Since the introduction of Fortnite Battle Royal to the world in 2017., it has become a video game and a worldwide cultural phenomenon. Since then, Fortnite developer Epic Games has counted millions of players in this popular multiplayer free-to-play battle royal arena.
Unfortunately, with the rise of the player base in multiplayer gaming, there is always the problem with players that tend to cheat to gain advantage or some other uses like grinding, farming, or even real-world trading. Due to it being a free-to-play battle royale game, Fortnite draws a lot of cheaters.
Aimbots and ESP (Extra Sensory Perception) modifications are two examples of cheats that alter the game’s rules in order to give hackers and cheaters an unfair advantage. The core of Fortnite or any game is destroyed by hacking or cheating, as evident as it may be.
Here, Epic Games had to implant a few anti-cheat solutions from the start and during the game’s lifetime with updates and maintenance tweaks. The usage of cheats is something that Epic Games take very seriously.
In this article, we will cover all you need to know about BattlEye in Fortnite.
Does Fortnite use BattlEye?
From October 2017., Fortnite Battle Royale uses BattlEye as an anti-cheat software system. At a later date, Epic Games updated Fortnite with another two layers of security, Easy Anti-Cheat, and Hyperion, by Byfron.
BattlEye is an anti-cheat system that protects games and their players from hacking, cheating, and other forms of attacks.
The anti-cheat software is automatically installed with Fortnite. To play a BattlEye-enabled game, BattlEye’s software must be present on your system. You won’t be able to launch the game if you have uninstalled it. It will launch when you start the game of Fortnite and only be active when you are playing a game.
Further, we will explain how does BattlEye protect your experience playing Fortnite.
Status of anti-cheat security of Fortnite in 2022
The issue with cheaters is still a problem in 2022. And Fortnite hacking has escalated into a major problem over time. With the newly introduced Chapter 4 and much new content incoming, the number of active players does not falter.
The experiences of many participants have been ruined by cheaters who have started infiltrating legitimate competitive competitions. They have grown into a bother, and Epic Games has to stop them regularly.
The internet is flooded with brand-new cheats, for example, wall-hacks, ESPs, and soft aim hacks. They can even be purchased. Numerous gamers choose to purchase cheats rather than work hard to advance in the game. Fortunately, Epic Games is actively pursuing those who create and market cheats.
To deter them from disseminating cheats, the studio has brought several legal actions against such individuals.
As of 2022., Fortnite players are protected with three-layer anti-cheat systems, and one of them is BattlEye. The other two are EAC (Easy Anti-Cheat) and Hyperion by Byfron.
Players have a lot less to worry about in terms of hackers thanks to the triple anti-cheat method than they would in other games of a similar nature. Additionally, Fortnite does not hesitate to punish or ban players who are found to be cheating.
How does BattlEye anti-cheat work
Anti-cheat software, which can be either Server-Side (placed by the developer and used from within the game) or Client-Side, recognizes players who use external cheats (software installed and run by the player).
BattlEye’s anti-cheat system dates back to 2004., starting as a third-party anti-cheat for Battlefield Vietnam and Battlefield 1942. Since then, it has been implanted in many popular multiplayer games throughout the year, such as ArmA serial, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, DayZ, and Iron Front: Liberation 1944.
Today it is one of the leading anti-cheat systems and helps to protect many popular and trending multiplayer games such as PUBG, Rainbow Six: Siege, ARK: Survival Evolved, Destiny 2, Conan: Exiles, Planetside 2, and of course, Fortnite.
A collaboration between anti-cheat or anti-piracy programs and video games doesn’t always sail smoothly. The issue with cheaters is a nightmare for developers of multiplayer games, especially in a competitive area. It’s never an easy task to fight against cheaters and simultaneously optimize the high performance of the game.
So, here is a short look at how Battle Eye anti-cheat software works and what known issues can players of Fortnite expect with BattlEye.
Being extremely user-friendly, BattlEye software only requires a small amount of CPU, RAM, and network bandwidth. BattlEye developers assure players that the program will just be running in the background without the player noticing.
Cheaters can be effectively eliminated from each gaming session thanks to integration on both the server- and client sides of the game. BattlEye is downloaded alongside the other game files; therefore, visiting the BattlEye website manually is typically not necessary.
At its foundation, BattlEye is a proactive defense mechanism that surrounds the entire game with a solid shield. In this manner, the majority of hacking is initially totally prevented. This framework is always changing to accommodate new types of offensive games. A clever dynamic on-the-fly detection system guards against the remaining hacking, ensuring that persistent cheats are caught.
Here are some specifics on how BattlEye operates internally to get a little more technical for those who want to know more:
- Fully functional proactive protection system that completely prevents the great majority of hacking attempts without interfering with the player
- Innovative, complex, specialized, and heuristic/generic detection and cheat analysis methods are used in user- and kernel mode for rapid, continuous, and permanent scanning of the player’s system for optimal effectiveness.
- All game server control remains in the hands of the BattlEye Server, which demands prompt and consistent responses from all BattlEye Clients and immediately excommunicates infringers.
- Through the game’s own network connection, communication occurs via highly encrypted packets without the need for any additional port or firewall forwarding.
- Secure auto-update solution that is bandwidth-friendly and extremely reliable while not interfering with the player
- Every game it supports has fully tailored solutions as needed, such as Fortnite’s highly effective script detection.
Minor issues between BattlEye and Fortnite
But, as we said, nothing goes smoothly. Some minor known issues resulted in the player’s initiative to remove the BattlEye anti-cheat system, not because they wanted to have their cheating go full throttle, but because every anti-cheat sometimes downgrades the game’s performance.
Also, many players prefer some other anti-cheat system. For example, many had an issue with the BattlEye launcher, which appears whenever players try to load Fortnite and says, “BattlEye service failed to install,” even though it has already been installed.
Also, certain software (e.g., SpeedFan) that uses kernel drivers and has known security flaws that cheaters can take advantage of is blocked by BattlEye.
But, issues don’t occur frequently, and most players can enjoy uninterrupted Fortnite sessions without a drop in performances or having trouble with all sorts of hackers and cheaters.
Look into the future of anti-cheat in Fortnite
Many gamers are concerned by the increase of hackers and cheaters at both casual and competitive levels. Developers use as many resources to fight them, and implementing third security software in Fortnite, proves that.
BattlEye proved to be efficient last five years, not just in Fortnite but in other games. Most high-profile multiplayer games (in the battle royale genre), such as Warzone and Apex, suffer from cheater’s creativity and ingenuity.
But, as far as protection goes, one can hope to see less of them while playing and experience clean and fun competition while playing. With current anti-cheat systems, Fortnite is not yet in the red alarm zone, and we hope it will stay that way in the future.