment to think it through, Ninja outlined how he “more than likely [won’t] return… until it makes sense.” “Honestly, I don’t want to get sucked back into the competitive sh**,” he added. As an esports veteran, Ninja knows all too well the trials and tribulations of being a pro player. Having competed in the Halo circuit for the better part of a decade, he knows the commitment needed to reach the top. Read More: Top 20 best Fortnite players of 2021 ranked – Evidently, he’s not ready to jump back in and sacrifice the hours grinding away at competitive Fortnite once again. At least, not for the time being. Just a week after quitting competitive Valorant, Ninja says he will more than likely not return to competitive Fortnite until it “makes sense” 🧐 He also says he doesn’t want to get sucked back into the competitive shit pic.twitter.com/79bgudgekH — Wicked Good Gaming (@WickedGoodGames) May 21, 2021 Ninja’s last venture in the competitive Fortnite space came during the 2019 Winter Royale. Now a year and a half removed from that competition, it marks his biggest gap in activity since the game was originally released. Recently, Ninja has still been playing various titles and proving his skills online. He reached Radiant in Valorant and later grew addicted to the punishing League of Legends grind as well. Read More: When does Fortnite Season 7 start? – That being said, he didn’t totally rule out a Fortnite return. Who knows, perhaps a major event could bring back the competitive version of Ninja.

Ninja Discusses the Future of Fortnite Esports, Going Pro vs Streaming and Who he Thinks is the Best Player YouTube/ESPNNinja has discussed all things Fortnite in a recent interview, revealing who he believes is the best player in the game, and how Epic Games can make Fortnite esports a lasting success. Ninja, real name Tyler Blevins, ascended to become the best known Fortnite player and streamer, in parallel with game’s own rapid success. He has also been at the forefront of the competitive side of Fortnite. As a former esports professional himself in Halo, he has so far organized two competitive events himself, as well as participation in the Friday Fortnite tournaments, and winning the E3 Pro-Am event. His very first Fortnite tournament, organized in conjunction with Esports Arena Las Vegas, beat the concurrent viewership record for a personal stream, with over 600,000 (beating his own previous record when he streamed duos with Drake). So, how does Ninja think Epic Games can ensure the longevity of Fortnite esports? He explains, speaking to ESPN, that it is all about consistency. “Epic needs to make sure that the tournament format is everything. Battle Royale’s are ‘RNG’ (random number generated). I think that getting as far away from that as possible, and developing the most consistent style tournament, bracket, layout, really is what going to give it the validation that it needs. And I think that is one thing that they are really focusing on. Making sure that it’s fun to watch. Esports is always about the most ‘competitive’, but I think you’re always going to get the top players rising to the top. But making as fun as possible to watch is [Epic’s] focus, and that’s important.” So, who exactly does Ninja think these ‘top players’ are at the moment? Well, he is modest, and says that at the moment the competition is yet to diversify and filter out the ‘best’ from the ‘good’. “There’s so many [good players], and I think the worst part is that the only ones who get recognition are the streamers. I’ve played the game for almost 1000 hours, maybe more, and there are people that kill me everyday. Whether or not I made a mistake, or I wasn’t trying as hard, there are still great players who don’t stream. I don’t think there is a specific way to say ‘this guy is better than this guy, or this guy is up and coming’. I think the more tournaments that allow people to come in who don’t necessarily have a following or a status, that will be the best way to determine the best up and coming [players].” And as for Ninja’s own plans to play professionally or focus solely on streaming, he says he hasn’t made his mind up yet. “I am still right now on the fence. I don’t know if I want to focus on one or the other. I know that I would have to go to these tournaments. It’s going to take away from my stream time, take away from content, that also takes away from my Instagram, my YouTube channel and also my Twitter clips, that get a tonne of interactions and mentions. All of that falls off when I start going to tournaments, and if I don’t win those tournaments, then I don’t recoup that money back. Right now, these online events that are going on are absolutely perfect, where I can stay at home, stream the entire thing, gain subscribers and ad revenue. And also bring in new followers, it’s just a win-win to stay at home and stream.” You can watch the full interview with Ninja and ESPN below.

Ninja discovers major flaw with new Mounted Turret in Fortnite The Mounted Turret, a trap item added to Fortnite with the v6.30 update, has already raised eyebrows in the community, and now top streamer Ninja has discovered a major exploit. The Turret is place like a normal trap, taking up a 1×1 square and so can be placed on top of user made builds. While it is very powerful and accurate, and can tear through opponents structures very quickly, it is tempered by a cooldown preventing it being fired endlessly. However, this cooldown can easily by mitigated, as Ninja demonstrated, shortly after the Mounted Turret was released. Playing a solo match, Ninja was in the final 1v1 to win the game, when he placed two Mounted Turrets next to each other. By doing so, he was able to switch immediately from one Turret to the other as soon as one hit cooldown, allowing him to continually spam bullets. Two turrets gives you 0 cooldown and is very overwhelming in solos… pic.twitter.com/dTR4uPqY5a — Ninja (@Ninja) November 14, 2018 In fact, you could even do this with three or four Turrets, depending on what the carry limit is. If it becomes a frequent problem with players using multiple Turrets, Epic Games could do a few things to fix it. Either by limiting the number of Mounted Turret traps that can be carried, or by making cooldown effects transition across Turrets, when the same player switches to it.

Ninja discovers Fortnite Disco Ball glitch – potentially leaking New Year event Ninja / TwitchTop Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins experienced an odd glitch in Fortnite, showing a disco ball in the sky, which fans believe is a leak of what is to come with a mysterious New Year event. Data miners first leaked details of a potential in-game live event coming for New Year at the end of 2018, when they discovered a disco ball in the game files. Linking this with Ninja’s own New Years event, speculation began as to what Epic Games had up their sleeves for ringing in the bells for the start of 2019. Discoball New York Worlds Colide! pic.twitter.com/HIUISy4dYx— FortTory – Fortnite News (@FortTory) December 18, 2018 Along with the disco ball in the game files, the leaker FortTroy also found another file with the name ‘NewYearTimer’, confirming that something is planned. However, it looks like Epic Games made a slight error when implementing the event, as the Disco Ball can, in fact, be seen in all its glory when players are in replay mode – and Ninja himself discovered. Suddenly noticing the huge disco ball in the sky, Ninja exclaimed “Are you kidding me? Happy New Year’s dude, what?!”, clearly excited at the prospect. As his duo partner Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop suggests, it appears that there will be some kind of party come New Year’s eve and moving into 2019. Fortnite players on Reddit have been speculating as to what effect the disco ball might have, with one suggesting it may cause everyone to dance on the spot, similar to a ‘boogie bomb’ (which are throwable disco balls). Previous live events have been more extravagant than this, however, with the ‘Butterfly’ event taking players into a matrix-like world, playing a cutscene and then dropping them back onto a changed map. Epic Games always have a surprise or two up their sleeve, and although they probably didn’t intend for this glitch to give away part of it, it is helping to build anticipation.

Ninja left disappointed with Fortnite Avengers: Endgame content L: Ninja. R: Epic GamesFornite Battle Royale and Avengers: Endgame crossover, after shutting down multiple requests to play the new Limited Time Mode. The second collaboration between Marvel’s Avengers and Epic Games launched on April 25, marking the release of Avengers: Endgame. Unlike the first time around, Epic have introduced more than just an LTM – releasing a Black Widow skin set, with a Star-Lord also rumored to be on the way. However, while a ton of fans might be satisfied with what they’re seeing, Ninja appeared to be pretty frustrated by not having more than the current offering. What did Ninja say? During his April 25 stream, Ninja was pushed for his stance on playing the new Endgame LTM by Paul ‘ActionJaxonbtw’ on stream, instead of just regular squads and duos games. After repeatedly being asked if he wanted to play the new mode, Ninja sarcastically replied: “It’s fun,” over and over. “You get it. It’s fun, right? Like, I like it, it’s great but you know.” Ninja was pushed for an answer by ActionJaxonBTW, but continued with his sarcastic replies of “I love it” and “It’s great,” before completely avoiding the mode and just jumping into a normal game of duos with his fellow streamer. It didn’t take long for Ninja to open just a little bit about his disappointment with the new additions. “You know what, I’m so curious as to why they won’t let you play as the superheroes,” he remarked. “You know what I mean, like, Thanos back-to-back. Now you have the abilities of them [the Avengers] but you can’t be like… I don’t know.” ActionJaxonBTW revealed to Ninja that he was already pretty disappointed by the collaboration, before the new content even released. “Is it bad that when I saw the fish hand holding Stormbreaker that I was kind of a little disappointed?,” he asked Ninja, before the streamer could fire back a sarcastic: “A little?” What else does Epic have in store? While plenty of fans are pretty happy with what they’re playing, especially with plenty of free cosmetics to be unlocked via challenges and Epic already dropping updates for the mode, Ninja clearly isn’t one of them. However, maybe he’ll get sucked into playing the LTM if the rumors about more character-based skins appear to come true. It remains to be seen.

Ninja details which Apex Legends feature Epic Games should add to Fortnite ESPNThere’s a feature in Apex Legends that’s apparently so good that popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins wants to see it added to Fortnite Battle Royale. Although still a battle royale at its core, Apex Legends has introduced some features to the genre that have never really been seen before in other titles. Many of these new features have been very highly regarded by the player-base, such as the Ping system, advanced movement mechanics, and specialized Legends characters. But the one feature that Ninja really thinks Epic Games should consider adding to Fortnite is Apex’s teammate respawn system, which allows players to spawn their teammates back into the match after they’ve been fully eliminated. “Epic’s always evolved and they just need to continue to involve, and they know that,” he said. “You have that amazing of a game that comes out like Apex with a great mechanic, and they have to come up their own and expand on it.” The way that the respawn system works in Apex Legends is if one or two players on a team get eliminated, they can still come back into the game as long as at least one teammates survives and takes their ‘body beacon(s)’ to one of the numerous respawn points on the map. The players then are transported back to the map via a deploy ship, and have to start looting to restock their inventory and try to get back into the thick of things. Whether or not this feature will be added to Fortnite, only time will tell. However, as Ninja hinted at in the clip, Epic know better than anyone that gauging the community is one of the key steps to ensuring success, and if players are really liking this sort of mechanic, then developers may very well decide to ultimately add it in Fortnite.

Ninja, Dakotaz & more slam Fortnite ban of 9-year-old player Zenon YouTube: ZenonA young Brazilian Fortnite player, Zenon, burst into tears during a stream after his account was banned by Epic Games, supposedly because he is only nine years old, and therefore not allowed to compete in the in-game tournaments. The young competitive player is part of Brazilian organization DETONA Gaming, but has been handed a 1500-day ban from Fortnite. He had been playing “Arena mode,” the competitive playlist in the game, which requires players to be at least 13 years old. Zenon was handed the suspension due to his age, but it has caused uproar, especially in the Brazilian competitive scene, with the hashtag #FreeZenon trending on Twitter. The clip of Zenon’s ban went viral on social media, as he burst into tears with his father watching on. que isso pelo amor de deus??? a criança joga com o pai do lado, trás sustenta pra família jogando. pra epic games tá tudo bem destruir o sonho de uma criança? nem conheço o cenário mas me sensibilizei pelas lágrimas escorrendo desse menino 🙁 #FreeZenon https://t.co/utQMSbHltn — thateus (@thateuss) May 5, 2020 Even Tyler “Ninja” Blevins stepped in to defend the player, arguing that although rules are rules, the punishment is too harsh, and that Zenon shouldn’t be banned from playing regular modes in Fortnite. Unless Arenas start offering money for placements there is no reason for #FreeZenon to be banned from them until he turns 13. That being said the age requirement to compete in Fortnite is 13 and he is 9. He shouldn’t be banned from any other aspect of Fortnite 100% @FortniteGame — Ninja (@Ninja) May 5, 2020 Top esport players from Zenon’s home country also spoke out in his defense, including professional CS:GO players Fernando “fer” Alvarenga and Vito ‘kNgV’ Guiseppe. kNgV wrote “no one should have the right to ban someone because of age, this is the esports revolution, there are more children with these dreams.” #FreeZenon ninguém deve ter o direito de banir alguém por causa de idade.. essa é a revolução do esports, vão vim mais crianças com esses sonhos.. igual a mesma criança que sonha em ser jogador de futebol.. não tira isso de uma criança. — Vito Giuseppe (@kngvito) May 5, 2020 Professional League of Legends player Leonardo ‘Robo’ Souza said, “It is totally wrong to prevent the development of a talent within esports. The boy is 100% accompanied and supported by his father. You can’t do that to a child! He just wants to have fun!” É totalmente errado impedir o desenvolvimento de um talento dentro do esporte eletrônico. O garoto é 100% acompanhado e apoiado pelo pai. Não podem fazer isso com uma criança! Ele só quer se divertir! #FreeZenon — LOUD Robo (@robolol1) May 5, 2020 Fortnite streamer Dakotaz spoke about the issue on Twitch, arguing “[Epic] shouldn’t have banned you like that! If you’re going to hand out a four-year ban, and they’re nine years old, they should have handled that a little differently in my opinion.” Alguém fluente por favor traduz para mim. Obrigado @dakotaz ♥ pic.twitter.com/REzeEJ18Mc— Zenon (@Of_Zenon) May 5, 2020 Epic Games has not commented publicly on the player’s ban, but Zenon himself is determined to see it overturned. Fortnite is one of the most lucrative esports if a player can make it to the professional level, with Fortnite World Cup 2019 winner Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf winning the biggest individual prize ever of $3 million. Even just at the semi-professional level, players can earn money playing in-game, online tournaments, such as the Cash Cup. However, to compete, Epic enforces a strict 13+ minimum age, which they clearly take very seriously, given the severity of Zenon’s punishment. Playing alongside his father, Zenon has a popular YouTube channel with over 130,000 subscribers.

Ninja criticizes Fortnite pro players for being “negative” and always complaining Popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins hit out at Fortnite professional players who constantly complain about the game’s current state. The latest patch introduced a new in-game item, The Baller, which provides players with a small layer of protection and a Grappler for quick rotations around the map. As a result, the item has been an extremely useful tool to professional players during the recent Gauntlet Pop Up Cup as it can prevent taking damage and save materials during hectic end games consisting of many elite level players. Naturally, many pro players have complained about its introduction including Team Liquid’s Jake ‘Poach‘ Brumleve who tweeted that the balls are “planes all over again.” However, Ninja feels that pro players will never be happy with any of items that are introduced to the game. “What do the pros like?” he said during a stream with Reverse2K. “If you want to follow negative people, follow any player who plays the game professionally. […] 99% of the time – all their tweets are all negative.” On the other hand, the former Halo pro player did sympathize with their situation and admitted that some of his tweets were negative too. Nevertheless, he felt that The Baller addition wasn’t too overpowered in the current meta due to their low starting health and the current power of the assault rifles. Blevins is yet to immerse himself fully into the game’s competitive scene but has been performing well during the recent pop-up cup events. With $30m on offer at the upcoming Fortnite World Cup event, Ninja could be tempted to take the game more seriously to have a chance at winning.

Ninja criticizes Epic Games for lack of Fortnite updates over holidays The influx of new items during Season 7 of Fortnite has brought along plenty of new bugs, and Twitch star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins looks to have had enough of it. While the Boom Box has been the topic of much discussion since their release on December 30, the X-4 Stormwing has been talked about for over a month now since Season 7 started on December 6. Ninja has been one of the bigger streamers speaking out against the controversial planes and it seems as though he reached a breaking point during a stream on January 7. The usually reserved and family-friendly Ninja, who had a little bit too much to drink during the stream, simply couldn’t hold back after dying to a plane out of nowhere during an engagement. “Bro, suck dick, dude. The fattest one, bro!” Ninja says directly after dying in a rare moment of immense frustration. Ninja didn’t stop there, however, as he then went on an extended rant speaking out against Epic Games for leaving their game with so many bugs. “I love Fortnite. I love Epic Games,” Ninja said as a way of prefacing his incoming criticism. “They said, ‘Hey, we’re taking a break. Christmas break. New Years break.’ How many glitches are in this game?! Where are the updates?! We have FIVE plane glitches alone!” Ninja then goes on to sympathize with the fact that the developers have earned time off after having an incredible 2018 but nonetheless felt that they left the game for far too long, even comparing the situation to other battle royale titles. “There are so many things wrong right now and it’s because they took time off,” Ninja concludes about Epic’s holiday break. “This is what I said with H1Z1 back in the day, [and] PUBG. [Those developers] didn’t put the time in.” Epic Games have announced the third and final v7.10 update for Tuesday, January 8, but there’s no word on what the patch will contain. There’s no doubt, however, that players will be keeping a close on the patch notes for the update in the hopes of seeing some much-needed fixes to the game’s various bugs.

Fortnite is so boring that Ninja, CouRage, and others are playing UNO for gifted subs After Epic Games released a controversial Fortnite update with v8.20, many of the big streamers played Uno for a night instead. Fortnite has been on top of the gaming world for over a year now but player morale is shaken after a new update introduced a ranked mode and changed up the rules in the normal lobbies. It’s not an understatement to say much of the pro community is upset about these changes as many of them are arguing for Epic Games to completely revert the update. This probably won’t happen but Epic Games has shown a tendency to listen to player feedback so it’s very likely they are hearing everything the players are saying. One way players can put a dent into Fortnite is by not streaming the game, which is what many of the top streamers decided to do on March 28. Ninja, CouRage, Marcel and TimTheTatman all decided to play Uno together instead of Fortnite, which actually resulted in a surprisingly hilarious and entertaining stream. Friendships were ruined I’M DYING LMAOOOO @Ninja@timthetatman @Ninja @CouRageJD @BasicallyIDoWrk pic.twitter.com/SVMydoMtgt — Wipz (@WipzTV) March 29, 2019 For everyone that spams “We miss NinjasHyper” he was back in full force with Uno as he was hurling insults to all the other players in what ended up being a highly contested night of Uno. There was a lot of swearing, a lot of friendships being destroyed, and a lot of money being exchanged. The four streamers started the night off by offering 20 gifted subs, better known as $100, for the winner but after Tim kept winning, the rules soon changed and the stakes were raised even higher. The stakes were very high At one point, the wager was 100 Tier 2 subs, which would equate to $1000, meaning the stakes were very high in Uno. What makes all of this funny is the fact Uno is a game that is almost solely based on luck. The group was also playing with rules where playing a ‘0’ or a ‘7’ would switch your hand with another play, just adding to the complete randomness. As the games went into the wee hours of the night, the players reported in the morning that it was hard to even look at their bank accounts. A lot of money was exchanged in just a few hours of Uno Woke up Checked PayPal account Turned off phone went back to bed@timthetatman @CouRageJD @BasicallyIDoWrk — Ninja (@Ninja) March 29, 2019 Ninja said he just turned off his phone after checking his PayPal but Courage said his bank called him and was concerned with all of his spending so fast. It’ll be hard to recapture the magic that was that Uno stream but fans can either catch a video of it or wait for the inevitable return of Uno by the four friends. If these four don’t play Uno again in the future it would definitely be a shame.

