Fortnite Suddenly Announces Legacy Look Controls Are Being Removed

Epic Games is removing the Fortnite Legacy Look Controls setting that was popular with players using controllers in an update coming soon. Fortnite’s legacy controls have long been a subject of controversy, as they allowed players to use a powerful aim assist on gamepads, which many mouse and keyboard players felt was unfair.

Part of the problem came from Fortnite’s adoption of a cross-platform model. While the feature was a popular addition, and crossplay in general is usually welcomed for most games, it did introduce imbalances into the game based on what platform players were using. Using a mouse to aim generally allows for greater precision than using the thumbsticks on a gamepad in Fortnite or essentially any shooter. Since that gave PC players an advantage over console players, Epic used aim assist on controllers to level the playing field. However, some felt that the feature went too far in the other direction, giving players using controllers too much of an advantage over those using a keyboard and mouse, especially when players found a way to cheat using Fortnite’s legacy aim assist to track others through walls and smoke.

Starting March 13, Epic Games is removing that issue altogether by taking legacy controls out of the game. Legacy controls cover more than just aim assist, and players who want their new control scheme to feel as much as possible like the old one will have to act fast. Before the change is implemented, players using legacy controls can select the new “Copy from Legacy” option in the settings menu to copy their chosen look sensitivity values over to the new system, otherwise their settings will be reset to the default.

The change also doesn’t mean that Epic is removing aim assist from Fortnite entirely. In fact, Epic says that the change is due to improvements made in the game’s aim assist elsewhere. Legacy aim assist is just one of several available modes, including linear and exponential. Since most competitive Fortnite players tend to use linear aim assist anyway, the change likely won’t make much of a difference for high-level play – or if it does, it will be a net positive for the pros.

As a live game, Fortnite is constantly undergoing changes, from adding seasonal content to altering the physics engine. This change is likely to be met with a mixed but vocal reaction, given how much it will affect the balance of the game. Given how popular Fortnite is on controls, many players thought that Epic would never nerf its aim assist for fear of upsetting large numbers of players, but it seems the developer finally determined that legacy controls were doing more harm than good.

Fortnite is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One.

Source: Fortnite Status/Twitter