FNCS Season 2 Finals – What Went Wrong?

Fortnite
April 20, 2020
Jordan Ashley

The Season 2 FNCS finals were finally held over the weekend, but the latest competitive event has gone out with a whimper rather than a bang. The event seemed pretty much forgotten by Epic and beset with technical difficulties. On top of this, a lot of big-name Fortnite players were definitely off their game. It is hard to complain about the performance of players though when even Epic seemed to have forgotten they were holding a major event.

Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2 itself has become somewhat saturated with tournaments. Cash Cups, Platform Cups, and Daily Duos cups run pretty regularly. This has taken the shine off of the FNCS to an extent. With so much going on, what was previously the top tier of competitive Fortnite esports, has become a bit drowned out. While the action in this weekend’s finals was definitely a notch above what you’ll see in other tournaments, the event wasn’t as big as it has been in previous seasons.

Fortnite Season 2 FNCS Finals

© Fortnite

The FNCS Season 2 Finals

The finals were the culmination of the last few weeks of qualifiers. This format is well-worn by now. While the Season 2 FNCS finals would never be as big as the World Cup, they’re usually viewed as the biggest regular tournament for pros. This made it all the more surprising when big name after big name screwed up over the weekend. The action was defined more by stumbles than successes.

The winners of the FNCS in NA mainly hailed from big teams. However, Saf who came out on top of the NA East tournament is still a free agent.

Big names in Fortnite made mistake after mistake in the finals. Bugha, the winner of last year’s Fortnite World Cup, had a particularly disappointing few games. However, it is the technical issues of the tournament that lead to mistakes that have to really sting.

Epic’s handling of the Season 2 FNCS has left a lot to be desired. Many players have cited technical difficulties as an influence on their final results. While there is plenty of reason to call this an excuse, the current competitive scene is a bit of a mess.

What Went Wrong?

In recent weeks, Fortnite’s health has been pretty hotly debated. The ripfortnite trend of a few weeks ago was fresh in the minds of viewers as the Season 2 FNCS kicked off. One of the main complaints from pros about the state of the game has been Epic’s handling of technical issues. In a major tournament, players getting their games crashed or locked out of competing further is not a good look. Technical issues are plaguing the current competitive scene, which makes it difficult to get too invested in what is going on in Fortnite at the moment.

On top of these technical issues, Epic is running a baffling amount of tournaments. Most competitive players don’t compete in all of them, simply because there isn’t enough time in the day. Having cash tournaments running multiple times every week is definitely distracting from the big events. Pros who also stream can’t really ignore the other events, which leaves very little time to practice or perfect their strategy ahead of major events.

The Season 2 FNCS Were Forgettable

It was easy to forget the tournament was even running. It seems that even Epic may have, since they didn’t even bother to run an official stream of the event. After weeks of build-up and a decline in Fortnite’s popularity, this event would have been the perfect time to try and bring people back in bored. Instead, it seems Epic just checked out and left everything on autopilot.

The Season 2 FNCS were a bit of a mess and highlight some ongoing issues with Fortnite’s competitive scene. While Epic is happy to throw money around as prizes for the many ongoing tournaments, they seem a bit tighter when it comes to building a better online infrastructure. If Fortnite tournaments are going to return to their previous quality, more has to be done to make sure they’re all running as well as they can be.

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