Ninja, CouRage, Myth, Tfue and more react to The End in Fortnite Epic Games/100 Thieves/@Ninja/FaZe Clan/@TSM_MythOn October 13, Epic Games brought ‘The End’ to Fortnite as we know it, bringing a number of the most influential community members out to share their thoughts. The End was an in-game spectacle that changed Fortnite as we know it. A meteor came from a rift in the sky and crashed down into the heart of the island, leaving nothing but a black hole in its wake. Epic Games literally deleted the game from their website and social media, leaving faithful Fortnite fans stunned and wondering whether the game was truly concluded. Of course, prominent figures from within the community have come out in droves to react to the historic event. Fortnite community reacts to The End Prominent figures from within the Fortnite community provided their own spectacle, as they took to their respective social media platforms to react to Epic Games’ power-move. Undoubtedly the most influential Fortnite player, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins posted a reflective tweet that looks back on what the game has provided for him, propelling him to the top of the streaming world and arguably the face of Fortnite, before encouraging the community to “go into Chapter 2 with an open mind.” I’m thinking about it more and more. I want everyone that plays Fortnite to remember all the good times, All the amazing experiences we have had playing this game and really go into Chapter 2 with an open mind and let’s be more positive as a community > — Ninja (@Ninja) October 13, 2019 100 Thieves content creator, Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop, chimed in with a live reaction to the event which he posted to his Twitter page. “Oh my god!” CouRage exclaimed in astonishment. “This is everything; I have chills!” RIP Fortnite: Battle Royale FULL LIVE REACTION TO THE END! pic.twitter.com/ifX4CJcnEK — Jack “CouRage” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) October 13, 2019 In the aftermath that ensued, a series of numbers were churned out around the blackhole. Popular Team SoloMid streamer Ali ‘Myth’ Kabbani hilariously responded with some Oscar–worthy acting, which showed him wearing a tinfoil hat while mocking the flood of conspiracies that had been flying around as the numbers kept coming in. Timothy ‘Timthetatman’ Betar also gave his two cents by chipping in on his social media, posting a classic image of Charlie from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia with the caption: “Everyone trying to figure out what the Fortnite numbers mean.” Everyone trying to figure out what the Fortnite numbers mean pic.twitter.com/8phQgUeuPQ — timthetatman (@timthetatman) October 13, 2019 As things began to die-down, Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney pitched in with a popular meme with a Fortnite–esque twist, showing a stick figure prodding an image of the blackhole with the text “C’mon, do something…” In a similar fashion to CouRage, Benjamin ‘DrLupo’ Lupo posted a live reaction titled: “I guess they called it “The End” for a reason.” Looking on in disbelief, Lupo repeatedly acknowledges the end-game scenario by jesting: “Everything’s fine, everything’s fine… This is fine, this is fine — no big deal” as the battle bus, map and his character is gobbled up. I guess they called it “”The End”” for a reason. pic.twitter.com/WVFoyqvaYr — DrLupo (@DrLupo) October 13, 2019 Brett ‘Dakotaz’ Hoffman put out a playful threat directed towards Epic Games in-light of multiple people claiming that they could leak information surrounding the new season, should their tweet surpass a threshold of retweets/likes. Yo @FortniteGame give me a skin or I’m leaking when it comes back. :smiling_imp::smiling_imp::smiling_imp: — dk (@dakotaz) October 14, 2019 Indeed, the event has left many speculating Epic Games’ next move after the Fortnite shutdown, as the stream still continues on the official Fortnite Twitter page. Nonetheless, given that over 6 million people tuned into the cinematic extravaganza across all platforms, the traction that the event has gained has caused Fortnite to capture the imagination of the entire gaming world.

Ninja, CouRage and other Fortnite streamers react to the destruction of fan-favorite Tilted Towers building Fortnite fans have been agonizing over the future of Tilted Towers’ new building which miraculously made it through most of Season 7, but now faces a grim fate. The building had never made it through a complete chapter in Fortnite’s story until Season 7, however it seems the day before Season 8 has once again brought down the structure. Prominent Fortnite streamers were anxiously waiting to see what the countdown to the quake would bring to the island. Even though a lot of players were expecting something to happen to the building, most were lamenting its destruction. “They destroyed the new building in Tilted,” Faze Clan’s Cloakzy said. “I’ve never been more heated in my life. Those hard working individuals who build that every season just to have epic destroy it” They destroyed the new building in tilted. I’ve never been more heated in my life. Those hard working individuals who build that every season just to have epic destroy it — Creator code:fazecloak (@cloakzy) February 27, 2019 Dude are they actually taking out tilted!? I’m gettin’ onhttps://t.co/Etk8WeXENI | #MFAM — Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) February 27, 2019 NOOOOO EPIC WHYYYYYYYY WHAT DID KENNY EVER DO TO YOU?! HUH?! pic.twitter.com/w4VmXJgtsL — Jack “”CouRage”” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) February 27, 2019 “The people at Epic make me sick,” CouRage joked during his stream. Players were routinely filled with hope at seeing the building constantly being improved on throughout Season 7. Which made the the final major quake that brought it down even more harrowing to see. THE FINAL EARTHQUAKE SEASON 7!! I think it might take out the new building AGAIN! haha pic.twitter.com/BR81EoMS45 — Ninja (@Ninja) February 27, 2019 The destruction came just a day before Season 8 is set to take over, and it seems like the developers at Epic Games couldn’t stand to see the building make it to the new era of Fortnite.

Ninja confirms brand-new Fortnite Creative island for upcoming Samsung event Samsung/FortnitePopular streamer Tyler ‘Fortnite Creative island during an event in New York on March 16. During a stream on Monday, March 4, Ninja revealed a brand new Fortnite skin and dance emote, both based on the KPop band iKON and only available for Samsung S10 owners. Besides officially revealing the new cosmetics, Ninja also dropped word about a brand new Fortnite Creative island built especially for his New York event, that fans can take part in. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3ROyZFB7IsDuring the stream Ninja told viewers he would be headed to New York to play Fortnite with one of the members of iKON on a brand new Creative island. “A brand new map, exclusive to Fortnite,” Ninja told viewers. “That’s right, a brand new map, literally built for this event.” While Ninja did say map during his stream, Samsung later clarified that it would actually just be a new Creative island made for this specific event and not an entirely new map. The new iKONIK skin was announced on February 20 as an exclusive for players who pre-ordered the new Samsung S10 smartphone. The ‘Scenario’ Dance emote is also available exclusively to players who purchase the new phone as well. Those interested in signing up for the chance to play Fortnite with Ninja and iKON in New York can do so by clicking on this link. For now, all we can do is speculate about what the new Fortnite Creative island will look like but luckily we’ll only have to wait until March 16 for all the information.

Ninja concerned competitive Fortnite No Build could spell disaster for battle royale Ninja/Epic GamesTwitch star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins believes Fortnite shouldn’t introduce a competitive side to the Zero Build mode, as he’s unsure there are enough players to support it. When Epic Games introduced the Zero Build mode to Fortnite with the Chapter 3, Season 2 update, it helped propel the battle royale back into the spotlight. Plenty of players, old and new, flocked to Fortnite to give it a try. It’s been a little while since the update was new and fresh, but the game has remained popular even with Epic reintroducing the building element back to certain Fortnite game modes. Some players have been left wondering if they’ll give the Zero Build mode a competitive side, seeing as many players are quite happy to stick to that. However, Ninja has some concerns about that. The Twitch star, who has again seen his channel grow off the back of Fortnite’s returning popularity, touched on the topic during his May 4 stream, suggesting that it could be a massive negative for the battle royale if Epic makes the change. Read More: Fortnite returns to iOS, but there’s a catch – “I don’t know if they want to split up their community that much where there is a Zero Build and a build solos, duos, trios, and squads, and now there is a Zero Build and build solos, duos, trios, arena, right?” Ninja said. “I don’t think they want to do that. I wouldn’t do that if I were them, there literally might not be enough players in the game to split up the playlists that much.” The Twitch star also noted that the introduction of a competitive Zero Build playlist would be taken over by “giga sweats” who would dominate in the solos and duos matches. As of now, there is no indication as to whether or not Epic will implement a Zero Build competitive side. They’ve kept building active in competitive play despite the popularity of the other option. Ninja’s concerns about splitting up the playerbase even further are pretty legitimate and something the devs may have already taken into account. Though, we’ll just have to keep an eye on things.

Ninja comes across incredibly creative stream sniper at the end of his Fortnite game Twitch megastar Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins came across an ingenious stream sniper while finishing a game of Fortnite Battle Royale. Blevins was playing squad matches alongside Ben ‘Dr Lupo’ Lupo, Trevor ‘IAmTrevorMay’ May and Timothy ‘timthetatman’ Betar, when Ninja and Dr Lupo found themselves as the last two remaining players on their team, with just one opponent left. As the pair searched for the final enemy, Ninja spotted their opponent building to their south, but it quickly became obvious that they weren’t building a shelter, but rather building a message to Blevins and Lupo. “Oh my God dude,” laughed Ninja, as he watched the artist get to work. “It’s the Black Knight who spells. How does he do this?” “You know what’s funny? He’s going as fast as he can because he wants to be considerate,” quipped IAmTrevorMay. The squad sat and watched, trying to guess what he was trying to spell out. Eventually, it became hilariously clear that the stream sniper was typing out “WAIT…”, hoping that the famous duo wouldn’t take him out before he was finished. Just as he finished his masterpiece, the player then began to use the wait emoji, which was recently added to the game. “Are you kidding me?” chuckled Blevins. “Look at him, he’s doing the wait!” Ninja then flew over to the platform the enemy player was on, and patiently stood and watched the character tapping away on its phone and blowing bubble gum balloons, while Ninja and his squad giggled at this funny moment. Unfortunately for the Black Knight, Ninja eventually lost patience and as the player performed the ‘Tada!’ emote, Ninja blasted him with Heavy Sniper to win the game, to cries of laughter from his teammates.

Ninja clutches up manic Fortnite start without hearing a single thing Epic Games / Mixer: NinjaTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins showed off his Fortnite spidey-senses in an epic 1v4 clutch to kick the game off — all without any audio to back him up. FPS games, and especially battle royale games, have a high reliance on sound cues. From picking off where you’re being shot from and from what weapon, being able to hear what’s happening around you in Fortnite is key. While some players become accustomed to not playing with sound, when you’ve used it for so long, it’s a rough experience without it. For Ninja, when he loaded into a Fortnite lobby without audio, he was sure he was going to die instantly. However, Ninja let his mouse and keyboard do the talking, relying purely on his senses, good aim, and — let’s face it — a bit of luck to pull off this insane 1v4 clutch. While on stream on February 10, Ninja accidentally alt tabbed out of Fortnite as he was loading into game into his mute app program, disabling all in-game sound. “I have no audio, I alt tabbed out on the way in,” he said in a bit of despair, prepping to get absolutely annihilated by the squad that dropped on his head. “I have to do this all no audio.” https://twitter.com/Ninja/status/1227021401212833792 As one frag turned into two, with Ninja dropping floors picking up kills left, right, and center, the streamer saw a way that he could fight his way out of the sticky situation. He picked up the first three with ease, before dropping to under 50 health trying to clean up the fourth. Caught in his reload, he was blessed by a few whiffed shots to secure the squad wipe just mere seconds into the match, and he was sure to let the rest of his team know about his antics. “Bro, I have to fix my audio, somebody [else] has to get him up,” he said, looking for a safe place to hide. “I have four eliminations, zero audio.” While the play is impressive regardless, deaf FaZe Clan Fortnite star Soleil ‘EwOk’ Wheeler couldn’t help but poke fun at Ninja’s despair being her reality. “That’s me all [the] time but with audio visualizer,” she said. Ninja did manage to fix his audio issues and storm ahead in the game, picking up 11 kills and a victory royale for himself in one of his more successful games of the day. However, he’s probably going to count his lucky stars that he was able to pull off that early game clutch, or it could have all gone haywire.

Top 10 players who didn’t qualify for the Fortnite World Cup – Ninja, Cloak, Chap and more Ten weeks of intense online open qualifiers for the Fortnite World Cup are finally over, with many notable names failing to qualify, but who were the best players to miss out? Despite offering $40 million in prize money for the finals and qualifiers, Epic Games have been heavily criticized by many professional players over the course of the ten weeks due to the format of the qualifiers as well as numerous bugs impacting their matches. Currently, eliminations can be worth just as much as securing a victory royale, leading to players playing extremely aggressive rather than holding out for the win – a format which Ghost Gaming’s Timothy ‘Bizzle’ Miller described as “a joke”. Nevertheless, the finalists for the World Cup have been confirmed for both the duo and solo event with many star names missing from the list. Below are the top ten players who failed to book their ticket. Ninja Team: Free agent Region: NA East Despite coming late to the Fortnite competitive scene, Twitch superstar Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has performed admirably in recent weeks alongside his duo partner Malachi ‘Reverse2k’ Grenier. The former Halo pro has proven he can compete with the very best, missing out on qualification by just two points in week six. Ninja did confirm that will be attending the finals despite not securing his place on the main stage. Poach Team: Team Liquid Region: NA East Another major surprise was the performances of Team Liquid’s Jake ‘Poach’ Brumleve – the second highest earner in Fortnite history in miss out on qualification. Despite placing well during the Summer Skirmish series, Poach has struggled to adapt to the new meta. He stated on Twitter he would be changing up his key binds in order to improve his showings in future events. Chap Team: Team Liquid Region: NA East Despite switching up teammates to partner with Poach, Liquid’s Ryan ‘Chap’ Chaplo was unable to secure a qualification spot in either solo or duos. The 24-year-old has been vocal in his displeasure with the current meta, which has undoubtedly affected his performances as he has played nowhere near his potential. 72hrs Team: Team Liquid Region: NA East Fan favorite Thomas ‘72hrs’ Mulligan will also not be in contention after failing to qualify alongside his new duo partner Noah ‘Vivid’ Wright. Although the pair performed well, they were unable to secure the last few points needed to jump up in the standings. Fans were devastated to see the duo hit with a four-minute queue during their final games in week ten, which ultimately cost them a final chance to qualify. Cloak Team: FaZe Clan Region: NA East Unfortunately, Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney won’t be joined in New York with long-term friend and teammate Dennis ‘Cloak’ Lepore after they narrowly missed out on qualification on numerous occasions. Despite changing their drop spot on multiple times, the TwitchCon winners couldn’t put it all together meaning Cloak is the highest earning Fortnite star who won’t be at the World Cup. Symfuhny Team: NRG Region: NA East NRG Esport star Mason ‘Symfuhny’ Lanier also missed out on qualification after experimenting with various duo partners over the course of the ten weeks. Nevertheless, the 20-year-old has a massive following on Twitch with plenty of fans tuning in to watch his viewing parties. NICKMERCS Team: FaZe Clan Region: NA West/NA East FaZe Clan’s Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff won’t be flying the flag for controller players in New York despite performing extremely well alongside his duo partner Nio Rooch. The former 100 Thieves member laughed off suggestions he couldn’t compete with the top Fortnite players, stating his intentions to return for the upcoming trio tournament. Dmo Team: Ghost Gaming Region: NA East Due to the fierce competition in the NAE region, Ghost Gaming’s Dylan ‘Dmo’ Moore missed out on qualification even though he was considered one of the favorites for the entire tournament alongside his teammate Bizzle. Ranking #14 in the list of all-time highest earners, it was a shock to see the American struggle. SypherPK Team: Luminosity Region: NA West Popular Twitch streamer Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan couldn’t overcome his connection issues to secure qualification against all the odds. The Luminosity star frequently played his qualifying games with a ping over 50 which seriously hindered his chances of performing well. Kamo Team: Ghost Gaming Region: EU A major surprise in the EU region was the performance of Ghost Gaming star Liam ‘Kamo’ Fillery – who was considered one of the top duos alongside his teammate Issa ‘Issa’ Rahim. The pair’s practice was impeded by an injury to Issa’s hand which almost certainly cost them a chance at qualification. When is the Fortnite World Cup? The Fortnite World Cup takes place July 26-28 in New York City, New York. 100 players will battle it out to win their share of $30 million, with the solo winner walking away from the event with $3 million in prize money.

Ninja claims Fortnite controller aim assist is an “aimbot” Epic Games/Unsplash: Chris Liverani/Mixer: NinjaPopular Mixer streamer and Fortnite veteran Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has called out Epic Games’ battle royale for a lack of balance between controller and mouse and keyboard. The mouse and keyboard versus controller debate is not a new discussion, particularly in the Fortnite community. Despite being less than three years old, Epic’s acclaimed BR has been the subject of constant debate following the decision to allow controller players to compete against those using a mouse and keyboard. Among others, we have seen World Cup Winner Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf try his hand at Fortnite with a controller. The 16-year-old was concerned it was too strong, and explained how he thinks it could be better balanced. Now, Fortnite’s most prominent content creator and one of the game’s pioneers has weighed in on the discussion, coming firmly down on the side of most mouse and keyboard players. In an April 3 tweet, Ninja explained that, having played with a controller via a PC, he found aim assist to be far too strong when compared to a mouse and keyboard player. “Just played with a controller on PC for the second time in two days,” Blevins said. “I have competed in several games at a competitive level on both controller and mouse and keyboard. You cannot tell me that with 100% strength aim assist and linear settings that using a controller isn’t aimbot.” Just played with a controller on pc for the second time in two days. I have competed in several games at a competing level on both controller and mouse and keyboard. You cannot tell me that with 100% strength aim assist and linear settings that using a controller isn’t aimbot — Ninja (@Ninja) April 3, 2020 Prior to his streaming career, Ninja played professional Halo – a game that is played exclusively with a controller on Xbox. He has since switched to mouse and keyboard gaming, including on Fortnite. When using a mouse and keyboard players do not receive any aim assist as a result of the more precise movements that come with a mouse. Ninja clearly feels this is an unfair trade-off. It’s important to distinguish between controller play on a PC and a console. When playing on a console, players are limited in terms of frame rate, input lag and other graphical settings. On a PC, most of these caps are improved, but players still receive the same level of aim assist. It is the latter which Ninja thinks is too strong. While Ninja’s criticism is echoed by a large number of mouse and keyboard players, there are just as many controller players who argue that the accuracy of a mouse is far greater than joysticks. It is for this reason that Epic are backed into a corner.

