Fortnite: Are Prize Pools Sinking?

As the details of Chapter 2 Season 5's Cash Cup prize pools were revealed, a feeling of despair settled over Fortnite's competitive world. Epic Games last month announced that there would be no World Cup and that the primary focus would remain on the trios for the whole year of 2021. The players were eager to get back into competitive Season 5 events after the winter break.

Setting The Bar High

Epic Games established an unsustainable precedent when they released The Extreme Prize Pools on Fortnite Tournaments. While incentives were in the millions through Fortnite Chapter 2, professional players are starting to doubt Epic's management of the competitive scene from a financial perspective. They are concerned about what could happen at the upcoming FNCS tournament, which is less than one month away.

The cash cup as well as the FNCS prize pool downtrend?

Cash Cup prize pools are slightly more difficult to monitor due to the volume of tournaments and locations involved. But it seems the developers have taken a decision to trim the money given to Cash Cups and also reduce the number of tournaments this season. Epic Games has begun to be concerned The Extreme Prize Pools on Fortnite Tournaments following the shocking revelation of the Cash Cup prize pool in Season 5.

 

Pro Players React To Prize Pool Plummet

Benjyfishy is a Fortnite professional player with NRG Esports. He was among the many players who offered their opinion regarding the current game's situation.

Least amount of tournaments we've ever played with the least amount of money, and the game was the most boring as I can remember," he wrote on Twitter. Benjy, one of the most prominent players of Fortnite competitive gaming, is a player in the toughest areas and streams to millions of people. His career has seen him experience numerous successes. Benjy was a finalist in the solo and duo Fortnite World Cup Finals and has been five times Fortnite Champion Series finalist.

It is frightening to hear someone with so many accolades disapprove of Epic's plans. With prize pools continually shrinking, it's difficult for unknown players to start earning a living from the game which will eventually force them to stop playing. The comp scene will eventually die out if it carries on," continued Benjy on Twitter. He believes the element of growth and exposure will decline gradually with the amount of cash allocated to tournaments. While he expressed his hope for a competitive Fortnite in 2021, his attitude quickly changed.

The discussions about prizes happen almost all seasons, however this one feels a bit different. Season 5's Trio Cash Cups are bi-weekly, but offer far less than what most people recall. Epic has also revealed that it will continue to run gimmicky Limited Time Mode tournaments (LTM) and "Bragging Rights" which will only award tweets to the winning teams. The general unease has players wondering what Epic has in store for the FNCS season to come. However, this hasn't stopped players from asking Epic suggestions regarding how they can make things right.

Fortnite is a well-known game.

Battle Royale is still a huge business. Millions continue to play the game and it is among the top games watched on Twitch. Even though its initial rise in popularity has decreased some, the competitive scene keeps an enormous portion of the population of people interested in Fortnite. It is not uncommon for the competitive scene to be averse to prize pools and tournaments that aren't right for them. Epic Games continues to put up huge amounts of money to fund Fortnite competitions, and the Cash Cup situation may be an interesting departure from the way players have had to endure previously.