Fortnite’s competitive scene once had a lot of momentum, but now it’s slowed down to a stand-still for several reasons, and SypherPK explained why.
Fortnite exploded into the competitive esports world, and it’s been in the mix ever since. But although it’s still alive and well, its momentum has slowed down quite a bit.
Professional players like Benjy ‘Benjyfishy’ David Fish have expressed their concerns about the dwindling prize-pool. And one of the most popular players in the scene, William ‘Zayt’ Aubin, announced his retirement because he wasn’t having fun.
The game is still incredibly popular. However, the competitive scene is in dire straits, and Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan explained why. Here’s what he had to say.
“A lot of people recently have been saying that Fortnite competitive is dying,” he said. “I personally don’t think it’s dying, but momentum is slowing down. Something [needs to be] done to rejuvenate and re-motivate people, because… momentum is dwindling, and I can explain why.”
“NRG Zayt, who is one of the longest-running pro players from back in the OG days, decided to retire,” he said. “He’s still been placing really well in tournaments, [but] he might have lost motivation because… the prize pool is extremely low compared to what it used to be.”
“Another thing that has shifted is the fun factor,” he said. “Back in the day, content creators used to play tournaments for fun. You had people like CouRageJD and TimTheTatman playing. It drove viewership [numbers up]… even though [they] didn’t necessarily win. That doesn’t really happen anymore.”
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
“Another [problem]… is the LAN tournaments,” he said. “For a good reason, we can’t have LAN events. But [they] drew more importance to them. People would be able to see competitors… and their reactions. We lost that, and we probably won’t get that back until 2022.”
“[Some of] the most memorable… moments [revolved] around LAN events,” he added. “You get more attracted to the storylines of the players. It feels more important. Right now, there is not as much story involved.”
“On top of that, when Epic Games is doing the live stream, they still use the spectator mode,” he said. “[It’s] laggy and choppy and doesn’t allow you to see the real skill that some of these players have.”
In the end, though, SypherPK re-iterated his belief that competitive Fortnite isn’t dying. However, he is convinced that it’s momentum is at an all-time low and thinks it needs to pick back up again. Only time will tell whether that happens.
Either way, Fortnite’s competitive scene isn’t as strong as it used to be. The signs are worrying, and if more players and viewers keep jumping ship, it will be interesting to see how Epic Games respond.
