Fortnite pro player and FaZe member Jarvis Kaye has reportedly been banned from Epic's battle royale for life after using an aimbot - a widely-disliked and condemned hack that allows players to quickly and accurately auto-focus their weapons on enemies.
Kaye revealed the news in a lengthy six-minute video, first apologising for his actions before claiming that he never used the aimbot in competitive play, only ever using the hack for casual solos mode and playground mode to aid the creation of video content for his followers on Twitch and YouTube.
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"I've actually been banned on Fortnite for life," Kaye says in the above video (watch it here if the player doesn't display for you). "Recently, I've posted some videos of me using aimbot in solos and playground mode. All I was thinking about while I was making those videos was just how entertaining and interesting these videos would be for you guys to watch. It didn't even cross my mind that I could be banned for life on Fortnite.
"Obviously this was a huge mistake and it's completely wrong on my end. Genuinely I don't even know what I was thinking. Cheating in anything is just terrible."
"I never thought about the consequences that could happen from me making those videos. I just thought about entertaining you guys. The amount of happiness I get playing Fortnite every day is crazy. And now I can't play Fortnite at all."
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While some have argued that Epic might have been a little too harsh in handing down a lifetime ban, the Fortnite developer clarified in a statement that it has a "zero tolerance" stance when it comes to cheating.
"We have a zero tolerance policy for the usage of cheat software," Epic said. "When people use aimbots or other cheat technologies to gain an unfair advantage, they ruin games for people who are playing fairly."
Even if Kaye's claim that he only used the aimbot during casual matches is true, Epic still has to stand by its stance on account of the players who might have run into Kaye and his aimbot, and had an unfair or diminished experience while simply attempting to enjoy the game and earn rewards or finish challenges.
"I'm going to take accountability for my actions and I understand completely why this has happened," Jarvis later wrote on Twitter, "I just wish I had known how severe the consequences were at the time and I would have never thought about doing it. I love all of you who still support me, this is not the end."
Topics: epic games, Fortnite, Esports, Battle Royale