Ninja claims Epic have “lost their way” with Fortnite in Chapter 2 Epic Games / Mixer: NinjaTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins claims Epic “lost their way” with their hugely popular battle royale title Fortnite in Chapter 2, after a “massive f**king disconnect” between the fans and the players that they still haven’t quite recovered from. Ninja has always been one of the more outspoken members of the huge Fortnite community. The streamer always speaks his mind — even if it earns him a “toxic” label — in an effort to help fix the popular title. Chapter 2 has been a mixed bag for Fortnite, and Ninja knows it. In fact, the Mixer star said, it’s because Epic “lost their way” after the season-ending black hole event last October; they have become “disconnected” from the fans. “You know… I’m going to be honest, I talked to the guys [at Epic]. I don’t know what’s going on but I know more than others: Epic lost their way, they got lost. They lost the communication, they lost the community. They just got lost,” he said. “Along the way there was just this f**king massive disconnect. Something was dropped, and it was never picked up. I’m not saying it’s particularly a bad state, but that’s why Fortnite is in the state it’s in. Updates, patch notes, everything.” Epic needs to focus on Fortnite gameplay, Ninja says Fortnite has struggled to please its fans so far in Chapter 2. Gameplay has had a question mark over it so far this year, and the new map was not well received. 2020 has also seen patch notes simply vanish. That’s not to say this year has been a major bust for Fortnite. Ninja pointed to the title’s huge crossover events like its Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker trailer reveal, and Travis Scott concert event as “big wins” for Epic. They even have a Christopher Nolan feature film screening later this year. “Yes we’re getting cool shit, we had Star Wars, a Star Wars trailer, the Travis Scott event was one of the coolest things ever been seen in gaming history,” he said, before adding Epic “need” to turn their attention to gameplay next. “The events were dope as sh*t, but that’s not gameplay in Fortnite, and that [gameplay] is Fortnite. The amazing things that Fortnite can do have split from the gameplay… but I feel like they’re coming back though man.” The related segment begins at 3:56 in the video below. There are, of course, a few things Ninja still thinks needs some work in Fortnite too before it actually hits its peak again though. One is the player count: the Mixer star called for Epic to copy Call of Duty’s Warzone last week. Blevins has also been one of the most vocal figures in the ongoing war against aim assist in Fortnite. He believes the best way forward now is for controller players to be “honest” about the feature so Epic can properly nerf the “aimbot” assist.

Ninja catches Lil Yachty looking at something suspect on his phone at NinjaWerks event INVISION/AP/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK & Ninja, TwitchWhile Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins was busy doing his thing on Fortnite, Lil Yachty was found looking at something shocking on his phone in the background during the streamer’s NinjaWerks event. The Twitch sensation, who has over 12 million subscribers on the platform, sealed a duos victory after going head-to-head with an enemy player at the river near Tomato Temple. Using the high ground to his advantage, Ninja used the games new Legendary Pump Shotgun to finish off his opponent with ease and claim yet another win. Not quite as dramatic as Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi from those Star Wars prequels, but you get the picture. Obviously delighted by his final kill, he turned towards Lil Yachty who was sitting there grinning at his phone. Hoping to be greeted with celebrations from the American, Ninja instead caught a glimpse of what Lil Yachty was looking at, and was shocked at what he saw. “Jesus man! Make sure you don’t tilt it that way, ok?” he laughed, pointing towards the camera. “Jesus Christ, man, are you kidding me? Don’t get me banned on Twitch man!” Lil Yachty had no response after getting caught, slumping in his chair and looking a little embarrassed with a cheeky smile on his face. Fans moved quickly to clip the hilarious segment, but neither Ninja or the rapper confirmed what was on Lil Yachty’s phone. The clip is captioned ‘Lil Yachty watching Nudes on Ninja’s stream’, and while we’re not totally sure that’s accurate, it was definitely enough to shock Ninja!

Ninja catches another Fortnite hacker in the act on stream Dexerto/TheRegisterDuring a recent stream, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins caught a Fortnite hacker in action and broadcast a snippet of their gameplay for the world to see. Hacking and stream sniping has plagued Fortnite for some time with players calling on Epic Games to act and make changes. However, hackers have still been able to affect games – even getting to the best of Fornite’s pro scene. On November 24, FaZe Clan’s Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney was slain by a hacker during a Winter Royale qualifying game. Since then, a number of hackers have received bans and now, Ninja has caught another in action – reporting them for hacking in the hopes that they’re banned too. During his December 15 stream, Ninja – who was dead in a game – watched on in disbelief as the hacker began dealing damage to players they could barely see. After watching the hacker gain a long-range kill by seemingly aim locking, the streamer reported the account before carrying on watching them make a move on another player. The former Halo professional turned streamer left the game after watching the hacker get a kill on a player at Dusty Divot, who wasn’t visible to Ninja’s stream, whilst shooting from over 100 metres away. On the same stream, Ninja also called on Epic Games to help end the stream sniping epidemic that has plagued some of Fortnite’s biggest streamers. However, even he isn’t sure if any company will be ever to combat snipe snipers. Ninja had been playing a squad’s game before his team was pounced on – outside the closing circle – by an apparent group of stream snipers. After leaving the game, the former Halo professional said: “Listen man, If there’s anyone who can come up with a creative way to counteract stream sniping, it’s Epic.”

Ninja calls out Epic Games for the current state of Fortnite skins Ninja / Epic GamesPopular streamer Tyler ‘Fortnite, complaining that they use the same base multiple times with minimal changes instead. One of the things that has made Fortnite so popular is the customization, with hundreds of skins, back bling, pickaxes and more in the game, allowing you to create your own custom look using your favorite cosmetics. With developers Epic Games releasing hundreds of skins since the game’s launch in September 2017, it’s no surprise that some characters get used more than once, but Ninja would like to see some fresh creativity, as he feels they are pushing out too many similar characters. While streaming with long-time duo Malachi ‘Reverse2k’ Grenier, the pair started to discuss some of the game’s legendary skins, prompting Ninja to vent his frustrations with the way Epic Games currently releases them. “I’m not going to lie to you bro, and I mean no disrespect to the artists that put hundreds of hours into these skins, but I really would like some new skins,” the Mixer star stated. “Some new concepts that aren’t just reskinned. I feel like they’re releasing a lot more of the same skin with a different colorway, or a different mask.” “To credit them, they have given skins in different colorways just to do it, which is incredible and nobody asked for that. But what was the last ‘bomb.com’ skin?” The 28-year-old went on to compare some of the recent skins that Epic Games have released, showing off the similarities between the Street Striker and Abstrakt costumes that are available in the game. “Look at them,” Ninja told his viewers. “He’s got paint, hoodie, gas mask, ‘TT’ on his hat. What is the actual difference? You’re literally purchasing the same skin, and they’ve been doing it more often than not.” “Me personally, I think it would be cool if they stopped coming out with these reskins, and started releasing some rarer skins that haven’t come out in a while, and then take their time and really start trying to come up with some super creative skins and ideas.” Ninja is one of the most popular Fortnite streamers in the world, and before his move to Mixer was widely regarded as the face of the popular battle royale title on Twitch. The streamer has played hundreds of hours of the game, so it’s no surprise that he may be getting a little tired of the similar aesthetics of the skins that Season 11 on the horizon, he may see the developers release a brand-new batch of never-before-seen skins to mark the event.

Ninja calls Nadeshot over 100 Thieves contract after insane Fortnite solo win Ninja/100 ThievesAfter a win with some world-class stats in Fortnite solos, Ninja gave 100 Thieves Nadeshot a call to let the CEO know he was finally “ready” to head back to esports. Love him or don’t, there’s no doubting that Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins is the biggest and most well-known Fortnite streamer in the world. Over the last few years he’s focused mainly on streaming, instead of the esports side of things, having last competed professionally in 2019. However, after an insane run in Fortnite solos, he seems to be looking for a new org. Ninja “calls” Nadeshot after Fortnite W Ninja’s won plenty of Fortnite matches in his time, no doubt about that. But, it’s not everyday that he pulls off the W and puts up more than 6,000 damage to players. “6,782 damage to players, with a 32 percent accuracy rating, in solos,” Ninja boasted after he downed his last opponent. “And I took 1,100 damage.” Feeling the rush of total victory, Ninja decided to call 100 Thieves boss Matthew ‘Nadeshot’ Haag about a brand new contract with the org. “Hold up, hold up, it’s time,” the streamer said as he pulled out his phone. “Ayo Nadeshot, I’m ready bro. 100 Thieves, I’m ready, gimme the contract. Alright, bet.” So, could we be seeing Ninja don a black and red jersey sometime in the near future? Even though the phone call to Nade was obviously a bit (sorry to spoil the fun), we won’t rule the possibility of it happening out completely. After all, when it comes to Ninja, you never know what might happen.

Ninja calls Fortnite’s Arena Mode “unplayable” ahead of World Cup Finals Ninja, Twitch / Epic GamesWhile many pro players have bemoaned the state of Fortnite’s competitive scene ahead of the World Cup Finals in July, one major name in the scene is speaking out on the topic in a big way. Popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins slammed Epic Games in a scathing Tweet on April 28, claiming that Fortnite’s Arena Mode is “unplayable” due to being unable to use the game’s streamer mode. “Arenas are unplayable with the streamer mode not working,” Ninja wrote. “Getting 10 people landing on me at the edge of the FIRST circle every single game. …please fix so I can actually play/practice.” Arenas are unplayable with the streamer mode not working. Getting 10 people landing on me at the edge of the FIRST circle every single game. @EpicGames @FortniteGame please fix so I can actually play/practice — Ninja (@Ninja) April 28, 2019 Fortnite’s Arena Mode was introduced in Season 8, essentially giving the game a ranked mode for competitive players wanting to practice. Collegiate pros quit Fortnite due to new updates Despite this addition to the title, Ninja is having a hard time liking the update – and he isn’t alone in his sentiments. Two collegiate Fortnite pros openly announced their retirement from the game during an on-stream interview on April 28, claiming that “Epic is kind of messing around a little bit with the way they’re balancing everything.” The stretched resolution debacle Fortnite’s Arena Mode isn’t the only update bothering competitive players, either; Epic Game’s decision to remove stretched resolution likewise saw ample backlash from pros, due to its major impact on the competitive scene. Fortnite’s stretched resolution rewarded players by allowing them a broader field of view, thus giving them an edge above those using native view – but Epic has firmly argued against keeping the mechanic, claiming that “The stretched characters and distorted views detract from Fortnite as an entertainment experience for all.” While Epic has also been known to introduce game-breaking updates just ahead of major competitive events, their statement on the matter in the April 26 Competitive Development Update appeared to hint that the game would not halt its “ever-evolving” nature for big tournaments. The Fortnite community is now speculating that the game’s Season 10 update might drop just ahead of the Fortnite World Cup Finals in July, in keeping with the game’s usual update cycle – prompting some pros to worry about their chances in the competition.

Ninja calls Epic Games mid-stream to get Fortnite hacker “taken out” Twitch: Ninja / Epic GamesTyler ‘Fortnite, calling up Epic Games themselves to try and get the cheater banned from the game. Ninja has had his fair share of issues with stream snipers and hackers in the past, and during his August 8 stream, the 28-year-old found himself in battle with yet another cheater. After getting blasted by an enemy using a Minigun, Ninja and teammate Malachi ‘Reverse2k’ Grenier had their suspicions about the legitimacy of their deaths, and after watching his gameplay for a few seconds, confirmed that he was definitely hacking. Following their deaths, the Michigan native sat in awe as the player blatantly cheated his way to more kills, flying around on a Driftboard with the Minigun in hand, performing wild flips while firing, but somehow always finding the head of enemies, even if he was facing the complete opposite direction. While many would just quit out and rue their misfortune, the Mixer star decided he was going to take action into his own hands, grabbing his phone and making a call to Epic Games about the problem. “I’m literally not leaving this game until this guy is banned,” the former Halo pro told his chat as he put his phone to his ear. “Don’t leave the game yet. Hey, it’s Tyler. There’s a hacker in my game who just killed me and my teammate. I’m staring at him right now, is there any way you can get someone to take care of business?” “I’m literally watching him. He’s running around with a Minigun and a hoverboard, and he’s hitting nothing but headshots. If you literally pull up Mixer right now, you’ll see definitive proof. I’ll make sure to send you the clips.” Ninja also reported him using the in-game system, in the hopes that those plus his call will be enough to get him banned. While the streamer had claimed that he wouldn’t leave the game until the cheater had been punished, he eventually decided to hop out and join a new one, so they could avoid playing with him again. Whether the player has been banned by Epic Games remains unknown, but it seems wise to avoid hacking in a game with Ninja, otherwise your name might be on his lips the next time he makes a call to the developers.

Ninja brings back ‘old ninja’ in epic Fortnite World Cup outburst Popular Twitch streamer Fortnite first blew up back in early 2018, although he has become slightly more lenient with himself as time has gone by. Read More: Halo 3 and H1Z1, Ninja spent a fair amount of his time in high-intensity competitive environments, and because of his skill in Fortnite, decided to compete in the online qualifiesr for the Fortnite World Cup, boasting a massive prize pool of over $40 million. For the initial weekend of the Fortnite World Cup’s online qualifying event, Ninja was streaming his attempt at qualifying for the Solo Online Open finals when he found himself in an intense battle with another player in-game. In the clip, Ninja eventually drops from the roof and gets the kill on the other player after a shaky start to the fight, and then let out a classic Ninja rant toward his opponent, clearly loosening up from his usual more child-friendly reactions. Many fans were shocked with Ninja’s outburst towards the other player because of his efforts to keep his Twitch streams ‘PG’ when Fortnite was initially released. Having said that, Ninja has still retained some more mature oriented streams, which he calls ‘Ninja after dark’ – signifying to kids (and their parents), that he might be a little more lax on cursing and calling out opponents. His decision to be largely curse-free on his regular streams did cause division in the community, with some arguing it was a form of ‘selling out’, but others simply believe it is the correct decision given his audience and ambitions for growth on the platform, to make himself as accessible as possible for viewers of all ages. –

Ninja breaks incredible Fortnite win record milestone Ninja/TwitchTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins is well known for breaking records on Twitch, but the American has also set an incredible record on the game he has become famous playing, Fortnite Battle Royale. The streamer rose to prominence on Twitch thanks to Fortnite, with the game propelling Blevins to the very top of Twitch, and even into traditional media like his appearance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon. While Ninja is notorious for his entertaining broadcasts which are always full of hilarious moments, it’s his skills on the popular battle royale title that got people talking on Thursday, December 27. Fans who watch his YouTube channel know that Ninja wins a lot of matches, but what you might not realize is that Ninja has become the first player to win 5000 Fortnite matches on PC. This is an incredible feat on its own, but it’s made even more impressive by the fact that Blevins has played 13,500 games of Fortnite, leaving the streamer with a win percentage of 37%, averaging one win every 3 games. Alongside this, the American also holds the record for most total kills across all platforms at 94.000, with his kill to death ration sitting at 11, meaning Ninja eliminates 11 enemies per game on average. While Ninja may be the most popular streamer on Twitch, he isn’t without his detractors. Blevins appeared on an episode of WIRED’s Autocomplete Interview series on December 26, which quickly became the most disliked edition of the series yet, something which fellow Fortnite streamer Brett ‘Dakotaz’ Hoffman called “ridiculous.” However, fans of the American have an exciting event to look forward to, as Ninja is hosting his very own New Years Eve party streaming live from Times Square in New York City.

Ninja breaks down why he’s radically changed his strategy for Fortnite Season 9 Ninja, Twitch / Epic GamesFortnite Battle Royale‘s Season 9 has forced him to change his strategy, explaining some of his new techniques during a Week 7 Fortnite World Cup qualifying match. The popular Twitch streamer, who has a huge following of over 14 million on the platform, was accused of hiding from opponents by some members of his chat during the May 26 broadcast. Regular viewers of his will know that he has always enjoyed the buzz of constant offense, going toe-to-toe with others in gunfights, and pushing other teams, but it looks as if Ninja has started to adapt his gameplay in order to give him a better chance of handling the current meta. “It’s not that I run from everybody,” Ninja explained, camped out in a building, editing windows to spy on enemies either side of him. “It’s that, if you don’t die in a fight, you make it to the late game where you get nine placement points and potential points if you win the game, which you don’t get if somebody kills you or if you get third partied.” Good builders have been provided with some counterplay in the form of the Drum Gun, which – despite efforts from Epic Games to nerf the weapon with the v9.01 update – still has a particularly useful high rate of fire to tear down structures. Perhaps that could be one reason why a more careful approach has been adopted by the streamer. The game has undoubtedly thrown more obstacles in the way of players looking to consistently make it to the latter stages of matches, and the streamer has been using this approach – specifically – to rack up more points in the Fortnite World Cup Online Open. He has been unable to qualify for the Fortnite World Cup though, even with a switch to a more measured approach. Fans of his will be hoping that he can qualify in Week 8’s Online Open, which will run between June 1-2. Whether or not he will continue to be a more measured player as he tries to qualify next time around remains to be seen, but the meta at the time will probably have a huge influence on that.

Ninja brands Fortnite squads as ‘boring’ after v8.20 patch – Dr Disrespect responds Top Fortnite player, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, is far from happy with the latest Fortnite update which saw the siphon mechanic removed. After being added to the default playlists back in Season 7, Epic Games opted to revert the changes in their latest Fortnite patch with the settings reserved only for their arena modes. This meant that players would no longer receive health and materials on elimination and would be unable to benefit from the 40% harvesting rate increase – making games far more tedious and long-winded. Furthermore, there is currently no option to play the arena mode as part of a squad, meaning playing with multiple friends forces you to use the old mechanics – something which Ninja has struggled to enjoy. Ninja tweeted: “Squads are so dumb and boring now.” Blevins also sarcastically mocked Epic’s decision on stream highlighting that players are still thirsting their opponents and players are still dying rapidly. In response to his tweet, fellow Twitch streamer – Dr Disrespect – joked that Ninja should stop complaining about the changes. “You’re such a whiny, bratty, complainer,” said Doc. “These developers know what they are doing.” However, Ninja had the last laugh after unearthing footage of Doc rage quitting while playing Fortnite admitting the game ‘sucked’ and he could no longer play it. While it’s no surprise at all to see The Doc sharing his rage over Fortnite, it’s become quite the rarity to see Ninja share in-depth thoughts and criticisms about the popular battle royale title. It’s no secret that even though Ninja’s popularity has waned in the last few months, he’s still one of the biggest names on Twitch, meaning that his opinions get spread out far and wide. One simply can’t ignore the sheer breadth of his reach in the online gaming space. Ninja might not be as outspoken as he once was when it comes to his negative opinions about Fortnite, but that perhaps makes what he does say hold even more weight given that it doesn’t come very often. Ninja’s tweets and comments about the recent patch has put even more pressure on Epic Games to revert the changes made to their default playlists with a host of top streamers also questioning their decisions. It’s true that Epic Games sometimes chooses to not listen to the vocal outcry of the Twitch and professional Fortnite scenes, the developer usually comes around on the major issues before long. Read More: Fortnite Season 8, Week 5 challenges and how to complete them – Pirate Camps, Race Track and more – As seen with the infamous planes that plagued the game during Season 7, Epic Games is likely to revert these changes at some point, but just how long it will take remains to be seen.

