Professional Fortnite Battle Royale player Timothy ‘Bizzle’ Miller has blasted developers Epic Games over the format of the World Cup Qualifiers, arguing that they failed to consult players when planning the tournament.
The qualifiers have been going on for the past 8 weeks or so, as the best players in the world scrap it out for a place at July’s finals in New York City, where $30 million is on offer.
However, a number of professional players have criticized Epic and their decision-making, particularly surrounding the competitive side of the game and the tournament format.
Many took issue with the vaulting of the pump shotgun midway through the qualifiers, while FaZe Clan’s Cloak lashed out at them for scheduling issues. They also faced significant backlash as two previously banned players qualified for the finals.
On June 2, Bizzle gave a scathing evaluation of the format of the event, as he once again failed to qualify for the Duo section of the tournament. “Joke of a qualifier,” he started, “shit format that doesn’t show who the best teams are, gotta love @EpicGames”.
“Rushed into a tournament you [Epic Games] weren’t ready for,” he continued, in a second tweet. “Never asked for ideas from players, just a joke”.
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Rushed into a tournament you weren’t ready for, never asked for ideas from players, just a joke
— Bizzle (@Ghost_Bizzle) June 2, 2019
The qualifiers are formatted similarly to Arena mode, with points awarded for eliminations, reaching certain thresholds of players remaining, and achieving victory royales. However, some feel this still rewards defensive – and boring – play styles, leading to a chaotic end game scenario in which luck is the most defining factor.
There was a mixed response to Bizzle’s tweet, with certain prominent esports personalities agreeing, while other felt he was simply venting frustration. The Ghost Gaming star qualified for Solos in the first week of the qualifiers.
Three-time Call of Duty World Champion Damon ‘Karma’ Barlow seemed to agree, simply by replying “esportssssss”. Others, however, were less agreeable, with one Twitter user retorting that “the best seem to qualify multiple times in Europe and NA…”.
Given the fact there are only two weeks of qualification remaining, it seems very unlikely that Epic will change the format of the tournament, but may take the criticism on board for future events.