Epic plans to stop unfair advantage keyboard and mouse players have in Fortnite

Epic Games has been one of the frontrunners for cross-platform play in recent years, ensuring that PC, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and mobile can play against one another. Fortunately, the community’s fear of playing at a disadvantage against keyboard and mouse users has been heard by the developer, as plans are in the works to pass control over to each individual player.

While controllers offer the ability to sit back a little more relaxed, developers often have to include aim assist in order for a smoother, more accurate feel in shooters. Keyboard and mouse give players that level of control without assistance, inherently more precise than an analogue stick or touch screen. This makes it much easier to see player concerns on playing at a disadvantage.

In order to combat these woes, Epic Games is “working on some matchmaking tech, on the way, that’ll pair you against folks based on your choice of peripherals,” according to community manager JustMooney1 on Reddit. This hopes to give players the choice of who they will be matched against, even if it does take a little longer on search times to gather opponents.

Considering Xbox One allows for keyboard and mouse support through third party adaptors, and is officially working on first-party support for the peripherals, it remains to be seen whether Fortnite’s matchmaking will identify each individual peripheral used rather than just assuming based on the user’s platform. Then there’s concerns that players could spoof the system and switch part-way through a match if no detection system is in place.

Currently, the roadmap for this update is internal with no indication on when the new matchmaking choices will be hitting the live servers. More information should be available later this week, according to community coordinator Sean Hamilton, under his MrPopoTFS handle.

KitGuru Says: Given Epic’s push on Fortnite becoming more of a staple esport title, it makes sense to level the playing field, even if it does sacrifice the attraction of cross-platform play. Placing the choice in players’ hands is about the smartest move to quell concerns. Do you feel like Fortnite makes for unbalanced matches thanks to cross-platform play?

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