Several players in the European FNCS Season 7 Finals received inexplicable mid-game bans and chaos ensued.
Competitive Fortnite is in the midst of its seasonal Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) event, where seven regions are battling for a shot at $3M USD and the in-game Axe of Champions reward. For most, it's a glorious moment and one that would ideally cement them as one of Season 7's best trios. However, that sentiment quickly evaporated for Fortnite legend Martin "100T MrSavage" Foss Andersen and multiple-time FNCS Finalist Sebastian "Trippernn" Sommer Kjaer earlier today.
The two players queued into game four of the European FNCS Finals, and Epic inexplicably struck both with the dreaded banhammer. MrSavage and Trippernn took to Twitter with their confusion and, while Epic reversed the ban, both were unable to accumulate points in game four.
MrSavage & Trippernn Banned for "Exploiting"
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In game four of the FNCS Finals, the ban occurred not ten minutes after MrSavage and his teammates Endre "00 Endretta" Byre and Oscar "Falcon Refsgaard" Dalgas Refsgaard claimed a crucial game three Victory Royale. During an early-game fight, MrSavage's name ticked across the kill feed, but it was not an elimination. Instead, both he and Trippernn were struck with the banhammer, ending their chances to add to their point total in the FNCS Season 7 Finals.
MrSavage, Trippernn and thousands of others took to Twitter with outrage, questioning why Epic Games banned the two players amid Fortnite's pinnacle seasonal tournament. The two players tweeted at Epic employees directly and received a quick turnaround.
MrSavage & Trippernn Unbanned Shortly After, Endretta Banned
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After exiting game four against their will, Epic Games reversed the bans inflicted on MrSavage and Trippernn. To make the situation even more bizarre, Endretta received a ban not long after Epic lifted MrSavage's ban. The latest discipline forced MrSavage, Refsgaard and Endretta out of game five, meaning they would miss two straight matches barring an executive decision from Epic.
Fortnite Competitive Tweets Players Were "Accidentally" Removed
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Epic Games had no choice but to acknowledge the anger brewing on Twitter and elsewhere. The developers chose to replay games four and five at the end of day two.
Here's the complete statement from Epic Games via Twitter:
"We are nulling the results of Game 4 & 5 in the EU FNCS Finals due to an error that removed several participating teams from the matches accidentally. These matches will be replayed at the end of tomorrow's Day 2 session. Leaderboards will be corrected after the event concludes."
It's not clear at this stage how several players received accidental bans during the FNCS Season 7 Finals. Now, European finalists will compete in eight games tomorrow instead of six. Thankfully, that means MrSavage, Endretta, Refsfaard and Trippernn's team won't miss out on crucial points.
We'll be sure to update this article with any further details as we learn more about the developing situation.