Ninja blasts Fortnite for catering to ‘unskilled’ players Mixer: Ninja/Epic GamesPopular Fortnite veteran Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has criticized Epic Games’ battle royale, arguing there are too many weapons that any player can use effectively. Ninja, like many other prominent content creators, has recently transitioned away from Fortnite in order to play other, newer titles. These include Valorant and Call of Duty: Warzone, both of which Blevins has streamed considerable amounts over the last few weeks. However, during an April 24 live stream, he made a return to Fortnite, but quickly grew frustrated with the state of the game after being eliminated by an opponent’s minigun. Playing alongside SypherPK – who has also criticized Fortnite of late – Ninja became annoyed after being eliminated by enemies spamming their way into his box. After the pair were killed, Sypher stated: “I think there’s just too many skill-less, spamming guns that reward bad players.” Ninja agreed, shouting: “I hate this f**king game. Switch on over to Fortnite to have some fun, first game [I] die to one of the sweatiest players I’ve seen in this f**king game, in a long time… Sypher has 150 shield, gets heavy sniped from 200 meters away, get’s knocked. Second guy, heavy snipes him, thirsts him, he’s dead. Launch pad over to me, minigun spray – it’s just so bad, that’s not fun. I don’t have fun.” Timestamp for Mobile Users: 0:25 “Can they remove the f**king heavy snipers from this game?” the Mixer star continued. “Let me tell you two guns that never should have returned to this game – heavy snipers and miniguns… I hate I complain so much, but why is it in the game!” While complaints regarding the heavy sniper and miniguns are nothing new, Ninja expanded on his frustrations and stated that their most annoying aspect is the lack of skill they take to use. Read More: $2,000,000 FNCS Invitational announced – “I guarantee you there’s not a single person that dies to that gun,” he finished, “that’s like ‘Oh, very skillful, that guy actually sh*t on me.’ Like no, it’s brain-dead dude, it’s so dumb.” If an unskilled player gets a lucky shot with heavy sniper, it tends to result in an instant knock. If they managed this with one of the game’s old 105-damage bolt-action sniper rifles, most players would be left with some health and could heal up and fight back. Similarly, the minigun’s large magazine and fast rate-of-fire mean players can fire continuously to break down an enemy’s defenses, as opposed to a different gun, where players could counter-build. Epic has not publicly responded to fan complaints over the minigun or heavy sniper. However, since they stopped publishing patch notes in Chapter 2, many players have grown used to a lack of clarity surrounding changes and their decisions. Ninja, though, wants something to change.

Ninja explains why he believes FaZe Jarvis shouldn’t be permabanned Fortnite, and suggested Epic Games should treat the situation differently because of “favoritism.” The young FaZe Clan member was slapped with a permanent ban from the battle royale on November 3, following the star releasing a series of videos in which he showed off the use of an aimbot on his alt account. Many in the Fortnite community have already weighed in on whether or not Jarvis should accept his punishment, with many calling for the young star to be unbanned or have his sentence reduced considering it was his first-time offense. One major advocate for the banned FaZe player is Ninja, who leaped to Jarvis’ defense when asked what he thought about the situation during his November 4 broadcast. Ninja said he believes Epic’s punishment was heavyhanded, and that Jarvis should only be barred from playing the game for six months or a year. He also suggested the FaZe member should be treated “a little differently” to normal hacking cases considering Fortnite is his career. “He’s still super young, so I think he’s just a stupid kid making a stupid decision, and didn’t really think about it,” Ninja explained. “It wasn’t a tournament, wasn’t a Cash Cup, it should be maybe a six-month ban from competitive. Permanent though?” The Mixer megastar said that he “liked the banhammer,” and agreed that Jarvis deserves to be punished for showing off aimbots to hundreds of thousands of potential viewers, but said because the banned player was a content creator, he shouldn’t be permanently barred. “Without your content creators, there’s a negative impact on your game,” he said. “I think (what he did) was incredibly stupid, but a permanent ban is just silly. What else is he going to play? He has to transition over from one of the most popular games, and one that’s made him skill-wise, and career-wise, and now he has to play another game.” Ninja also doubled-down on the idea that Fortnite’s content stars should have lesser bans to “kids that hack just to hack,” and reiterated that it had been Jarvis’ very first offense when he uploaded the videos of the aimbot-games. “There’s a difference between a content creator who has millions of subscribers, who then gets banned from what makes him money, and some kid who is just a piece of shit who has zero followings, zero money from gaming,” Ninja continued. “You ban that kid, nothing happens. You ban Jarvis, the stakes are different, it should be handled differently… let’s stop acting like there’s no favoritism in the world, there is.” For mobile users, the video segment begins at 0:28. Ninja compared his options to another high-profile banning case, which saw Tyler ‘Tyler1’ Steinkamp permanently banned from League of Legends for repeated toxic offenses. Riot Games employees were ordered to “ban on sight,” leaving T1 hiding his accounts. “He could do what Tyler1 did, and only do stuff offline, and then upload videos,” the Mixer star suggested. “Listen, I don’t think anyone here should feel bad for him, I’m not trying to emphasize. I’m trying to be realistic. There should be favoritism for content creators.” The Mixer star then pivoted to comparing Jarvis’ ban to another controversy that had arisen on YouTube in recent times, when entertainment star Logan Paul escaped scot-free despite filming dead bodies in the Japanese suicide forest during one of his blogs. “There are people that have done worse things and haven’t been banned,” Ninja said. “Logan Paul literally filmed someone hanging in a forest and his channel didn’t get banned and he’s been perfectly fine. In that aspect, he was a YouTuber, a big one, and he didn’t get banned. YouTube decided that he was big enough to not get banned.” Whether or not Epic will listen to Ninja remains to be seen, but he does hold a lot of pull in the Fortnite community considering how many followers he has on Mixer, and how much of a mainstream name he has become in the past few years. So far, Epic has yet to comment on the ban, both regarding its permanent nature, and whether there’s a chance to appeal, but considering the community outcry following the banhammer crashing down, we can probably expect one soon.

Ninja believes Epic Games made secret change to Storm Circles in Fortnite BR Epic Games / ESPNSuperstar streamer Tyler ‘Ninja‘ Blevins believes Epic Games have made a change in Fortnite Battle Royale without letting anyone know. As is standard in almost every battle royale, Fortnite BR features a mechanic called ‘The Storm,’ which is what brings players closer and closer to each other as the match goes on until there’s only one player standing. The Storm has corresponding safe zones, commonly referred to as Storm Circles, which are supposed to be generated randomly every match and grow smaller within the radius of the original zone. However, one person who does not believe that these Circles are being randomly placed, at least recently, is Ninja, who contends that Epic have made some sort of secret change to the algorithm. Playing with his duo Reverse2k, the star streamer found himself in a match where the first zone was around Polar Peak, which apparently was exactly what he had been expecting. “Hey guys, look, what do you know, look at the zone!” he said. “I swear to you, we used to get zone every other game. Most games, like 80% of our games, we had zone. Now it’s Polar Peak every single time.” As for why he thinks that Epic have made such an adjustment on the low, the former Luminosity man thinks it has to do with some sort of upcoming event. “You want to know why?” he said. “Because guess what – a live event is happening soon, I guarantee it. And they want people over there more.” Ninja might be onto something Whether Ninja turns out to be right or not, it’s not far-fetched to think that Epic would make changes in the game without saying a word, considering that players have accused them of doing exactly that on numerous occasions in the past. Back in November, many believed that a secret nerf had been administered to the SMGs in the game, while numerous players came out in January claiming that Epic had secretly added skill-based matchmaking into the core default modes. Furthermore, the Twitch star’s reasoning also makes perfect sense – there is overwhelming speculation among the player-base that a live event will soon be taking place on Polar Peak, so Epic wanting to drag attention to is as much as possible would seem to be within the realm of possibility.

Ninja believes Epic Games “hates” him as he wants another Fortnite skin & event Epic Games / Twitch: NinjaPopular Twitch streamer and Fortnite competitor Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has explained why he thinks Epic Games “hates” him, as other prominent community figures enjoy events and exclusive in-game skins. As far as Fortnite content creators, none are better known that Ninja. The former Halo pro accumulated over 17 million followers on Twitch thanks to his top-tier gameplay and fiery personality, seeing him remain the most followed creator on the platform in 2022. He was also the first Fortnite content creators to get his own in-game skin, an honor which has since been bestowed on Loserfruit, Marshmello, Lachlan and others. However, things appear to have soured between the 30-year-old and Epic Games since his Icon Series skin dropped in game, with an April Twitch broadcast seeing Ninja lift the lid on his relationship with the Fortnite developers. Asked by one viewer when his skin will be available again in game, Ninja said that Epic continue to push the release date back and that he feels they “hate” him now. He explained that Epic have pushed its return back and that, paired with a lack of communication over tournaments, has led to him feeling hated by the Fortnite devs. “Yes, it should be coming back into the Item Shop,” he said. “It was supposed to be on the 11th [of April] so it should be soon. This month or next month maybe. I’ll let you guys know when I know… I kind of feel like Epic hates me right now, truly. I feel like I’m kinda getting shafted. I didn’t have an offer, or at least I don’t know if I was reached out to to participate in any of these cups that a lot of these people are running.” He continued: “I don’t know if it’s because they already did Ninja Battles with me and they’ve already done something and they’re just trying to expand and support other content creators. But, yano, we were advertising for like a month that the skin was coming out on the eleventh and they just moved it… I want another variant bro. I would love another Ninja variant with like different hair, different styles.” Whether Epic have indeed chosen to pursue relations with other creators over Ninja is not clear, but he summarised that he’s “more sad than mad”. Given what Ninja had to say, though, it does seem likely we’ll see his Icon Series skin back in the game’s store at some point soon.

Ninja bans ZexRow from Fortnite events after controversial interview Red Bull / Twitch: ZexRowTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has banned 19-year-old Anthony ‘ZexRow’ Colandro from future Ninja Battle events after a controversial and curse-filled interview in the very first broadcast. ‘Ninja Battles featuring Fortnite’ was announced on May 28. The brand new event spans six weeks with $80,000 up for grabs each time around. While some of the biggest names in the scene are ready to get involved, one pro player has already found themselves barred from the competition. Team SoloMid’s ZexRow took home the first-week win with 59 points, but his post-game interview immediately landed him in hot water. Shortly after a controversial response, the pro has been barred from all future Ninja Battles. Following his team’s victory in the first week of the event, ZexRow was interviewed in front of nearly 15,000 live viewers on Ninja’s Mixer stream. He was also broadcasting his perspective on his own Twitch channel at the time. When asked for final comments he unloaded a curse-ridden barrage of insults to all others in the competition. “Everyone that didn’t place in top 10 can suck my d***. They’re f***ing s****ers. I don’t know why they talk s***, they’re actually also dogs*** and braindead.” Immediately regretting his outburst, ZexRow took to Twitter and issued an apology. “Forgot parents watch, I’m sorry,” he said. “Congrats on your first and last Ninja Battles placement,” Ninja quickly responded. Seemingly blocking the pro from any future weeks of competition. The Mixer streamer didn’t take kindly to the insults hurled at fellow pros and content creators involved in the tournament. As a result, it’s clear that ZexRow will not be invited back for the remaining five weeks of Ninja Battles. “I am actually really sorry about that,” he later expanded. “It was a really bad lapse in judgement and I didn’t think in the moment and forgot that there [were] kids watching, and even so it was too far.” He went on to post a Twitlonger apologizing again to Ninja, the tournament organizers and the fans watching. Many in the community flamed ZexRow for his statements, some even pushing for the pro to be dropped from his organization Team SoloMid. “It was a big mistake but I’ve made a lot of those,” he said. “I’ll ask them if I can leave.” Only time will tell, however, if today’s actions will indeed leave the Fortnite pro orgless. Week 2 of the Ninja Battles event will be back on June 4 at 12 PM PST.

Ninja asks Fortnite players to be “honest” in push for aim assist nerf Twitter: Ninja / Epic Games / PixabayTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins has had enough. He says he “can’t do anything,” but the community can. He’s rallying Fortnite players — specifically high-level controller users— to demand Epic nerfs aim assist on PC and bring players back to mouse and keyboard. Fortnite controller players have come under intense scrutiny from the community. Streamers often complain about them when they get beamed in-game. In tournaments, lobbies on PC are dominated by controller players. The debate has always come down to the aim assist benefit controller players get when playing on PC. While on console it can be an even playing field, on PC, the controller aim assist has been likened to an “aimbot” by players like Ninja. However, without anything being done on Epic’s end to nerf it, the player base is growing tired. After this week’s FNCS Invitational was once again dominated by controller players, Ninja posted a video on Twitter asking the community to rally together to create change. “It’s going to be up to credible, top competitive controller players who have a huge influence to reach out to Epic and be vocal about [aim assist],” he said. “We all, as a unit, want it to be more balanced. “Controller aim assist [on PC] is performing way better than it does on Xbox and PlayStation. People have to be vocal about it, especially the players that are using it.” Bunch of Fortnite gamers talking about controller aim assist (on pc not console), wanted to leave my 2 cents. Please watch the whole video before commenting or leaving hate. pic.twitter.com/MnuCAF4Ju9 — Ninja (@Ninja) May 18, 2020 Ninja has stuck to mouse and keyboard while others like Fortnite World Cup solos champion Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf made the switch to controller earlier in the year (albeit briefly). A former Halo pro, Ninja would know his way around the sticks, but he believes that in its current state, it’s too strong. “If we get more people speaking up about it, and being honest about it, we can actually get a nerf or a change,” he said. “[We] can make it more balanced and healthy.” The Mixer star didn’t criticize the players who swapped to controller, but rather the system itself that Epic has developed. “Controller players are amazing, [there’s] incredible talent. I just want everyone to be happy and I want the game to thrive.” Ninja’s criticism of Fortnite’s controller aim assist stems back to over a year ago now, but few changes have been implemented. Since World Cup 2019, and then the turn into Chapter 2, more pros have hung up the mouse and keyboard and picked up the sticks. With Season 3 on the horizon, players might see some changes coming to aim assist. We will just have to wait and see if Epic has something in-store, or if more pros will make the jump.

Ninja apologizes after falsely rage reporting a Fortnite player for stream sniping Ninja became upset after an elimination and reported a player for allegedly stream sniping him. However, the player in question claimed he did nothing wrong and became worried that he would be banned for no reason, forcing Ninja to publicly apologize. The incident started after Ninja was eliminated and teammate Dr. Lupo said “watch for the emote.” Lupo was apparently referencing a typical reaction of players who emote when they see their spectator count go up. But when the player did emote, Ninja interpreted that as stream sniping, thinking the emote was because the player heard Dr. Lupo telling him to. Emoting after an elimination is a common reaction, but Ninja called the player an idiot and immediately reported him for stream sniping. “Stream sniping” is when someone gains an advantage by watching a streamer’s broadcast while playing against them. It is the most common in Battle Royale games, where information on a player’s location is crucial. Ninja said, “I’m going out of my way to get this guy banned.” He also pulled out his phone, seemingly going around the in-game reporting system to directly contact someone from Epic. He did not cool down after reporting the player, instead choosing to call out viewers in the chat who disagreed with him. The player in question was identified as IcyFive and became nervous that his account would be banned; he tweeted he did nothing wrong, even claiming to have a video that proves it. @Ninja @DrLupo I will show you that I did not stream snipe. I don’t wanna try and gain “”clout”” from this. But I will upload it if you really think I stream snipped. I emoted cause there were 6 people watching me and I lasered you. I didn’t stream snipe you. pic.twitter.com/xPGDSpHpIJ — IcyFive/51L (@51LYouTube) November 11, 2018 “I emoted cause there were 6 people watching me and I lasered you. I didn’t stream snipe you,” said IcyFive. Read More: New Mounted Turret Item coming soon to Fortnite Dr. Lupo distanced himself from the incident immediately, saying he did not believe the player was stream sniping and that the emote was an expected reaction when seeing spectators go up after an elim. When pressured as to why he did not question Ninja’s behavior, Dr. Lupo explained himself. You ever have a friend that goes on a rant? You probably know it’ll just make it worse if you try to go against it. Easiest course of action for not creating drama all over the place (worse than it is now) was to just let him blow off steam and move on. — DrLupo (@DrLupo) November 11, 2018 I don’t condone it. You just want me to do something that I have no responsibility in doing. It’s not my job to police him. — DrLupo (@DrLupo) November 11, 2018 Ninja offered up an apology, saying he was sorry but simultaneously blamed IcyFive for “milking it” and “playing the victim.” Epic will never ban people for no reason even if I say anything.. you assuming they do is naive. Stop playing the victim, you aren’t getting banned, I am sorry. Stop milking it. — Ninja (@Ninja) November 11, 2018

Ninja announces winners of his Creative World Cup trickshotting contest Ninja / Epic GamesSuperstar streamer Tyler ‘Ninja‘ Blevins has revealed the winners of his Fortnite Battle Royale trickshotting contest, all of whom will now be attending the Creative World Cup in July. Announced on May 16, Ninja’s Creative Trials required players to try and hit the most impressive trickshots they could muster on a custom built map in Creative mode. All of the submissions were judged based on various types of criteria, including number of targets hit, distances of targets hit, and overall creativity of the trickshot. On May 28, after all the entry clips were looked at and assessed, Ninja finally revealed the the three winners to be: TalDak, FaZe Clan’s Kaz, and TacoWithAWeirdT. All three winners will now receive a stamped ticket to New York City, where they will participate in the finals of the Fortnite World Cup Creative event. The first winner, Taldak, nailed what he decided to call a “six piece IRL backflip Hoverboard Rift trickshot,” which was truly nothing short of spectacular. Using a combination of the Driftboard, Rift-To-Go, and a Grappler, he nailed an insane sequence of shots and moves that saw him eliminate six targets before touching the ground, including a relatively long snipe. 6 Piece IRL Backflip Hoverboard Rift Trickshot #NinjaCreativeTrials Twitch – TalDak723 YouTube – TalDak Epic Username – Twitch TalDak723 pic.twitter.com/QUUdOiWVGJ— Talon roberts (@Taldak723) May 23, 2019 The next winner, TacoWithAWeirdT, pulled off an equally impressive sequence of moves and shots, albeit without using a vehicle in the process. Taco’s trickshot routine was based around his entire inventory, which was comprised of a Hunting Rifle, two Flintlock pistols, a Boom Bow, and a Grappler. What put the icing on the cake was the nicely timed emote right at the end of the clip, as the player hit the ground after hitting the final shot. The creative server may be shutting down in 60 minutes, but I only need 25 seconds! @Ninja #NinjaCreativeTrials Ign – Ƭaco pic.twitter.com/0zOBejOauE— Ƭaco (@TacoWithAWeirdT) May 24, 2019 Perhaps the least surprising winner of the three was FaZe Clan’s Kaz, who kicked off his routine by launching himself from a Pirate Cannon onto a Driftboard that sat waiting high above. Using extremely high sensitivity, Kaz was able to nail down some very impressive moves around the course, hitting some expert shots with his Boom Bow. While the entire clip was spellbinding, the best moment may have been when he swapped his Boom Bow for a floating Hunting Rifle while in midair, followed up with a double headshot using the rifle and a Hand Cannon. My submission for the #NinjaCreativeTrials Tried something a little different with some snowmen and a weapon pickup! #FaZeUp pic.twitter.com/pnl0IIiDIu — FaZe Kaz (@Kazify) May 24, 2019 You can watch Ninja’s full video below to see his reactions to the winning submissions, in addition to him judging numerous other clips that were sent to him. Fortnite World Cup – Creative The Creative World Cup will be part of the overall Fortnite World Cup festivities that will be held July 26-28 in New York City. The overall prize pool for the finals will be $3 million, and to get the finals, players must first qualify via one of the five different Creative Trials. Each of the five Trials will produce three winners, which means that a grand total of 15 players will advance to the finals in New York.

