Fortnite players are reporting issues with the game's audio, particularly on Xbox versions.
If you have recently loaded up a battle royale match on a Microsoft console, only to find that the sound is heavily distorted, popping in and out, or simply absent, this is not a fault with your home set-up. If you switch to another game, you should find that there's nothing wrong with your TV or speakers.
This is, in fact, a Fortnite glitch that is affecting multiple players. It has been reported on the Xbox One, Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X versions of the game. It's not yet known what is causing the problem but it started after a recent update, so many gamers are attributing it to that.
Complaints about the audio started to filter through on social media late on Wednesday. Some Twitter users posting on December 15 even claimed the sound is so choppy that it essentially makes the game unplayable.
You might assume that gamers could just mute the sound and carry on playing. After all, it's a battle royale multiplayer, so you don't need to be attentive to dialogue or listen out for story exposition.
However, sound plays a crucial role in Fortnite matches, giving you various clues about what is happening around you. If there's a hidden chest in your vicinity, the only way to find out about it is to listen for the tell-tale sound effect. Meanwhile, it's imperative that you are able to hear enemy footsteps and gunfire, so you're not caught off guard.
This wouldn't be such a problem if all gamers were in the same boat. However, Fortnitesupports crossplay, which means Xbox players might be joining public lobbies alongside those using PlayStation, PC and Nintendo Switch—none of whom are experiencing the audio glitch at the time of writing. In other words, Xbox gamers will be at a distinct disadvantage.
Epic Is Investigating the Audio Bug
There are no confirmed solutions for the glitch at the moment, although some players have reported on Twitter that they were able to fix it temporarily by restarting their Xbox hardware. This doesn't seem to be a lasting solution, though.
The game's creator, Epic, has confirmed via its Fortnite Status account that it is investigating the issue, meaning a hotfix will likely be rolled out soon. To be alerted as soon as the situation is resolved, we recommend that you follow @FortniteStatus and turn on notifications.
Earlier in December, Fortnite launched a huge Chapter 3 update, which fundamentally changed many aspects of the game. Newsweek has prepared multiple guides to help you learn the ropes, including ones on how to perform the slide move, where to find Spider-Man's web shooters and how to get crowns.