{"id":522552,"date":"2026-03-14T05:07:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T05:07:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/522552\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T05:07:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T05:07:07","slug":"fortnite-fans-call-for-mass-boycott-over-epics-v-buck-price-hike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/522552\/","title":{"rendered":"Fortnite Fans Call For Mass Boycott Over Epic’s V-Buck Price Hike"},"content":{"rendered":"

Earlier this week, Fortnite revealed V-Bucks are getting more expensive<\/a>. That\u2019s right, they\u2019re doing shrinkflation on virtual currency; the nine dollars that used to get you a clean 1,000 V-Bucks, for instance, will soon only be worth 800. Subscribers to Fortnite Crew are also getting hammered. The price hikes come as everything else about gaming gets more expensive too, and some players are calling for a boycott to push back against Epic\u2019s latest move.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cost of running Fortnite has gone up a lot, and we\u2019re raising prices to help pay the bills,\u201d wrote<\/a> the multibillion-dollar studio Epic in a blog post announcing the change. Won\u2019t anyone think of the little guy? The cost of Battle Passes is going down to reflect the price change, at least, so the Fortnite OG Battle Pass will now cost 800 V-Bucks instead of 1,000. <\/p>\n

But Epic doesn\u2019t mention any price adjustments for item shop cosmetics. One Redditor<\/a> made a graph illustrating how the price change could end up costing players hundreds of extra dollars in the long term.<\/p>\n

pic.twitter.com\/0wYDIUEt9Q<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 \ud835\udcc0\ud835\udcb6\ud835\udcce! (@littlemankay) March 10, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Understandably, the Fortnite community is in uproar over the news. Some players are even organizing a boycott. \u201cYou cut our V-Bucks. We cut your funding,\u201d writes one Redditor<\/a>, who created a petition calling for a price reversal that currently has over 1,000 signatures.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Epic is taking a \u201cwe feel your pain\u201d approach to try to mollify angry fans. \u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of feedback here not just about the V-Bucks changes, but sharing your feelings about Fortnite as a whole\u2013especially on this current season,\u201d read a follow-up post from the company on Reddit. \u201cCan\u2019t wait to show you next week\u2019s update.\u201d<\/p>\n

So far it\u2019s not working. The most popular graphic circulating on Reddit<\/a> and X<\/a> calls for a Fortnite boycott on March 19, when the price hike is set to take effect: \u201cOur goal: lower the player count on the first day of the new season.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hey @LEGOMoonNite<\/a> \u2013 Seeing comments like \u201cthe Item Shop is the main focus instead of the game\u201d hits me really hard. It’s not the impression we want to give nor how we focus our efforts. We put a ton of work and care into Fortnite\u2019s gameplay and this focus is only growing. Paying\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/1ibGyvFBag<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Andre Balta (@AndreBaltaEpic) March 10, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Epic was asked about the backlash in a recent interview by The Verge at GDC 2026. \u201cI think what we put out publicly is pretty accurate,\u201d Epic senior director of ecosystem growth Andre Balta said. \u201cIt\u2019s pure operating costs of running a business, and that was the main push. We\u2019re going to continue to, as a business, focus on creating amazing games and gameplay, but the price hike is a direct correlation to the operating costs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Only time will tell how many players participate in the boycott and whether the loosely organized effort makes a dent in one of the most popular video games of all time. The frustration is clearly being heard, though.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing comments like \u2018the Item Shop is the main focus instead of the game\u2019 hits me really hard. It\u2019s not the impression we want to give nor how we focus our efforts,\u201d Balta wrote on X<\/a> in response to criticism from one Fortnite content creator<\/a>. \u201cWe put a ton of work and care into Fortnite\u2019s gameplay and this focus is only growing. Paying the bills frees up our teams to continue driving stories and building stuff you love.\u201d<\/p>\n