Fortnite third-party tournaments have been under attack following a discussion across social media about prize pools and organisation. Caster MonsterDface also shared his opinions on the topic.
A series of tweets from top Fortnite players and community members has sparked a discussion on the health of the Fortnite competitive scene. Players such as Stretch, MackWood, and Reverse2k have voiced their concern. Things came to a head when top players participated in a Fortnite third-party tournament.
Fortnite pros express frustrations with Fortnite third-party tournaments
The professional Fortnite community is up in arms. A Fortnite third-party tournament, hosted by Elite Esports, drew criticism from the top players. Their complaints stemmed from what the players believe to be low prize pools.
Their displeasure with these events comes from a long a number of mishaps in the past by other tournament organizers. The top Fortnite players believe their likeness is worth more than what these smaller tournaments provide.
Unfortunately, the recent events are nothing new. The growing angst peaked in July 2021. An esports organization hosted a tournament a "$10,000 Tournament."
The tournament turned out to be three separate events with that prize pool split. The event was misleading and required the players to stream, post on social media, and promote the event to participate. Reverse2k spoke out against top players participating in events such as these.
Many professional Fortnite players jumped in to agree with Reverse's statement.
The pros see the tournaments as an opportunity to practice. Therefore, they regularly play in these tournaments even though the general sentiment questions participation. Now, fast-forward to November 2021 and the same conversations still flood Twitter. Pros' actions have not changed and neither has their voice.
The latest Elite Esports event sparked conversation. Even though the event did not set promotion, stream, or requirements. Players that participated in the Fortnite third-party event became irritated with the event organizer who put up small prize pools. Although, no one is forced to be involved with these tournaments. The same situations will occur in the future.
MonsterDface gives an insider look at the Fortnite landscape
After the most recent frustration by Fortnite pros, MonsterDface shared his thoughts on the situation. MonsterDface, or MDF, owns and operates one of the largest tournament organization companies in the space, PracticeServer. This gives MDF a unique perspective on the situation.
MonsterDface states, "The players themselves...the most skilled players in our scene are not as enthusiastic about the game anymore, about their position within the community." He continued, "A huge portion of our scene has faced burnout in the game. It's hard to turn away from the absurd amounts of opportunity there is to earn cash."
These words from MDF express the feelings of many within the competitive Fortnite community. Many of the top players remain at the top after three or four years of competition. In order to stay at the top, these players participate in multiple events every single week. Over time, the players grew tired of playing in these smaller events, especially with decreasing prize pools.
The message from Monster was not all doom and gloom. "I don't mind the chaos. Looking back at those memorable moments, those moments caused a lot of conversation. The conversation, whether positive or negative, creates excitement."
Can this problem be fixed?
From an outside perspective, Fortnite provides endless opportunities for players to earn money. Tons of sponsors, such as Chipotle, JBL, Razer, and FaZe Clan hosted huge Fortnite tournaments just this year. The huge tournaments are not the issue. All this noise surrounds the smaller tournaments.
Smaller companies and organizations put on these events to build their brand and increase their reach. Not everyone can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a single event. For a small prize pool, the top players enter these tournaments and provide their massive reach via social media. Why would a small organization or brand overspend when they receive the returns they are looking for?
Ultimately, the decision to change the culture comes down to the players. They can bash tournaments all they want. Sadly, the players are bashing people investing in them. If the organizers leave and the investments move on, all that opportunity disappears as well. As MDF said, "Respect the organizers because once they are gone, 99.9% of y'all won't step up to the challenge that is providing for others and the brand at mass."
If this news is a little too sombre you can find relief in knowing that Fortnite teased Naruto Shippuden skins. Not a fan of Naruto? We'll your out of luck.