Fortnite in-game message encourages players to "be awesome to each other" and report harassment

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The message includes an easy way to report players who aren't being awesome

(Image credit: Epic Games)

Fortnite has a new, anti-racist splash message encouraging players to "be awesome to each other" and report racism or hate. Check out the picture below.

(Image credit: Epic Games)

"Encourage your squad mates to a Victory Royale," the message reads. "If you encounter racism or hate in Fortnite towards yourself or others, open the Menu, go to 'Reporting/Feedback', then send a player report with 'Harassment: Using Inappropriate Language' as the reason." There's a button on the splash page that takes players straight to the Player Reporting section of Fortnite. 

Fortnite joins other games with large player bases that have taken steps to reduce racism and hate speech on their platforms in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. As we previously reported, Infinity Ward announced last month that it was cracking down on racist usernames in Modern Warfare and Warzone. "There is no place for racist content in our game. This is an effort we began with launch and we need to do a better job. We're issuing thousands of daily bans of racist and hate-oriented memes."

Respawn recently added a Black Lives Matter message to the Apex Legends main screen, and Bungie has made a Black Lives Matter statement and made a Black Lives Matter pin for Juneteenth, with proceeds supporting racial justice. 

Recently, Fortnite held an in-game panel about racism in its Party Royle mode with Van Jones, Elaine Welteroth, Jemele Hill, Killer Mike, and Lil Baby. They discussed "how to change systemic racism in media, culture, and entertainment." You can watch the panel in full right here. 

Black Lives Matter: here's what you can do to help.

Alyssa Mercante
Alyssa Mercante
Former Features Writer

Alyssa Mercante used to be a features writer at GamesRadar+ and is now a freelance writer and editor. Prior to entering the industry, she got her Masters's degree in Modern and Contemporary Literature at Newcastle University with a dissertation focusing on contemporary indie games. She spends most of her time playing competitive shooters and in-depth RPGs and was recently on a PAX Panel about the best bars in video games. In her spare time Alyssa rescues cats, practices her Italian, and plays soccer.