Epic Games reveals $10M prize pool for 2023 competitive Fortnite
Epic Games has revealed a $10 million total prize pool for various major Fortnite tournaments in 2023, despite growing concerns over the future of competitive Fortnite.
The new Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) kicks off with Major 1 on February 2. After that, the official tournament will proceed with Major 2 and Major 3. Players will compete for a $2 million prize pool for each major. Majors 1, 2 and 3 will run for five weeks each.
After the three majors end, Epic will hold the FNCS Last Chance Major in August. This tournament offers one last chance for teams to qualify for the global championship. Teams only compete for a seat in the main event at this tournament, so there is no prize pool.
The season will end with the FNCS Global Championship 2023, which will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, at the end of the year. At this grand finale, qualifying teams compete to get a hand on the $4 million prize pool. Furthermore, the world championship will be an in-person event.
Epic’s $10 million commitment to competitive Fortnite comes amid growing concerns over its future among fans, players and other key figures in the community, with several teams having dropped this game completely.
Nordic team Become Legends, which won November’s FNCS Invitational 2022, just announced that it would no longer participate in competitive Fortnite. Following this decision, Become Legends also dropped Iwo “Setty” Zając and Jakub “Jacob” Wrotniak, who helped the group triumph in Fortnite competitions.
Previously, American esports organization Sentinels also announced its departure from Fortnite. The team also cut the contract of Fortnite legend Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf, a 2019 world champion.
Bugha is among the highest earners in competitive Fortnite, raking over $3 million through various tournaments. Sentinels’ decision to let go of Bugha caused a wave of disappointment among fans, especially since Bugha had earned the organization its first-ever world title.
Analysts, however, said the FNCS would maintain its presence as long as there were players interested in Fortnite’s competitive scene. Some argued that the departures of several professional teams might make room for regular players who would have trouble competing with people who played the game all day.
Furthermore, with Epic’s large prize pool, teams who are thinking of leaving Fortnite may reconsider their decisions. Analysts also emphasized the importance of the 2023 season in determining whether esports organizations would stick around for longer.
New system
Teams of two will compete in Major 1, 2 and 3. Based on each team’s performance and results every week of the tournament — the gameplay will be on Thursdays and Fridays — they will receive Series Points.
The top 40 teams with the highest cumulative points over the first three weeks will head to the Grand Finals. Meanwhile, teams that place 41st to 90th will go to the Surge Week, where they compete for the last spots in the Grand Finals.
In these Grand Finals, the top teams from each region will qualify for the world championship. Each Major has a different composition of qualifying duos, with Major 3 offering the most spots.
The Last Chance Major consists of two rounds. The top 250 teams in Round 1 will advance to Round 2, which runs for two days, with each team having six matches per day. Players need to score as many points as they can to qualify for Copenhagen.
Meanwhile, the global championship is divided into the new Upper and Lower bracket format. Fifty Upper Bracket teams compete in five matches on Day 1, while 50 Lower Bracket teams also compete in five matches a day on Day 2. The top 25 scorers on each Day will proceed to the Grand Finals.
On Day 3, each duo will participate in six different matches and try to gather as many points as possible to claim the title.
