Epic Games Give Fans What They Want: A Fortnite In-Person Tournament Is Coming!

The Fortnite Tournament has finally returned ... with you being able to watch the players and the games live in person.

Epic Games recently revealed that the Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) Invitational is coming back and will be an in-person event in November, per the company's announcement.

The event was previously held in person in 2019, some months before the onset of the COVID-19-induced lockdowns and quarantine procedures, per Epic Games.

The upcoming event is separate from Fortnite's main FNCS circuit, per Esports Insider.

FNCS 2022 Details

According to Epic Games' announcement of the event, the 2022 FNCS will be held on November 12 and 13 in Raleigh, North Carolina.

However, should public health trends change, or if regional laws or recommendations shift at any point in 2022, the game developer will reschedule the event or change its plans entirely, with switching to an online-only event being a possibility.

The game developer assures players it will be holding their health and safety as its number one priority in any in-person event. Epic Games will be inviting top FNCS duos from around the world to participate in the event by competing in a single lobby for a share of a $1,000,000 prize pool.

More details will be released on how to join the event in the coming months.

Players anticipating an invitation are to make sure to prepare any required travel documentation, such as passports, visas, other government-issued identification, vaccination cards, and other similar documents, ahead of time.

To do so, players should check with their country's guidelines for international travel and the U.S.' travel requirements for non-U.S. citizens. BLAST, the global esports entertainment network, mentioned that it would be producing the event's broadcast schedule, as was agreed upon by the company and Epic Games in February.

The network's move to produce the tournament's entire broadcast schedule follows its recent service expansion wherein it branched out from its initial exclusive focus on CS: GO to produce both Fortnite and FIFA Events.

According to BLAST's Twitter post about the signed deal, it is "passionate about leveling up esports and has been delighted to do this with FNCS over the last 12 months, with more to come."

The network added that the event is another major milestone in its journey.

FNCS 2022 - A Taste Test Of What's To Come

Kyle Giersdorf, also known as "Bugha," is the reigning world champion of the 2019 Solo World Cup for Fortnite, per Sportskeeda. However, with Epic Games announcing its first in-person event for more than two years, Bugha may have to fight again to keep his title soon.

According to The Verge, Epic Games may be using this tournament as some sort of testing ground on whether they can hold some kind of Fortnite World Cup in 2023.

The 2020 and 2021 Fortnite World Cup were canceled due to the various restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with Epic Games hosting online-only events, such as the FNCS.