Fortnite patch removes lightsabers & Winterfest but adds annoying bug

Epic Games have released a new hotfix for their popular battle royale title Fortnite that brings to an end the Winterfest and Star Wars events that ran throughout the festive season, but it appears that the patch has caused an annoying issue for those who took part.

Over the Christmas period, Fortnite players were treated with a host of events, tasks, and rewards to keep them coming back to the game over the holidays, with Star Wars-themed cosmetics available to those who took on the Winterfest challenges, and lightsabers from the legendary movie franchise scattered across the island for players to wield as if they were Jedi themselves.

On January 7, Epic Games released a hotfix that signaled the end of these events, however, once it went live, Fortnite fans were greeted with a strange bug that has left those who completed challenges wondering if they have wasted their time.

Lightsabers were added to the game as a tie-in with the release of Rise of the Skywalkers.

While the idea of swinging a lightsaber around in Fortnite sounds like a great idea, many players had grown quickly frustrated with the weapons. Popular streamer Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins and many on social media called on the game’s developers to take them out, calling them “broken” and “bugged.”

Finally, on January 7, Epic Games pulled them out of the game, meaning players won’t have to worry about hearing the ominous drone of the weapon again.

While the removal of the lightsabers means that players will no longer face teleporting foes due to bugs, it seems that the end of the event has triggered another annoying bug to rear its head. In a post uploaded to Reddit shortly after the hotfix went live, fans of the game started complaining that the Star Wars challenges they had completed were missing from the game entirely.

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These challenges allowed players to earn special cosmetics from the movie franchise, but it appears that even though many have completed them, they are no longer available to view on the challenges screen, prompting many to wonder if their progress has been lost for good.

Anyone who earned cosmetics during the event doesn’t have to worry about them disappearing, as they remain in inventories and available for use. However, for those achievement hunters who love ticking off challenges, it’s frustrating to see all that hard work disappear, especially if you had earned 100% completion in the Star Wars event.

Epic Games have thankfully addressed the bug, confirming that they’re aware of it and are working on a fix.

It’s possible we may see it released as another hotfix, or they could wait to include it in the game’s next major patch. There is currently no official date for the release of the update, or for a fix for the challenge glitch.