Ninja announces New Years Eve Fortnite event in Times Square on panel at TwitchCon In the closing minutes of Ninja’s panel with Twitch CEO Emmett Shear at TwitchCon, Ninja announced a new Fortnite event taking place on New Year’s Eve. Not a ton of information was disclosed with the initial announcement, but this event seems to be similar to Ninja’s Fortnite all-nighter in Chicago over the summer. The event will run from 4 PM to 4 AM on New Year’s Eve and will be held in Times Square alongside the famous ball drop. According to Ninja, the event was Red Bull’s idea and he was immediately on board. “New Year’s Eve, staying up until Midnight was one of my favorite things as a kid,” Ninja said on stage after the announcement. “I felt like there wasn’t anything for gamers. I didn’t watch the ball drop when I turned 17, 18 years old, I just gamed all night, but there was never a main massive event where gamers on Twitch could come together.” Just announced at #twitchcon:@Ninja and friends will host a special New Year’s Eve stream, live from Times Square. New year countdowns are out. New year yeets are in. pic.twitter.com/uvQ1jC1hhe — Twitch (@Twitch) October 26, 2018 Now Ninja is in a spot to create that event, so he did. We will update as more information about the event becomes available. Below is the full VOD of the 30-minute panel where Ninja and Shear talk about what they would do if they switched places for a day and why Battle Royale has been so successful for streamers, among other topics. Watch TwitchCon 2018 – Glitch Theater from Twitch on www.twitch.tv

Ninja and TimTheTatman discuss lag issues in Fortnite’s Fall Skirmish and why Friday Fortnite was better for spectators Twitter/@timthetatmanThe Fall Skirmish is the second iteration of Epic Games’ competitive series, with $10 million in total on the line, but Ninja and TimTheTatman think that the lag issues and spectator problems need serious attention. Comparing the Skirmish tournaments to KEEMSTAR’s ‘Friday Fortnite’ tournaments, they both agreed that from a spectator standpoint, Friday Fortnite is a better format. The Skirmish events are full developer supported and funded, but the use of the ‘spectator mode’ could be causing the lag problems that plagued the first weekend of the Fall Skirmish. Friday Fortnite tournaments were simply played on regular public servers, whereas the Skirmish event is played on a private server hosted by Epic, but Ninja and Tim don’t think it is as good a spectator experience. More: TSM HighDistortion calls 100 Thieves’ Kenith a “scumbag” for bad sportsmanship during Fall Skirmish Fortnite tournament – Tim explains “I feel like Fortnite Friday, from a viewers perspective, was probably more entertaining to watch.” Although Ninja agreed, he says Epic will never consider scrapping the Skirmish events to allow Friday Fortnite to run instead, and he thinks that it is “really unfortunate”. Ninja went on to explain that the only logical explanation for the lag was the use of spectator mode, as the private servers were much more laggy than standard public games. “The only reason I can think, why it was laggier, was the spectator mode. Because literally, we played six games on this custom server, with 100 people, and the entire time me and Sypher were like this does not feel good.” KEEMSTAR had originally planned to bring back Friday Fortnite events after the conclusion of the Summer Skirmish, but before he could officially announce, Epic revealed the Fall Skirmish, which ruined his plans. The YouTuber and host of Drama Alert has since said that he will look into other possible tournaments, suggesting a ‘Monday Blackout’ event, for when the upcoming battle royale mode in Black Ops 4 is released.

Ninja and Tfue get massive Twitch boost from Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 2 update Tfue, Ninja, Epic GamesOG Fortnite Twitch streamers Ninja and Tfue have seen a resurgence since the release of Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 2 which invigorated interest in the Battle Royale for removing building from the game. Epic Game’s Fortnite is entering a bit of a renaissance born from the company’s decision to remove building entirely from the game – at least for a brief period. On top of that, Chapter 3 Season 2 was released with a host of movement changes and new weapons, but it’s the end of building that has got the community raving. While not everyone is in love with no-build Fortnite, it certainly has helped bring back players who left the game long ago. Fortnite’s original star streamers Tfue and Ninja have returned to the game, and have seen their numbers skyrocket. Ninja and Tfue’s big return to Fortnite Since Chapter 3 Season 2 of Fornite officially dropped, the pair of streamers have streamed a ton of the game and have raked in the views. According to stat tracking site sullygnome, Ninja has only streamed Fortnite since March 20 and has brought his average viewership to over 16k for the first time in over a year. Despite still being the most followed channel on all of Twitch, Ninja hasn’t had massive viewership when streaming games other than Fortnite, but with the game’s resurgence, he’s seen many fans return. Tfue has also gotten a nice bump since the introduction of the no-build mode. The 24-year-old has streamed over 48 hours of Fortnite gameplay since release and brought his average viewership back over 11k, a massive 40% increase from his previous average. Despite becoming a more Apex Legends-focused-streamer over the last year, his return to Fortnite has helped his viewership nicely. Fortnite is what helped launch both Tfue and Ninja’s Twitch stardom and now, their return has brought them back to the top of the charts. Though, who knows how long that’ll last.

Ninja and Tfue frustrated by “secret” buff in latest Fortnite update Ninja / Tfue / Epic GamesAfter the latest 12.10 update to Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2, numerous players, including streaming stars Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney, are getting very annoyed by an apparently unmentioned buff to some of game’s newest additions. The new loot vaults offer an exciting way for Fortnite players to jumpstart their chances at a Victory Royale – but with several henchmen and a unique boss guarding the golden goods, it makes the heist challenging for even the most talented squads in the game. However, successfully getting in and out of the vaults has supposedly gotten harder, without even a mention of this change in the patch notes of the latest update. Yet, two of the most popular avid Fornite players are insistent that Epic Games have buffed the henchmen that patrol the areas outside the vaults. “Anyone sick of these bots? I just got aim-botted right now,” the star of Mixer said on stream after getting peppered by an alerted henchman. “They buffed the henchmen,” he relayed to his group of SypherPK, Reverse2k, and FaZe Funk. His teammates agreed with him “100 percent,” saying that they were “getting lasered all day.” Skip to 0:46 for mobile users. Tfue also had his own struggles with the boss Midas, as well as other AI enemies at The Agency. This claim has been made by more than just some frustrated pros, as players at all levels have noticed a huge increase in AI accuracy as of late. With henchmen now carrying Heavy Snipers, they’ve only become more dangerous. Players are scratching their heads as to why the AI henchmen’s aim was so high to begin with, and why it’s allegedly been increased even more. The assumption is that because of the amount of high-quality loot that is located at the vaults, Epic wanted to increase the difficulty of getting to those weapons. However, players are confused as to why the supposed change wasn’t included in patch notes. Players are also complaining that the improved aim only makes the new locations more chaotic and frustrating, as they now have to deal with the AI as much as, or even more so, than other players.

Ninja and SypherPK want new Fortnite feature to “ban” stream snipers Twitch: Ninja / Twitter: SypherPKAfter a string of deaths to alleged stream snipers, Fortnite duo Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan have come up with a new system that they believe could help ban offenders and make the game more enjoyable for content creators. Since Fortnite shot to mainstream popularity in early 2018, content creators have had one major complaint about the game that never seems to go away: stream snipers. People who purposely seek out streamers to kill them in-game, Fortnite have devised several systems to try and stop them, but thus far none have managed to completely get the job done. Now, this idea might be a start. After several deaths to the same stream snipers, Ninja and Sypher were discussing possible routes that Epic Games could take to prevent it, when Sypher came up with an idea that makes a lot of sense. “I have the perfect solution,” he said. “You get killed by somebody that you think is a stream sniper, and instead of reporting, you can click ‘avoid this player.’ Then for 30 days, that person can’t get into your games.” He went on to clarify that if after 30 days you think they’re doing it again, you just click avoid again and get another 30 days free of the opponent, which would be especially helpful against repeat offenders. Obviously this isn’t a flawless idea, but Ninja had one way to make sure the system would be used properly. “It would have to be only for streamers,” he said. “If you open that up to everybody, players can do that every time they get sh*t on by somebody who’s really good.” That is probably a fair assumption, and although there are several issues that would have to be ironed out if it was ever implemented, as Ninja says, Sypher might be onto something with this idea. Needless to say, most streamers definitely want something done about stream snipers – so have Sypher and Ninja just found the solution?

Ninja and SypherPK reveal how to remove bloom in Fortnite Ninja / Epic GamesStreaming stars Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan found a method that essentially negates the bloom in Fortnite, which makes a gun’s bullet spread expand off-target. Fortnite’s bloom can make or break a gunfight. When builds are growing and the fight gets even faster to the eye, players need to be taking advantage of those rare openings they get on an opponent. But even Ninja was dumbfounded to find how easy it was to basically get rid of the fire-effect, letting him spray down a mid-ranged opponent with a flurry of accurate bullets. Loading into the practice mode with Sypher, Ninja was testing out two different methods of firing an SMG. One method used the mouse and keyboard (KBM) that he regularly plays with: the other was a controller he’d hooked up to his computer. “No joke, I’m going to go a little hybrid bro,” Ninja quipped. “Just give me the controller.” The first attempt was with his native KBM, which wasn’t much different from his regular games. He’d shoot at Sypher and the bloom would take the spray up and over the player’s head. Instinctively, Ninja would correct his aim as it flew over his model, so for the next spray, he didn’t control it to show how it would fly away. “[The bloom] was going all up and down,” Ninja said. “It’s recoiling all over the place with my mouse and keyboard.” Next, he switched over to the controller he had plugged into his PC. That’s where the difference in bloom and the hassle to control it dwindled almost instantly. To note, aim-assist on controllers has been a touchy topic between those who care to pay it attention; but this instance showed how bloom in Fortnite can be almost non-existent by simply picking up a controller. The streamer was speechless at the difference. When Sypher suggested if the Fortnite devs should just make that bloom standard on KBM, Ninja thought it “was a great start” to balance out the two playing methods. While there are advantages to both styles of play, the streamers’ were surprised to see such a stark contrast in Fortnite’s bloom since one method nullifies its effect further contributing to the ongoing debate between controller and KBM users.

Ninja and SypherPK explain how Fortnite’s SBMM can be greatly improved Ninja / Epic GamesWith skill-based matchmaking under fire in Fortnite, Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and SypherPK examined how softening it could be a simple improvement. Skill-based matchmaking has been one of the hottest topics in battle royale titles recently. Most recently, Call of Duty: Warzone fans have joined Apex Legends players in mass dissatisfaction with the feature’s implementation. And, after months of criticism from Fortnite’s playerbase, Epic Games reacted by removing SBMM from its Squads mode this past week. While streamers like Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney were hype about the removal, Ninja and SypherPK took some time to examine why it is not the perfect solution. After stomping a squad with a player rocking a default skin, Ninja couldn’t help but remark on the removal of SBMM: “Do you think this is a good trade-off? If a lot of really good people start playing squads again, it’s going to be really, really hard for bad players to get wins.” And Sypher vehemently agreed, noting that he thinks the change “still has a lot of issues because “it can get out of hand really, really fast”—with the examples of streamers already jumping solo into squads and “dropping 40-bombs and stuff.” Both eventually came to the same conclusion, that SBMM is important to maintaining reasonable competition but that it should be softened and made more dynamic so that queue times are kept short while lobbies don’t get fully sweaty and full of campers playing like it’s a monied tournament. As Sypher expanded, “you can still have skill-based, but it needs to be a lot softer than what it once was … there needs to be certain ranges.” And, as for the possibility that lightened SBMM still makes life hard for new players, both agree that there “needs to be a mode where completely new players are in their own matchmaking system until they reach a certain level.” With Ninja specifying that this should be an “open, easy lobby and training area for trash and, not even trash, for brand-new players.” At the moment, SBMM has been removed entirely or extremely relaxed in squads, and while that has given players some diversity in options, it’s not ideal. The Fortnite pro commented that, since the game’s playerbase is mostly amateur, removing SBMM is “ruining more people’s fun.” Game developers are notoriously secretive about their matchmaking algorithms, with Overwatch and League of Legends being prime examples of games that visibly rank their players to ideally even out playing fields. Using wins, kills and other metrics, developers are able to gauge how skilled a player is and put them against those that are at similar levels. But those effects are less debilitating at higher levels in MOBA-esque games, since top players will simply stick more closely to the meta. In a battle royale, however, players are forced into lobbies where many are cautiously camping areas to maximize their placement. Since that risk-averse playstyle is less fun, there needs to be a way to compromise between the enjoyment of high- and low-skill players. Perhaps simply softening SBMM provides that compromise.

Ninja stunned as major bug ruins match in Friday Fortnite tournament Epic Games/Twitch: NinjaPopular streamer and Fortnite Battle Royale superstar Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, and his duo partner Malachi ‘Reverse2k’ Greiner, were the victims of an unfortunate glitch as they played in the returning Friday Fortnite tournament. Ninja and Reverse have been duo partners for a while now, regularly competing in the World Cup Qualifiers and performing strongly, but are yet to officially qualify for the July tournament. May 31 saw the return of Daniel ‘KEEMSTAR’ Keem’s Friday Fortnite tournaments, as a host of prominent streamers took to challenging one another. Ninja and Reverse were playing against SypherPK and HighDistortion in the Losers’ Semi-Finals when the glitch happened. The duo had split up in an effort to maximize their kills, when Reverse was eliminated in Pleasant Park. Ninja came in to clean up the mess, and went to get his partner’s ‘Reboot Card’. However, the card had glitched and was stuck in the ground, where it could not be recovered. “I don’t see your – dude you’re in the ground,” said Ninja. “I can’t, I can’t. You’re in the ground dude. You’re literally in the ground I can’t get you. I swear to God.” Reboot Cards were added to the game on April 10, and allow players to respawn teammates who have been completely eliminated from games. The idea matches rival battle royale Apex Legends, which sees ‘banners’ dropped as teammates are eliminated, that can be taken to beacons to bring them back into the match. The tournament itself was a resounding success, with KEEMSTAR tweeting that tournament’s return pulled in over 10 million unique viewers. It was won by NRG Esport’s MrSavage and Benjyfishy, with Ninja and Reverse placing 3rd, but not before a controversial moment occurred. Despite going on to win the game and progress to the Losers’ Final, Ninja and Reverse could undoubtedly have been cost by the glitch, which will need a quick fix, particularly with World Cup Qualifiers on-going.

Ninja and Marshmello Win the $3M Fortnite Pro-Am Celebrity Tournament – Recap, Final Placements, VOD Rebroadcast, and More! Popular Twitch streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and EDM producer and DJ Christopher ‘Marshmello’ Comstock have won the first ever Fortnite Pro-Am Celebrity Tournament on June 12th. With the victory, the pair got their very own majestic Golden Pickaxe trophy and, more importantly, secured the $1,000,000 grand prize for a charity of their choice. After two warm-up matches were played, everyone’s attention and focus turned to the third and final match, where $3 million in charity prizes were on the line. Entering the final stages of the match, Ninja and Marshmello were both alive and had an advantage of their two remaining opponents – popular streamers Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop and ‘KittyPlays’ – both of whom were on their own. Although he managed to eliminated Kitty, CouRage’s 7 health and low position had him at an insurmountable disadvantage, and the winning pair took care of business to clinch the victory. Prior to the third and final match, two matches were also played as a chance for all the players to warm up individually and together with their teammates. The first match was in Solo mode and pitted all 100 participants against each other. Popular YouTuber ‘NoahJ456’ defeated Team Solary pro Fortnite player ‘Kinstaar’ in an epic 1v1 gunfight to claim the victory. A launchpad, a rocket, and a dream! @NoahJ456 locks down the Game 1 win against @Kinstaar92i at the #FortniteProAm pic.twitter.com/DFhv8jiZfI — Fortnite (@FortniteGame) June 13, 2018 The second warm-up match was in the Duos Mode and featured everyone playing with their assigned teammate as each of the 50 duos looked to build chemistry ahead of the final match. This time Kinstaar was able to clutch out the victory as he and his partner – UFC fighter and OpTic Gaming member Sean O’Malley – were able to overtake Ninja to gut out a hard-earned win. .@SugaSeanMMA‘s strategy for future games GG’s as him and @Kinstaar92i get that Victory Royale at the #FortniteProAm! #Greenwall : https://t.co/McLtTbK5wt pic.twitter.com/Zu0e6Liqzl — OpTicUpdate (@OpTicUpdate) June 13, 2018 The 2v2 Fortnite Pro-Am teamed up 50 of the biggest names in the Fortnite gaming community with 50 well-known celebrities who enjoy playing the game, including a variety of musicians, rappers, athletes and more. Aside from the Golden Pickaxe trophy, the tournament also had whopping $3 million prize pool, all of which will go towards various charities of the players’ choices. The event’s casting crew was also very much star-studded, featuring longtime esports commentator and host Alex ‘Goldenboy’ Mendez, popular YouTubers Justine ‘ijustine’ Ezarik and Kassie ‘Gloom,’ and well-known Twitch streamer Ben ‘DrLupo’ Lupo. Read More: Epic Games Announces the 2018-19 Competitive Season for Fortnite, Including the 2019 World Cup Event – Here are the final top-10 placements for the money match of the Fortnite Pro-Am Celebrity Tournament, along with a breakdown of the awarded prize pool. Here is the full VOD rebroadcast of the competition as it was streamed live on the official Fortnite Twitch channel Watch Fortnite Celebrity Pro-Am | #FortniteProAm | June 12, 3:30PM PT from Fortnite on www.twitch.tv

Ninja and Mark Hamill team up for mystery upcoming Fortnite announcement Streaming star Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins is teaming up with Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill, for a special promotion featuring new content for hit battle royale title Fortnite. Epic Games and Disney have already worked together to bring exclusive Star Wars cosmetics into Fortnite. Now, perhaps the game’s most popular personality has teamed up Star Wars’ most recognizable face to announce new content coming to the battle royale title. I had the pleasure of spending some time with THE LEGEND @HamillHimself. Can’t wait to show you what we’ve got planned next Thursday with @Xbox and @FortniteGame !! #XboxPartner #bucketlist pic.twitter.com/K406c9wy0C — Ninja (@Ninja) December 15, 2019 The two didn’t go into much detail about what we can expect, but we’re just days away from finding out. Since Hamill is taking part, it certainly seems like a good bet that Star Wars will be involved. We’re fresh off the special screening, but it looks like there’s even more planned. Announcements like this were no doubt expected by fans when Ninja made the switch to Mixer. With Ninja’s roots with the Halo franchise, it was a matter of time before Microsoft would be looking at ways to promote various Xbox games. It started when Ninja was given an exclusive first look at Gears 5’s single-player campaign, and now it looks like things have crossed over into his wheelhouse of Fortnite. The announcement will be part of the Xbox Sessions series where guests will play a game while showing off some new features. In the video Ninja posted, you could see him playing with Mark Hamill already, so it seems like he already knows a bit about what’s actually coming to the game. Being able to work with one of the greatest legends @HamillHimself and getting to teach him about our gaming world was such an honor. He also taught me a lot about voice acting, super memorable moment. pic.twitter.com/k6ATQxmCn7 — Ninja (@Ninja) December 15, 2019 With this collaboration coming out just a day before Episode IX releases, it’s possible Epic Games have one more thing up their sleeves before the launch of the new movie. Mark Hamill is the star of the original Star Wars trilogy, so perhaps we could be seeing Luke Skywalker enter the game along with Princess Leia and Han Solo. That would certainly be a good way to conclude the plethora of Star Wars content that has arrived in Fortnite. Whatever the future holds for the game, we won’t have to wait long to find out.

