Switch Fortnite Players Will Now Only Be Matched With Mobile Players

TheGamer

By Chris Littlechild

Published Mar 13, 2019

Nintendo Switch Fortnite players are no longer be able to play against PS4 or Xbox One users. Instead, they'll only be against mobile users.

via Variety

Sorry, Nintendo Switch owners, it looks like you’re out of luck when it comes to Fortnite cross-play. From now on, you’re going to be consigned to a pool of mobile players.

As we know, the Switch is in quite a privileged position, third-party wise. To wit: it’s actually getting some third-party games, which is quite a revelation when it comes to Nintendo consoles of late. The super successful system is still drawing in buyers, which means it’s also drawing in developers.

At the same time, though, the Switch still falls far short of the specs that Sony and Microsoft’s systems bring to the table. As a result, a lot of major releases just wouldn’t be feasible on the console. Reggie might have claimed that Switch only missed out on Red Dead Redemption 2 because the system released too late, but what were the chances that the hybrid handheld would have been able to run it anyway?

All of this brings us around to Fortnite. The unstoppable battle royale title was quite a coup for the Switch when it was announced (during an E3 2018 Nintendo Direct), and it was certainly embraced by Nintendo gamers. In November of last year, it was revealed that almost half of all Switches in the world had downloaded the game.

Handheld Fortnite will be quite a novelty to lots of players, of course, but is it the optimal way to play the game? Sadly not. Many Switch players have complained that the game runs poorly on the system and that too many compromises were made to port it over in the first place.

Epic Games’ latest compromise for Fortnite Switch is one that’s sure to ruffle all kinds of feathers: As of version 8.10, users are no longer being matched with Xbox One or PS4 cross-play parties. According to a report from Nintendo Life, matches will now be limited to players on iOS and Android (and others on Switch, but you got that).

The discrepancy now, then, is not between players who are locked to 30fps and players that aren’t, but between players who have pro controllers and players who are trying to finagle the awkward touchscreen mobile setup. This is sure to be a controversial move.