fortnite giveawayWith great profits come great potential liability, and Epic is taking no chances when it comes to potential legal dust-ups. Epic is currently being sued over dances it has used as emotes in Fortnite, but now they want to head off a potential false advertising issue off at the pass.
The problem is with the Xbox One S Fortnite Eon Bundle, which packaged an Xbox with 2,000 V-bucks and the Eon cosmetic set. The problem? The description of the bundle also says it includes a “full game download,” which seems like it means something it doesn’t.
Fortnite: Battle Royale is free, and while these Xboxes may come with it already installed, that isn’t what this description implied to many players. Rather, it seemed like the “full game download” that the Eon Bundle came with would also be Fortnite: Save the World, the original form of the game before it added the free Battle Royale component, and one that still costs $20-40 depending on where you’re buying it.
Epic seems to have realized that advertising a “full game download” with only a part of the full Fortnite experience actually being offered (the already free part) is not a great idea and could lead to potential trouble down the road. So they’re giving away Save the World to everyone who owns the Eon bundle. Here’s the official word from Epic on reddit where this controversy first started blooming:
Hey everyone,
We agree that the messaging on the Xbox One S Fortnite Bundle was unclear and so will be granting free access to Save the World for those who purchased the bundle.
We are going to begin identifying players who have claimed the Eon Bundle and will be granting their accounts access to Save the World. We will also make sure that all future players who claim the Eon Bundle will be granted access to Save the World moving forward.
If you already had purchased Save the World and claimed the Eon Bundle, we will be granting you an additional 2,000 V-Bucks.
We hope to have an update shortly on the exact timing of entitlements.
UPDATE 12/27 - We'll begin the process of granting retroactive entitlements early next week when our offices reopen for the new year. We will provide an additional update on the progress of the grants around that time.
So, if you own the Eon bundle, expect a free copy of Save the World soon. Or 2,000 bonus V-bucks if you already have it, a free legendary skin. Granted, STW is not exactly the most popular part of Fortnite, but it’s probably worth giving a shot if you want a break from PvP action, and it expands the lore of the world of Fortnite in interesting ways. I think you can also earn V-bucks there. I don’t know, I haven’t played it, like 95% of other Fortnite players.
This was a good move by Epic and I’m glad they acted rather quickly about this. I doubt it will be the last controversy they stumble into, but it’s the right call in this situation.
Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Read my new sci-fi thriller novel Herokiller, available now in print and online. I also wrote The Earthborn Trilogy.