Ninja and HighDistortion locked in race to hit 100K Fortnite eliminations *UPDATING* Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Jimmy ‘HighDistortion’ Moreno are known as two of the best Fortnite players in the world, and the pair are extremely close to breaking the 100,000 eliminations barrier. The streamer who reaches this enormous milestone first will become the first Fortnite player to do so, etching their name into the history books. While the battle is extremely close, it’s estimated that Moreno will hit 100,000 eliminations first, as the Team SoloMid streamer appears to play twice as many games per day compared to Ninja. Based on Season 7 statistics, Ninja does average more eliminations per match than HighDistoration, however due to Moreno’s higher play time, he actually averages 232 kills per day compared to Ninja’s 135. With that all considered, it’s expected that HighDistortion will hit the 100,000 mark around January 25, while Ninja would be unlikely to hit it before February 4th. At time of writing, Ninja is currently leading the race with 97,033 kills, with HighDistortion hot on his heels with 96, 907, just 126 kills behind the Luminosity member according to Fortnite Tracker. Of course, while these statistics gives an idea of what may happen, they will mean nothing if these variables change, especially if Ninja begins to play as many games as HighDistortion. While both players had refrained from mentioning the race to the 100K milestone, Moreno has begun titling his streams with references to the friendly competition, while Ninja uploaded a video to YouTube titled “The Race for 100K Eliminations!” on Tuesday, January 8. UPDATE Just as the race between the streamer was heating up, Ninja announced on Twitter that he would be giving up on it. “Taking a break and giving up on the race to 100K,” Ninja told his fans on Twitter. “HighDistortion doing 30-hour streams. [Kid’s] a monster.” Taking a break and giving up on the race to 100k @HighDistortion doing 30 hour streams kids a monster. Be back on tonight for some chill games/FF — Ninja (@Ninja) January 10, 2019 HighDistortion has yet to respond to Ninja’s concession and is currently over 20 hours into his planned 30-hour stream.

Ninja and Ellen team up again, this time for charity [UPDATED] UPDATE (9pm EST – November 23, 2018) Ninja has concluded his charity stream after nine hours having surpassing his goal of $50,000. The entire proceeds will go to The Ellen Fund. Incredible guys thank you so much to everyone who donated and supported! 52k in 9 hours AMAZING! pic.twitter.com/qhqF2ZMxHl — Ninja (@Ninja) November 24, 2018 After making an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show back in October, Fortnite streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins is once again joining forces with the popular TV host. As the face of Fortnite, Ninja continues to cross over cultural barriers with appearances on talk shows and other news programs. Those crossovers have now led to a special collaboration with Ellen DeGeneres for the Thanksgiving holiday. Ellen posted the news to her Twitter, informing everyone that Ninja would be holding a special charity stream on November 23. On Friday, November 23rd, @Ninja is gonna help raise money for @TheEllenFund on his livestream. I always depend on the kindness of Ninjas. https://t.co/Hz9lKZoSnP pic.twitter.com/naAmUlHrCx — Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) November 14, 2018 The stream will benefit The Ellen Fund, which is a charity that focuses on global conversation efforts for critically endangered species. In the video, Ninja informs Ellen that Twitch streamers will frequently do streams to raise money for various charities and that he’d be doing a special one for The Ellen Fund. “I know that you have this thing called The Ellen Fund and I’m actually going to be doing a stream for The Ellen Fund on Friday the 23rd of this month,” Ninja tells a surprised Ellen. The streamer said that he’d likely be able to raise a minimum of $50,000, to which Ellen said that she and the gorillas the Fund seeks to protect were incredibly thankful. Ninja is no stranger to charity streams, having managed to raise over $300,000 during his block during the GuardianCon charity stream back in July. Given Ninja’s massive audience, it’s likely that will easily blow through his initial goal of $50,000 pretty quickly.

Ninja and DrLupo Demonstrate The Best Way To Use New Jetpacks in Fortnite Battle Royale @DrLupoOnTwitch / Epic GamesThe newest addition to Fortnite Battle Royale has been a long time coming, as fans finally get to strap on a jetpack, and who better to show you how its done than top streamers Ninja and DrLupo. The pair have become known for their insane duo plays, often putting to use the newest items in Fortnite for those montage worthy moments. And of course the jetpack is one of the most significant additions to Fortnite, one that was originally teased some months ago – before it mysteriously disappeared, never to be mentioned by developers Epic Games again. More: OpTic’s CouRage Pulls Off an Incredible 1v3 While Being Trapped Inside of a Basement in Fortnite – That is until recently, when as part of the v.4.2 content update, fans finally got their chance to try out the jetpack in game. It was only a matter of time before all the top Fortnite streamers were attempting ridiculous jetpack moments, but the winner so far has to these insane duo plays from Tyler “Ninja” Blevins and Ben “DrLupo” Lupo. Combining the ever impressive rocket ride with a jetpack, plus some impulse grenades and impeccable accuracy, is a recipe for Fortnite madness. Jetpack rocket ride double impulse, this game is so silly. @Ninja pic.twitter.com/J8VV5vnYwO — DrLupo (@DrLupoOnTwitch) May 22, 2018 This just happened @drlupoOntwitch hits a SPACE ROCKET RIDE JETPACK IMPULSE NADE DOUBLE KILL This is from my POV pic.twitter.com/aa5OBzdJBb — Ninja (@Ninja) May 22, 2018 It’s still early days with the new jetpack in Fortnite and so players are likely just scratching the surface of possibilities with the new feature. Combinations of jump pads, impulse grenades, hop rocks and more alongside jetpacks could have some even wackier results. But if you have a trusty duo who is handy with a rocket launcher, find yourself a jetpack and you may be able to pull off something similar to the dynamic duo of Ninja and DrLupo.

Ninja and CouRage speechless as flying hackers return to Fortnite Epic Games/YouTube: CouRageJD, NinjaTyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop were left absolutely gobsmacked when they were obliterated by a flying God-mode hacker stream sniping them in Fortnite. Hacking in online video games is something that may never disappear. While most games, Fortnite included, have some kind of anti-cheat software installed, there are still some sneaky hackers that slip through the cracks. That said, some games are affected worse than others. While rival battle royale Warzone has had a serious ongoing hacking issue since it launched in March 2020, Fortnite has generally been very effective at keeping the game cheat-free. Having reunited for Fortnite Chapter 3 CouRage and Ninja, alongside SypherPK and Wildcat, couldn’t believe their eyes when they encountered a rare Fortnite hacker absolutely destroying them. After fighting through the majority of the lobby, the squad was decimated from above, and within seconds they realized that the player killing them was actually miles high in the sky, aimbotting them from above. Read More: How to get free Fortnite skins – While the team was getting rained down on from the skies, CouRage couldn’t figure out where their opponent was, looking around at the ground from the safety of their builds in an attempt to locate them. He was quickly warned, however, that the shots were actually coming from above, as he tried to protect himself and Ninja watched on in complete disbelief. Timestamp 1:00 The squad stayed in the game and watched their stream sniping hacker flying around, asking them to “at least do something cool,” while they avoided any gunfight possible. Instead, the hacker did the opposite and, after finding themselves in a precarious situation, accidentally floated into the storm and died to storm damage, leaving the entire team in hysterics.

Ninja admits he has no idea what Epic Games are doing with Fortnite Ninja, Twitch / Epic GamesFortnite Battle Royale, but he’s starting to question whether or not he understands what Epic Games are doing with the title. The developer has made a number of changes to the popular battle royale game which have caused some confusion for Ninja, as well as many other streamers and professional players. Based on his recent criticisms, though, there’s a chance that the dedicated Fortnite streamer is starting to lose faith in the developer. Why is Ninja unhappy with the v8.20 Fortnite update? “The revert back to Season 1 settings, adding arena, increasing queue times in the later sections, and now removing stretch resolution from competitions,” Ninja listed during a tweet on April 3. “All of this somehow better be paying off,” he continued. “Because, if this is somehow not benefiting Epic, I don’t know what they are doing.” The revert back to season 1 settings, adding arena increasing que times in the later sections, and now… Removing stretch res from Competitions. All of this somehow better be paying off because if this is somehow not benefiting epic idk what they are doing. — Ninja (@Ninja) April 3, 2019 Has Ninja changed his mind about Fortnite stretch resolution? Ninja’s tweet also attracted a response from Team SoloMid’s Ali ‘Myth’ Kabbani, too, who questioned if the streamer’s previous ‘stance’ – to not have stretched resolution in competitive play – still stands. Read More: What’s in the Fortnite Item Shop today? – “This tweet annoys me severely,” Ninja responded. “It is mostly about how they are executing everything. Allowing stretched [resolution] at the last Secret Skirmish, then switching a week after Arena even launches? I was practicing with it and now it’s all wasted.” Ninja previously explained to his fans – back in August, 2018 – why he thought players would never be able to play with stretch resolution in competitive play. Now, the developer has made the call to remove it. This tweet annoys me severely. It is mostly about how they are executing everything. Allowing stretched at the last secret skirmish then switching a week after arena even launches? I was practicing with it and now its all wasted. Same for every pro player that uses it. — Ninja (@Ninja) April 3, 2019 Fortnite’s ranked Arena mode For those who aren’t aware, Fortnite’s new Arena is the first step in building a proper place for ranked play on the game and was released with the v8.20 update. After several heated outbursts from high profile figures in the game’s online community, it’s unclear if Epic Games will pull off a U-turn and reverse the changes Ninja, and others, have listed. What is clear, though, is that a lot of people are still confused by the direction in which the developer is taking the game.

Nine new Fortnite consumables leaked in update v12.20 game files Epic GamesNine consumables could be introduced to Epic’s popular battle royale in the near future as Fortnite’s v12.20 update has been datamined to reveal a slew of new information. From apples to mushrooms, the Fortnite community has grown accustomed to bite-size benefits being scattered across the battle royale map. While these items may appear as an afterthought with more powerful weapons and equipment being added with each update, nine new consumables have popped up in the latest update, indicating that they could play a bigger role moving forward. Challenges, cosmetics, and weapons have all leaked ahead of time, and it seems like new map additions have also slipped through the cracks in the v12.20 update. After combing through the game’s files following the latest patch, prominent Fortnite dataminer ‘iFireMonkey’ unveiled a wide array of ‘Consumable Tags’ that have been implemented behind the scenes. From bananas to brand new types of mushrooms, nine consumables have been uncovered and while some appear to be rehashes of former items, many of them are brand new with unknown effects. New Consumable Tags added in v12.20 [.ini files] – Apple – Banana – Cabbage – Coconut – Corn – Pepper – Shield Mushroom – Slurp Mushroom – Apple Sun [Can Jump To Deploy]?— iFireMonkey (@iFireMonkey) March 17, 2020 Veteran Fortnite players will be familiar with apples, coconuts, and mushrooms for their five healing per use. Though bananas, cabbages, corn, peppers, are all brand new consumable items that could be implemented in the near future. Additionally, both shield mushrooms and slurp mushrooms are listed. While they may sound similar to the previous ‘slurprshroom’ item that healed for 10HP per use, these appear to be brand new labels in the game’s files. Apple Sun is also listed as a consumable, though this particular item could come with a rather unique effect. Once consumed, the item may not come into play until you have jumped. Perhaps a form of hovering or even flying, this consumable certainly stands out from the pack. While there’s no telling exactly how each of these items will function if they do end up making their way onto the battle royale map, there could be many new beneficial foods to eat in-game moving forward. In the meantime, get ahead of the competition with an overview of powerful upcoming weapons that have also been leaked ahead of time.

NICKMERCS vents frustrations at ESL Katowice Fortnite Royale issues Fortnite tournament. The tournament took place over three days, kicking off with a solos tournament on Friday, March 1 before transitioning into a Duos competition for March 2 and 3. While Ghost Gaming’s Rocco ‘Saf’ Morales and NRG star Williams ‘Zayt’ Aubin took home the grand prize of $80,000, Kolcheff and his teammate Aydan ‘Ghost Aydan’ Conrad finished in 46th place, with NICKMERCS posting on Twitter after the event to explain how many issues players were faced with throughout the tournament. Heading into the final game of the ESL Katowice Royale, Kolcheff’s Fortnite client crashed completely, with the tournament admins choosing not to remake the lobby, instead allowing play to continue. FaZe Clan’s Dennis ‘Cloak’ Lepore then revealed that a further six to eight players left the game when they realized that NICKMERCS was having issues, with ESL still choosing not to restart the game. Kolcheff appeared to be unhappy with this decision, posting a GIF of an angry cartoon character bursting into flames in response to Cloak’s tweet. Kolcheff went on to address other problems he encountered at the tournament, including bugs with the game’s Quadcrasher, intense lag that meant players were unable to build or use their glider, and “headsets that destroyed your ears via static shock.” “This event wasn’t the greatest experience,” concluded NICKMERCS. “GGs, excited to get back home.” Last game, Fortnite crashes, they don’t remake. Quad bug, server lag where you can’t build or glide, & headsets that destroy your ears via static shock. This event wasn’t the greatest experience. Nevertheless, GGs, excited to get back home. — Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) March 3, 2019 Kolcheff and other Fortnite pros suffered from a number of issues on Saturday, March 2 too, with the 100 Thieves star complaining that he had no audio throughout the first game of the Duos tournament, while FaZe Clan’s Nate Hill found himself eliminated after falling foul of the Quadcrasher glitch. With so many issues plaguing the ESL Katowice Royale, it will be interesting to see how Epic Games responds to these problems, as the developers continue to push competitive Fortnite ahead of the 2019 World Cup later this year.

NICKMERCS, TimTheTatman encounter bizarre B.R.U.T.E. glitches after Fortnite 10.10 patch Twitch streamers Fortnite B.R.U.T.E. glitches left teammate Cloakzy downed and made piloting the vehicle near impossible. The Fortnite v10.10 update hasn’t fixed all of the burgeoning problems appearing with the game’s giant mech. While the patch did address some of the problems that players have been noticing with the B.R.U.T.E.s, there are still some insane clips showing off major concerns with them. Even though the Epic Games devs have potentially fixed problems with the B.R.U.T.E. sometimes not being visible as well as preventing players to use it for purposes of getting across the map faster, it’s still presenting strange hardships for Fortnite players. In there August 14 stream, the streamers were huddled up at Titled Town after a battle left them licking their wounds when a B.R.U.T.E. mech spawned on the other side of the wall they were hiding behind. As it made landfall, Cloakzy can be seen healing to full HP but gets instantly knocked after the B.R.U.T.E. lands. TimTheTatman and NICKMERCS themselves had their shields decimated while also sustaining damage. NICKMERCS goes to investigate, just to see a newly spawned B.R.U.T.E. around the corner. But the bugs didn’t stop there. After getting inside to pilot the mech, the streamer had a hard time moving it out of its spawn and even more trouble getting out of the vehicle. “Bro, I can’t get out,” NICKMERCS said. “I can’t… It’s glitched bro! It’s literally glitched. Dude I am so done man. Dude, I can’t–” Though he managed to escape the B.R.U.T.E.’s cockpit, TimTheTatman decided to give it a try which revealed even more bugs. Even as TimTheTatman was maneuvering out of the spot, apparently the mech wasn’t budging. This produced a strange effect that had NICKMERCS in hysterics, but left Tim stuck in place. It seems like there’s still a ton of fixes that need to be implemented to the B.R.U.T.E.s and these clips alone should give the Fortnite devs a good place to start.

NICKMERCS explains why he and SypherPK hired a top Fortnite coach Twitter: FaZeClan / Twitter: SypherPKFaZe Clan’s Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff spoke on stream about why he and Luminosity’s Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan hired a top Fortnite Battle Royale coach. Fortnite has been slow on the uptake of coaches, but they are starting to come out of the woodwork now. One coach, Hugh ‘Destiny’ Gilmour, helped the likes of Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf, David ‘aqua’ Wang, and Emil ‘nyhrox’ Bergquist Pedersen all place first at the recent $30 million Fortnite World Cup in July. So after a few disappointing results in the Fortnite Trios tournaments held every weekend, NICKMERCS, SypherPK, and Jimmy ‘HighDistortion’ Moreno decided it was time to enlist his services to take them to the next level. Streaming on Twitch on September 3, the FaZe Clan star said that he had hired a coach to go over his past clips. “We basically hired a professional Fortnite coach to go over our VODs and talk to us a little bit. He talked to us about the mistakes we were making and the shit we were doing.” The experience for them was incredibly positive: “It was really beneficial. He brought up a lot of shit that we just can’t be doing anymore. We were using Impulses all wrong, we were rotating all wrong, we’re building all wrong, we are doing so many stupid ass things that we just can’t be doing.” A former Fortnite pro player, Destiny now coaches from his home in the UK, and played an instrumental role in helping Bugha secure the $3 million first place prize in New York. Having analyzed some of the world’s best players in the lead-up to the Fortnite World Cup, he was able to share his insights with his new clients and help them succeed. NICKMERCS had nothing but praise for him, saying that “he’s a super cool guy, and we are going to keep doing it a little bit, you know?” Coaching in esports has been mainstream in titles like League of Legends, CS:GO, and Overwatch for a long time. They pick up on player’s mistakes, help rectify them, and give players new strategies to stay ahead of the game. As Nick, Sypher, and HighDistortion head into their next tournament this weekend, they’ll hope that the coaching and practice they’ve put in will pay off with a decent finish.

