Fortnite is issuing bans to anyone who uses an esoteric exploit that lets players freeze time with the Kinetic Blade katana. In only the smattering of days since players discovered the “game-breaking” glitch, before Fortnite developers “temporarily disabled” the kinetic blade’s usage in tournament playlists, some unwitting competitive players were suddenly, unceremoniously blown up.
They never stood a chance. The glitch didn’t give them one; it made their deaths happen offline. Fortnite leaker FNBRIntel, on Twitter on May 21, explains why.
Behind the Fortnite kinetic blade exploit
The kinetic blade exploit could only be used after a series of careful steps were performed. A devious player would have to make sure they were out “in the open” before selecting a nearby target. Then, they needed to “disconnect wifi and dash to [a target],” “use the slice feature [repeatedly] until you feel like you’ve done 200 damage,” and finally “reconnect wifi.”
And then the deed was done. “You’ll be teleported back and granted the kill,” FNBRIntel said.
While those exploiting the bug would be working hard behind the scenes, methodically executing each overpowered step, the players they targeted would have no idea anything was wrong, or that the other player was attacking them, let alone plotting evil things offline. They would be playing their game like normal, until they spontaneously died. Awkward.
The kinetic blade is a fairly recent addition to Fortnite, arriving to the battle royale along with the rest of its Chapter 4 Season 2 update earlier this spring, and so developer Epic Games seemed to be vigilant in monitoring it. In addition to vaulting the blade from tournament playlists, the developer started handing out temporary bans less than 24 hours after the exploit’s discovery for players that use it outside of tournament mode. Kotaku reached out for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
With great power comes great removal from Fortnite.