NICKMERCS suggests unusual punishment for Fortnite World Cup cheater XXiF FaZe Clan member Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff has come up a hilarious way to punish fellow pro player XXiF, who controversially qualified for the Fortnite World Cup five weeks after being suspended for cheating. XXiF was found guilty of cheating in Week 3 of World Cup Qualifiers, and was forced to serve a two week suspension, handed down by Epic Games, as punishment. Fortnite Battle Royale’s next in-game event. While discussing the ‘Cattus’ event, which is expected to see a gigantic monster roam the Fortnite map after breaking its way out of Polar Peak, the 28-year-old revealed how he would like to see the supposed dragon appear in the game, and swallow up the player as a fitting punishment for his crimes. “They should make the dragon come out at the World Cup Final,” the Twitch streamer told his audience, “And he should just eat XXiF. Just get [Epic Games] to go in there and program ‘dragon attack’ and just XXiF’s name, and no matter where he goes, how he builds, just make the dragon eat XXiF. I think that’s really fair.” NICKMERCS continued: “This is my opinion and I’m entitled to it. I personally think the dragon should be released right when XXiF lands and blows him into smithereens, and I want him to panic like that one kid at PAX like ‘What the fuck! What the fuck!’” While the FaZe Clan member’s idea may sound far-fetched, it definitely wouldn’t be the first time that Epic Games through a major spanner in the works at a tournament, with many pro players still haunted by memories of the Winter Royale, which was overrun by competitors wielding the ridiculously powerful Infinity Blade. Of course, it’s extremely unlikely that Epic Games would target a specific player in a major tournament, but maybe XXiF should keep one eye on the sky at all times during the World Cup, just to make sure no humongous beasts are sizing him up as a snack.

NICKMERCS stunned by insane fall damage glitch in Fortnite Popular Twitch streamer, Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff, was subjected to a fall damage glitch in Fortnite Chapter 2, which left him and his chat bewildered. Epic Games’ second iteration of their flagship battle royale has been subjected to plenty of criticism throughout the course of its short lifespan. Since the title’s relaunch just over a month ago, an assortment of issues have surfaced. Given Fortnite’s faithful following, the developers have been under strain to retain its pole position in the realm of battle royales. However, due to the number of niggling issues that keep cropping up, players and fans alike are beginning to express their frustrations. Nonetheless, pro players are still tasked with the toilsome task of playing a game riddled with issues — even in the absence of patch notes. Nonetheless, in the days following the highly anticipated v11.11 update, NICKMERCS encountered a bizarre glitch that saw him survive against all odds. After building high above the trees, the Fortnite pro found himself plummeting towards the ground. Yet, after sticking his landing, his character miraculously survived after receiving not fall damage. Kolcheff was left speechless and looked around in shock. He then went on to jest: “I am the best,” while mocking the appearance of yet another glitch. The FaZe Clan content creator was simply passing time while waiting for FNCS scrims, so proceeded to leave the game following the incident. Although one eagle-eyed may have provided a logical explanation as to why NICKMERCS’ character could defy the laws of physics. Reddit user, TheUltimateGam3r, commented on a post explaining that there “probably used to be a huge bush there, but someone broke it and the no fall damage (zone) stayed there.” Although the bug didn’t have any negative side effects, it is another snag that Epic Games will need to address in the near future.

NICKMERCS slams fans who complain about Fortnite updates as “irrelevant” L: NICKMERCS R: Epic GamesNick ‘Fortnite players who always complain. Players have been moaning about Fortnite pretty much since the debut of the game, and it can get pretty annoying to see those complaints spammed on every official tweet from Epic Games. NICKMERCS is fed up with all this flaming, and sounded off on those constant haters in a passionate rant during a live stream. “Really pay attention to who’s going on Twitter dropping paragraphs,” he explained. “‘Cause all I’m gonna say is, motherfuckers are going on Twitter dropping paragraphs – you are irrelevant.” He went on to speculate that the reason these users are “dropping paragraphs” is because they aren’t good enough to win any money in a competitive setting. “You’re competitively irrelevant, you’re not good enough to hang with the best keyboard and mouse players so you gotta find an excuse,” he said. “Everybody dropping paragraphs, they ain’t making no Fortnite money.” If you follow Fortnite on Twitter, you’ve definitely seen these players Nick is talking about – although they certainly don’t count for the whole of Fortnite’s competitive community. While the pros do have their fair share of issues, they usually don’t make inflammatory replies to a tweet the way to express them, but will instead think of a better way to word their concerns. Fortnite Season 10 has arguably been the most controversial since the game debuted two years ago, and that’s impressive, given that the game has seen planes, Ballers, and the Infinity Blade all come and go. Season 11 is looking like it’ll be a breath of fresh air in more ways than one – but we won’t know for certain until it actually arrives. Season 10 wraps up October 6, and the next one will presumably begin right after. We’ll see if the new season is what it takes to stop the constant nagging and complaints surrounding Fortnite.

NICKMERCS silences Fortnite controller haters by saving Tfue and Cloak Popular Fortnite streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff was able to silence the controller and aim assist haters after saving the day for Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney and Dennis ‘Cloak’ Lepore, as they teamed up in an online event. As Fortnite players can play with cross-play enabled, they don’t always come up against enemies who are running on the same set-ups as their own. With PC players battling consoles on a regular basis, there have been plenty of memes about aim assist with a controller – with Tfue even trying one out and saying he’d play with one more often if Epic Games changed the sensitivity settings. However, even more disliked is coming up against mobile’s auto fire mode, which fires off accurate shots whenever a player enters a crosshair. So when Tfue and Cloak, who both play with keyboard and mouse, teamed up with NICKMERCS, one of Fortnite’s best controller players, the aim assist jokes and memes were sure to flow. That’s exactly what happened when the trio jumped into games of the Brazil Cash Cup and Tfue found himself being gunned down in one match. “I’m getting lasered, I think these kids are on f**king mobile,” he called out, before Nick swooped in for the save. The FaZe Clan member quickly outplayed one enemy and knocked them out with his own incredible accuracy. “Nice! It doesn’t matter if they’re on mobile, we have a guy on controller!” shouted Cloak, before Nick picked up another two kills and saved the day. As Cloak was poking fun at the controller’s aim assist, NICKMERCS didn’t seem to take any offense as he quickly laughed about it and helped his team move on. Even though the PC players continued with the jokes, mainly centered around building, the FaZe star played a pivotal role in the end game too – dominating enemies with his own stunning accuracy once again. While controller players have proven that they can compete with the best on keyboard and mouse, there have been attempts to separate the player base at times. Epic have run Xbox and PlayStation-only events, and confirmed prior to Fortnite Chapter 2’s launch that there might be more in the future. Fans would obviously miss out on the banter, but it could open up a controller-only side of competitive play.

NICKMERCS shows why Fortnite Battle Royale’s Combat Shotgun is broken NICKMERCS/Epic GamesPopularv9.00 patch, giving fans a way to represent the popular movie franchise John Wick in-game with a signature weapon from the series in rare, epic, and legendary forms. However, its inclusion in Fortnite Battle Royale hasn’t been without issues. Players have complained about bugs when reloading, its supposed inaccuracy, while others just want the pump shotgun to return. Yet, NICKMERCS was able to showcase just why the gun, in its current form, might well be completely broken. During his May 19 stream, the 100 Thieves star was messing around in the Wick’s Bounty limited-time mode, where every player drops in with the Combat Shotgun and new Tactical Assualt Rifle. After taking out some enemies at close range, NICKMERCS decided to give it a spin at a distance – taking pot shots at one unfortunate soul who happened to get caught in the crossfire. Yet, the streamer couldn’t believe what he was seeing as he began racking up hits and significant damage from ranges he probably shouldn’t be able to do so. “Bro, no bullshit. What is this gun?” he asked, after appearing to be able to knock out the player from at least 100 meters away. It wasn’t the only example that NICKMERCS had to show just how ‘broken’ the gun currently is, though. After eliminating one player, he turned his attention to another – who also happened to be a significant distance away. The 100 Thieves star begun nailing shots on them too, even though it didn’t do the same amount of damage as his previous elimination. Will Epic nerf the Combat Shotgun? Considering the weapon is so new to the game, it’s probably unlikely that Epic Games will spring into action to make a change so soon after its arrival. That’s not completely out of the question, however, considering they have already nerfed the Drum Gun’s damage stats after complaints from fans. The gun only returned to the title at the end of Season 8, where it received the most votes in an Unvaulting event.

NICKMERCS shares hilarious theory about BRUTE mechs in Fortnite FaZe Clan / Epic Gamesv10.0 Update, and since then fans have been crying out for their removal, or at least a nerf to make them less powerful. Now, FaZe Clan star NICKMERCS has come up with his own ideas about what happens at Epic HQ, and the thought process that went into them creating and including the giant robots in the game in the first place. BRUTES have been a contreversial addition to Fortnite. “Chat, are you ready for my question?” the 29-year-old asked his audience in a clip posted to Reddit. “Do you think – because you know how they like to do game-changing updates before a tournament – they get real corny, do you think because the World Cup is over, they just snapped?” In the bag is everything that ever got brought to the table and got declined, because they knew we would (be in) uproar. I have a feeling that this season they’re just going to dump the bag on us.” The Twitch star then put on the performance of a lifetime, pretending to be one of the head developers at the studio: “‘Henry, remember that robot thing you made? Let’s get it in the game. Make it duo bro, one guy steers, the other guy shoots. Badabing, badaboom,’ and now we’re just moving bro.” While issues continue to creep up with the BRUTES, including an exploit that lets them travel across the island at super speed, it appears Epic are listening to the complaints from their fanbase and may nerf the mechanical monstrosities in the near future. When this could happen remains unclear, but the developers confirmed that they are working to fix movement-related bugs, and that they are “evaluating the BRUTE and how it performs across all modes and skill levels.”

NICKMERCS reveals the one thing he misses most about old Fortnite FaZe ClanFaZe Clan member and popular Twitch streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff has revealed the one thing he misses most about the old Fortnite. Already a popular streamer before Fortnite, Nick, like many others, skyrocketed when Epic Games’ battle royale title grew, and became dominant on one particular area of the original map. Tilted Towers was the epitome of a hot-drop – often you would find a large portion of the lobby floating in, and if you were a good player it meant easy kills and great loot to set you on your way, and NICKMERCS took advantage of it every time he dropped in. So, it’s no surprise that Nick is now missing Tilted Towers, a place where some of his best stream and tournament moments came, and he’s explained why he misses it in his February 12 stream. “I was watching some of my old YouTube videos and I was like, bro, I miss Tilted,” he said. “I miss Tilted so bad. I hate that I can’t drop there. It made the game so much more fun.” Sounding somewhat sad about the loss of his old hunting ground, he tells his viewers that Tilted was “so lit” and that he “misses it more than anything.” If you didn’t know any better, you would think Nick was talking about a lost love, but he continued in a similar vein afterward, responding to people who claimed not to like the popular point of interest. “If you hated Tilted, you’re just a bot,” he explained. “Let’s get that out of the way right now. If you hated Tilted, it’s because you got farmed up.” He went a little further with this explanation, telling his viewers that when you’re having a conversation with a large group of people about a game, there’s “only so many of them that are actually good.” He then goes on to say that although he loves his viewers, they’re “probably big booty at Fortnite.” While making a joke, there is an element of truth in what Nick said. You had to be a talented player to get in to Tilted Towers and perform well, the constant action making sure every player was at risk of being eliminated from any direction at any time. You can never rule anything out with Fortnite, so we may still see Tilted Towers return yet, but for now, players like Nick will have to find their quick kills and loot elsewhere.

NICKMERCS reveals major reason he’s excited for Fortnite Creative 2.0 NICKMERCSFortnite Creative 2.0 is now live and the new update has caught the eye of NICKMERCS, with the streamer highlighting what exciting opportunities could lie ahead. Popular streamer, Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff recently discussed his excitement over Fortnite Creative 2.0, outlining his plans for potential tournaments and content creation. With even more enhancements and customization tools, players can now truly create anything and everything they can think of. From classic FPS experiences to horror-filled fright fests, it seems the sky really is the limit for the game’s community. While Nick is still busy grinding competitive Apex Legends, the recent release of Fortnite Creative 2.0 has the content creator interested, so here’s what he had to say. NICKMERCS on Fortnite Creative 2.0 “Imagine if we could create any f*cking game that we used to play 20 years ago. Granted it would cost some coin, you know, we’ll have to pay for that, but that might be something I would do,” said Nick. “I wish I could just tell a team to give me Splinter Cell 2v2 Spies vs mercs, give me that for my community so I can run a community-based tournament and gauntlet. What I’m telling you is that’s a possibility with this new Creative, it sounds crazy but that’s where we’re going.” Timestamp of 5:22 So far, Fortnite Creative 2.0 has already showcased a number of exciting maps that have caught the attention of game’s community. From classic Call of Duty-style gameplay to Souls-like combat, the new Creative 2.0 mode certainly seems incredibly robust. “You can create anything, you can pay people who rate their stuff. It might be 100k or 200k but these are options,” said the streamer. “That’s something that we could do, I’m down – because then we go get some sponsors, some big-time players for the gauntlet and we throw it all together… I think this new Creative might give a lot of opportunities and I’m interested to see this thing come to fruition.” Fortnite Creative 2.0 certainly has the potential to shake things up and we’re already starting to see some amazing maps from the game’s community. Whether this improved mode will be able to tear Nick away from Apex Legends remains to be seen, but we could see the popular streamer return to Epic’s BR in the near future.

NICKMERCS responds to Ghost Bizzle claiming that online Fortnite isn’t “competitive” Ghost Gaming’s Timothy ‘Bizzle’ Miller is far from pleased with the latest Fortnite tournament, but Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff believes he has no reason to be angry. Bizzle is currently the highest earning player in Fortnite history thanks to his excellent performances in the Skirmish tournaments as well as LAN events – most recently finishing 4 at ESL Katowice back at the start of March. The latest Fortnite tournament, the Blackheart Cup, is available to all players who qualified through the recent pop-up events with $100,000 on offer in prize money. However, Bizzle believes Epic Games are wasting their cash, slamming the tournament as ‘a joke’ and suggests it ‘is not competitive at all’. Online tournaments with money cool idea, too bad these games are terrible and not competitive at all. These games are a joke, save the money for something actually entertaining — Bizzle (@Ghost_Bizzle) March 23, 2019 Fellow professional Fortnite player, NICKMERCS, wasn’t interested in his complaints and believes that Epic needed to be cut some slack for allowing anyone the chance to compete at the highest level. Nick explained that Bizzle needs to consider the bigger picture with $100m being designated to competitive Fortnite in 2019. He stated that the tournaments allowed new players the chance to earn some money while offering pro players some online practice – questioning what exactly Bizzle was moaning about. Come on B, they’re slingin’ 100M this year, ain’t breakin’ the bank w/ a few 100K online test tournaments before cup qualifiers. Some new names snag a few bucks. We get some online tournament practice. Why complain? — Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) March 23, 2019 The 100 Thieves member isn’t the only popular figure to call out pro players for complaining about the game with Ninja also criticizing the competitive community for being ‘too negative’. Indeed, not many players will be able to compete in the upcoming Fortnite World Cup and Epic offering prize pools available for anyone to win can only be viewed as a positive. The tournaments can also be a platform for aspiring players to make a name for themselves and potentially forge a career in esports.

Fortnite streamer NICKMERCS rants on why he hates the new Glider Redeploy and drop rate of Shields 100 Thieves streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff isn’t a fan of the recent changes to Fortnite, and he let his fans know why during a recent stream. On January 15, Epic Games re-introduced Glider Redeploy in Fortnite by adding a new ‘Redeploy’ item that allows players to activate their glider when falling from any height, but only a certain amount of times. The move has already been criticized by many prominent members of the Fortnite community, like Nick and TSM’s Myth, who think the new item is the wrong way to re-implement the mechanic into the game. Heavily opposed to this new system, NICKMERCS passionately explained to fans why the new Redeploy item was giving him such a headache. “I’m not myself today because I’m playing a game that thrives on fucking shields and there isn’t any in the game,” the streamer explained to viewers. “They added a Redeploy item that sucks and it’s in everything, and it takes up the spots where the shields should be.” The introduction of the new item has also seeming diluted Fortnite’s item pool, which makes Shields show up a lot less now in loot. Based on the largely negative community response to the new item so far, it will be interesting to see how long it actually remains in the game in its current state. Other controversial items and mechanics, like the Infinity Blade and the initial Glider Redeploy system, were vaulted after similar outrage by the players. Especially since it seems to affect shield drop rates, we could see the Redeploy join the list of vaulted items sooner rather than later, but all that is ultimately up to Epic Games.

NICKMERCS ranks all Fortnite Chapter 2 Shotguns from best to worst FaZe Clan star content creator Nick ‘NICKMERCS‘ Kolcheff has shared his opinion on the shotguns currently available in Fortnite Chapter 2, ranking them in order from best to worst. Shotguns have and always will be a fundamental aspect of gun-play in Fortnite, as you would be hard-pressed to find a player who doesn’t look to add a one to their inventory at the start of every match. There have been numerous types and styles of shotguns throughout the seasons, but Epic limited the pool at the start of Season 1 of Chapter 2, leaving only the Tactical and Pump, with both having five rarities each. Like every other competitive player out there, NICKMERCS puts a high priority on getting the best shotgun he can find for his inventory as soon as possible because he and everyone else know that one can’t succeed in-game without a good close-quarters weapon. As the most popular and well-known controller player in the world, fans are always looking to get his opinions and strategies regarding various facets of the game, and he was recently asked about which shotgun(s) he prefers. NICKMERCS’ RANKED LIST FOR SHOTGUNS: Gold Pump – Purple Pump – Blue Tac – Gold Tac – Green Tac – Purple Tac – Blue Pump – Grey Tac – Green Pump – Pickaxe – Grey Pump – Gold Pump Purple Pump Blue Tac Gold Tac Green Tac Purple Tac Blue Pump Grey Tac Green Pump Pickaxe Grey Pump— Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) November 7, 2019 Looking at the top of his list, it would be very hard to argue with his choices for numbers one and two, since the Epic and Legendary Pumps are really the only two weapons in the class that can deliver a one-shot kill against a player who has full health and shield. However, interestingly enough, he’s gone with the blue Rare Tac as his third choice, even above the purple and gold variants. He actually explained his reasoning for this in a video he published several weeks prior, stating that he prefers the blue Tac because he doesn’t like how the higher versions feel and believes they have a slower pull-out time. “I don’t care so much for the gold Tac,” he said. “I just hate how it feels. It’s got a slower pull out for sure, but I don’t even like how it feels when I shoot it. That’s why they call it the ‘Heavy Tac.’ I just don’t like it. I don’t like that gun. blue Tac is the best for me, and green Tac is immediately behind it.” In fact, his dislike of the rarer version of the Tac are to the point where he ranks the green Uncommon one higher than the purple Epic one, even though the latter does eight more points of damage. (Segment begins at 4:00 mark for mobile users) Speaking of dislike, it’s very clear that Nick doesn’t at all have a high opinion of the Pump Shotgun outside of its Epic and Legendary variants. He has all three of the lower version ranked in the bottom half of his list, and he even ranked the gray Common Tac over the green Uncommon Pump, which is incredible to consider since the gray Tac has the second-lowest damage in the class. Which one has the lowest? That would be the gray Common Pump, which the FaZe star unsurprisingly has ranked as his lowest preferred shotgun. In fact, he thinks so lowly of it that he decided to make a joke out of it, ranking it below the pickaxe in terms of weapon potential.

NICKMERCS’ Prediction About Meteors Becomes Scarily Accurate During a Fortnite Match – “Am I Crazy?” The popular video game Fortnite: Battle Royale is currently in a period of great anticipation and hype. With the new Season 4 due to go live on May 1st, the game’s vast-player base waits breathlessly to see what developer Epic Games has in store. It is widely believed that the current Season 3 will end with a meteor striking the map at some location. This speculation that has been fueled by cryptic controller vibrations, suggestive artwork, a large comet in the sky, emergency alert sounds, and more. There has even been a meteor shower in-game over the last few days, with small meteors periodically falling from the sky and physically smashing into the ground. Popular Twitch personality Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff, who is the biggest streamer of Fortnite on console, had a theory as to exactly when and where these projectiles strike in-game. “Hey you know what I’m starting to think? I think these comets all land by people. Like, it means there’s a person around. What’s up, am I crazy?” He explained this theory while he was playing a match on the popular BR game live on his stream, and surely enough, just as he finished his sentence, a meteor flew down and struck directly where he was standing. Nick’s incredulous reaction was priceless; even he could not believe for a moment that his prediction had come true so accurately and instantaneously. “Go ahead. Go ahead. Tell me I’m fucking crazy. I’ll wait.” Since he appears to be so accurate in his Fortnite theories and predictions, maybe he also knows the exact location where the large meteor is supposedly set to strike come the end of Season 3. – You can watch highlights like these and more on NICKMERCS’ Twitch channel, where he can also be found streaming Fortnite every day.

NICKMERCS Plans To Switch From Fortnite on PlayStation To PC 100 Thieves streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff is planning to make the jump from Fortnite on PlayStation and move to the PC version of the game. While playing squads with CouRage, Cypher and Team Liquid’s POACH, the subject turned to Nick, and the fact that he was possibly hampering his growth by playing on PlayStation and not on PC. NICKMERCS seemed to agree with the statement and revealed that he was considering making the switch; “I think that’s why I’m going to make the switch to PC full time, but with a controller. What we were playing on during the tournament felt 100 times better, and I think I want to get in some of these scrims and start actually playing.” With Nick suggesting that he may make the jump in order to improve his skills, it seems certain that he plans to continue competing in Fortnite tournaments for the considerable future. The 100 Thieves streamer had an opportunity to test Fortnite on PC during the Summer Skirmish event at PAX West, where he finished in 17th position and took home $11,250 for his efforts. What makes NICKMERCS’ high placings even more impressive is that he is one of the few top level players who use a controller instead of a mouse and keyboard to compete. Using a controller should, in theory, put him at a disadvantage against his opponents, but you wouldn’t know it from watching the American play. If he starts playing on PC regularly, he might just be unstoppable.

Fortnite: NICKMERCS left speechless after hysterical BRUTE mech misplay Twitter: NICKMERCS / Epic GamesBRUTE mechs are one of the least popular additions in Season 10, and immediately became a controversial topic of discussion among fans, with many berating Epic Games for adding them – including NICKMERCS himself. The streamer has since decided to try them out for himself, and while many believe that the rocket launchers and shotguns that the vehicles come equipped with make it too easy to find Victory Royales, the 28-year-old proved to his audience that they are a lot more difficult to control than he imagined. While wreaking havoc on the Fortnite map during his August 11 stream, NICKMERCS found himself in a last man standing scenario, with him and an opponent both vying for the win. With the Twitch streamer standing tall in the BRUTE, it seemed as if it was only a matter of time until he picked off his mech-less enemy and secured the victory thanks to the mechanical monstrosity that he was housed in. Finally, his final foe leapt up onto the top of the building he was on, giving the FaZe Clan star the signal to prepare his rockets for a barrage of artillery to rain down on his opponent. Unfortunately for him though, he misjudged how powerful his attack would be, sending his enemy through the floor with the first rocket, only for the rest to destroy his BRUTE and cost him the game. NICKMERCS didn’t know how to react to his hilarious error, smirking into the camera in silence, before exiting the game and pretending that nothing had ever happened! While Epic Games continue to monitor the strength of the BRUTES, the FaZe Clan star will likely hope they get a nerf not so that opponents can’t deal as much damage to him, but rather so he doesn’t eliminate himself the next time he is seconds away from a win.

NICKMERCS is mind blown by the accuracy of a PC player on Fortnite 100 Thieves streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff was stunned by an enemy player’s aim while playing Fortnite on PC. NICKMERCS was streaming on Twitch when he was eliminated in mid-air by an opponent, who didn’t seem to miss a single shot as he took out the popular streamer. Kolcheff went back into Fortnite’s Theater Mode to watch exactly how to die, and couldn’t believe the accuracy of his opponents shot, shouting “Watch this, watch this!” as he observed his untimely demise. bro pc Fort is a different beast pic.twitter.com/JGlzBTym1t — 100T Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) September 17, 2018 Some members of Kolcheff’s Twitch chat believed that his opponent was in fact using an aimbot to get the kill, while others seem to think that it was just incredible aim mixed with a touch of luck. NICKMERCS took to twitter to joke that he wouldn’t be staying on PC if it happened again, saying; “bro I’m back to PlayStation if I see another one of those robots”. NICKMERCS recently made the switch to playing on PC from PlayStation in an attempt to improve his skills. He has been playing on a PlayStation 4 since Fortnite’s release, but felt he was stunting his growth by remaining on the console, and hopes to get involved in scrims against pro players on PC. Read More: What changed in the latest Fortnite update? V5.41 patch notes, Port-a-Fortress, Spiky Stadium and more! – Despite the switch from console to PC, he continues to use a controller to play instead of a keyboard and mouse. Players who use a controller against the PC peripherals are generally thought to be at a disadvantage compared to their opponents, but NICKMERCS’ impressive placings in competitive events show that that’s not always the case. NICKMERCS has been practicing on PC ahead of the Fortnite Fall Skirmish, which begins on Friday, September 21.

NICKMERCS hits out at Fortnite PC players for bashing console players NICKMERCSThe Fortnite community seems to be torn over the topic of console players using controllers, and popular streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff gave his take on the issue with a thunderous opinion. A portion of PC players have been clamoring that the aim assist function gives console players too much of an advantage in a match, forcing Epic Games to find a solution for the complaints. Unsurprisingly, NICKMERCS, being one of the best controller players in competitive Fortnite, voiced his very strong opinion towards those who think that the aim assist feature for controller players is too strong. NICKMERCS thinks the issue is a bit silly for PC players to complain about, and explained how the topic of discussion only works to divide a pretty sound community. Read more: Fortnite Secret Skirmish: Ghost Gaming’s Saf and Rise Nations’s Ronaldo win $100,000 Duos tournament – recap, highlights, final placements – “I need to call [people who insult console players] stupid,” NICKMERCS said. “If you care about competitive fortnite… you should support the controller community. You should try to make like an entire community and not this huge divide.” (Timestamp at 11:52 for mobile viewers) Watch aim from NICKMERCS on www.twitch.tvThe response to the issue was tame, but after reveling in the overwhelming success PC players enjoy compared to console players, he had stronger words for the community. “Do [console players] make some noise every now and then? Yeah we do. Am I proud of it? Yeah I am. But is it really that big of a splash in the pond? Fuck no, so shut up. Keep your little insignificant mouth shut. Don’t say stupid things because you got deagled in a scrim. You sound dumb,” he said. NICKMERCS suggested PC players need to “humble” themselves and realize that controllers don’t offer the big advantage that some believe it gives.

NICKMERCS hits out at Epic Games over major Fortnite playlist changes Epic Games/NICKMERCSThe decision by Epic Games to remove competitive settings from public Fortnite playlists has continued to frustrate professional players and high profile personalities. Fortnite’s v8.20 update dropped on March 27 across PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and mobile devices, and among the usual bug fixes and the addition of new items, a decision was made to remove competitive settings from public playlists, in favor of a new ranked Arena Mode. Controller-extraordinaire, Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff, has now hit out at Epic Games for making such a drastic change just a couple of weeks away from the Fortnite World Cup – a tournament that will have over $30,000,000 on the line. Kolcheff expressed his concerns on March 28 via Twitter, and he wasn’t alone with a host of other popular personalities and pro players expressing similar issues. “Arena mode is 10-20 minutes Q’s for 20-30 player end games,” the 100 Thieves streamer stated. “Pubs [public matches] are unplayable because it’s legit a different game and that means we can’t scrim [practice].” Arena mode is 10-20 minute Q’s for 20-30 player end games. Pubs are unplayable because it’s legit a different game and that means we can’t scrim. @FortniteGame wyd family? We’re 2 weeks away. — Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) March 29, 2019 What changed in the V8.20 Fortnite update? The v7.40 patch, which many regarded as the best update in Season 7, introduced a feature whereby players would have their health or shield increased by 50 for every elimination they recorded, but the developer is now saying that it resulted in an “unhealthy level of aggressive play” in the game’s Battle Royale mode. Epic completely reversed those changes in the V8.20 update. Yet, the changes it not only affected health replenishments after kills, but also material farming, the material cap and other critical gameplay features. Material capping had been set at 500 but has since been reverted to the 999 figure. Who else has complained about the changes? The 100 Thieves star wasn’t alone in his criticism of the major gameplay changes, especially with them coming so close to a major Fortnite esports event. Popular streamer Jack ‘CourageJD’ Dunlop and NRG Esports pro Mason ‘Symfuhny’ Lanier echoed the sentiments – focusing on lengthy load times for games plus the changes to health regeneration and material farming. Had the worst nightmare ever last night: I was playing Fortnite and they removed the health per kill, materials per kill, and faster farming rates in public games… I know. Terrifying. I wasn’t able to go back to sleep for a couple hours after waking up. — Jack “”CouRage”” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) March 28, 2019 actually forced to sit in 20 min queues all day truly truly truly just unfortunate— NRG Symfuhny (@Symfuhny) March 28, 2019 It remains to be seen what other changes Epic makes in the run-up to the World Cup event, but it seems like overhauling the gameplay further wouldn’t go down too well with the game’s competitive community.

NICKMERCS hits back at claims he can’t compete with Fortnite pros Following the conclusion of the Fortnite World Cup qualifiers, FaZe Clan’s Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff has hit back at suggestions he isn’t as good as some of the other professional players. After ten weeks of grueling online open qualifiers, the finalists for the World Cup – which takes place July 26-28 in New York City – have been finalized for both the solo and duo tournament. To the surprise of many, a number of top players from other major tournaments, such as Team Liquid’s Ryan ‘Chap‘ Chaplo and FaZe’s Dennis ‘Cloak‘ Lepore, failed to book their place, after Epic Games decided to lower the age requirements to allow younger players to compete. Among the players to miss out was popular controller player NICKMERCS, who performed admirably alongside his friend and teammate Nio Rooch, but was unable to qualify from arguably the toughest region in the world. However, the former 100 Thieves member hit back at the idea that he wasn’t as good as his fellow competitors, after winning a fight against Team SoloMid stars Anthony ‘Zexrow’ and Vinny ‘Vinny1x’ Gilgan. “I know people say I’m bad – but I ain’t fucking bad,” he said. “I still body all these fucking nerds all the time. I got Ceice’s ass yesterday, I got Zexrow’s ass yesterday and I got Vinny’s ass yesterday.” Nick highlighted his opponent’s editing speed as the biggest advantage they have over him and admitted he could perform better if he changed his controller binds, allowing him to edit on the left stick. He said: “It would definitely be better for me if learned L3 edit.” While the 28-year-old may have missed out on qualification this time around, there is plenty more tournaments in the pipeline to prove his skills, including Epic’s first ever competitive trio event. No World Cup for ya boy, but that’s just the beginning. Made it to Sunday & secured prize money in all 10 qualifiers, I’m proud of that! Back to the drawing board for the Trio tournament in a few weeks! Thanks for all of the support, ya’ll the best. #MFAM — Nickmercs (@NICKMERCS) June 22, 2019 It has been confirmed that Nick and Nio will partner up with fellow Twitch streamer Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan in the event which takes place on July 13-14.

NICKMERCS hits back at Fortnite players who criticize controller users FaZeTwitch star Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff hit out at Fortnite players who criticize controller users – highlighting the fact that they are competitive too. Keyboard and mouse vs controller is one of the oldest battles in gaming history, with each side thinking they are superior to the other. This fight has leaked into Fortnite, as the game offers both PC and console play. Currently, lobbies and tournaments are cross-platform, meaning players get to face off with different tools. However, recently, Epic Games have created separate events for both, and NICKMERCS has hit out at fans who are complaining about this. During a broadcast on March 10, the American let loose at players who were complaining about the separation of console and PC players. “All those keyboard and mouse players b**ched for years about controller players in their lobbies, well now Fortnite is taking a real step at getting them out of the lobby and the [PC players] are b**ching again. Make up your mind bro, do you want them in or do you want them out?” He clearly wasn’t impressed with the behavior of some PC players and went on to slam those who suggested that the recent Aim Assist nerf would make controller players bad. “Some players are like, UnknownArmy is gonna be sh*t now because he uses L2. I’m like, hold on, this guy picked up keyboard and mouse and placed top 10 in a Pop-Up cup in like two weeks. Can you not understand that there are controller players who have been playing competitive shooters for a long time?” This was just the start of NICKMERCS’ rant, as he dove further into the issue. “I don’t know what these [PC] players don’t get – they think we’ve been playing f**cking Spyro or some sh*t. Do they think we’ve just been playing Uno? We’ve all been playing competitive shooters and beating the f**k out of each other since I was in diapers.” The FaZe Clan member was understandably frustrated that some players didn’t realize that controller players have been competing for just as long as PC players, and that the choice of input doesn’t determine how good someone is at the game. However, after his rant fans will hopefully understand his point, especially with controller players like UnknownArmy currently thriving in Fortnite.

NICKMERCS gives incredible response after being told to quit Fortnite Epic Games / Scuf GamingFortnite star gave fans another funny moment during his Sunday, March 17 stream. Kolcheff is one of the most recognizable faces on Twitch, regularly attracting large amounts of viewers to his channel to watch him play Fortnite, the game which saw him skyrocket to the top of Twitch. NICKMERCS is also recognized as one of the most talented controller players in competitive Fortnite, earning some high finishes in tournaments since the game’s release in September 2017. While many view Kolcheff as one of the best in Fortnite, it appears not everyone shares that opinion, as the streamer himself revealed on his St. Patrick’s Day stream. As NICKMERCS started his stream for the day, he took time to call out some fans who had subscribed to his channel, before taking aim at a specific Twitter user who had fired shots in his direction. “On the off chance that the kid I just blocked on Twitter is in here,” said Kolcheff staring straight down the camera, “ Who just said you’re shit, you always lose, you never win? Yo, $200,000 earned in Fortnite. Suck my ass. Suck my ass.” NICKMERCS continues to compete in Fortnite tournaments and was most recently involved in the ESL Katowice Royale tournament, although he struggled throughout the tournament with technical issues. The streamer has also revealed that he intends to leave California and hinted at the possibility of leaving 100 Thieves as well. One thing is for sure though, NICKMERCS does not take kindly to those who call out his ability on Fortnite.

NICKMERCS explains why the Pump Shotgun is the worst gun in Fortnite FaZe clan / Epic GamesTwitch star Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff has explained why he thinks Fortnite’s Pump Shotgun is the worst weapon in the game. NICKMERCS is one of the biggest Twitch streamers out there and certainly a well-known name in the Fortnite world. He regularly broadcast the game and isn’t afraid to share his opinions about it, this time slamming one of the weapons. Now, Nick has set his sights on the Pump Shotgun, calling it the worst gun in the game after a very unsuccessful attempt at getting a close-range kill with it. During a stream on Feb 29, Kolcheff got into a tough close-range battle and managed to land a clean hit with the Pump, although it barely scratched his opponent and he was quickly eliminated from the game. “I might never pick up a gray Pump Shotgun ever again” Nick began, before explaining his thoughts on the weapon. “I would rather use a gray pistol, I’m done with it, I can’t stand it… if I have a Tactical Shotgun then he’s dead.” “The gray Pump is so bad. I hit him in the head for 47, point-blank… I’m never picking up a gray pump, ever again, mark my words. I’ll use my pickaxe before I pick it up.” NICKMERCS was understandably frustrated at the weapon. It is a shotgun after all and it barely did any damage from point-blank range – a situation in which it should excel. He’ll likely stick to his word and never use it again, especially as he’s a fan of the Tactical alternative and both weapons are not too hard to come by. Although, if he does try and use it again, his chat likely won’t let him forget what he said.

NICKMERCS explains why he’s “not worried” about Fortnite aim assist nerf Epic Games/Scuf GamingPopular Twitch streamer Nick ‘NICKMERCS’ Kolcheff has revealed why he’s not concerned for controller players after the latest Fortnite aim assist changes. Aim assist on the controller has been a hot topic amongst many of the top Fortnite creators with stars such as Tfue and Ninja calling for it to be nerfed. After many months of debate, Epic revealed that they would be finally implementing some changes to aim assist in Season 2, particularly with the ‘Legacy’ aim assist setting as it is set to be removed from the game altogether on March 13. Fortnite star NICKMERCS, who has been vocal about the disadvantages that controller players face, expressed his thoughts on the latest changes and why he was not too concerned over the update. Nick initially revealed that the changes would not affect him too much as he was not using the controversial Legacy settings prior to the announcement. However, he still felt as if it would not make much of a difference even to those controller players who do use Legacy, such as top pro player UnknownArmy. “Controller players are going to be around bro, keyboard and mouse player are going to b*tch about controller players, guys those are two certainties,” he told viewers of his Twitch stream. The popular streamer then highlighted that he was not too concerned about the future of controller players in competitive because a large percentage of Fortnite’s player base has the game on console. “We’re not going anywhere, Fortnite knows that and Epic knows that its because controller players, there’s a lot of us,” NICKMERCS explained, “they’re never not going to complain and moan.” The popular streamer continued on, adding that PC players will always find an issue with those on controller, regardless of how many changes Epic makes to the meta or balancing issues.