One of Fortnite’s biggest streamers and drawcards Cody “Clix” Conrod has been banned by Epic Games following allegations of “teaming” during a $100 cash cup match on April 23.
The two-week competitive ban has far-reaching consequences for Clix, who will now be unable to attend the FNCS NA Grand Finals, nor can he qualify and participate in the next season of FNCS–ruling him out of the all-important Copenhagen LAN later in 2023.
“I basically can’t play competitive Fortnite for the next four months,” said Clix in a short stream on April 12 where he addressed Epic’s decision. “I had a call with Epic and as of now [the ban] is going to stay like that. I’m praying to God something changes because this is my life, I moved here for this.”
This isn’t the first time a competitor has been banned for teaming up in Fortnite, with Epic Games taking the matter seriously, implementing the term into its competitive rulebook. “Teaming” defines competitors colluding mid-game to benefit one another, despite the game specifically pitting these players against each other.
In the instance on April 23, Clix picked up items that were intentionally dropped by another player, items that he would go on to use to win the match. As Clix revealed in a stream following the ban, however, there was more to the story.
The other player—revealed to be stream-sniping Clix—was following the Fortnite content creator throughout the game, using Clix’s live stream to keep up with his location on the map. Clix became increasingly heated toward the end of the game, demanding the sniper drop particular items as proof he was watching the stream.
“I’m going to be honest, if [Epic] looked at the replays without context, it does look like I was teaming,” said Clix, “but the reason I’m doing this is so Epic Games can see this and get this individual banned.”
The individual in question received the same two-week ban and reportedly reached out to Clix to apologize for getting the streamer banned from competitive play.
Clix admitted his emotions got the better of him, but that the consequences for something completely out of his control were not sound. “I wasn’t able to control this person’s actions whatsoever. It got to the point where the stream sniper became unavoidable,” he said.
“I do think I should get a consequence for picking up the loot, but I definitely think a two-week [ban] is more than enough,” he added. “I feel like it should be a warning or a three-day ban. It’s not fair to penalize me for someone else’s cheating.”
The FNCS NA Major continues this week, kicking off on April 27, but it remains unclear whether Epic Games will review Clix’s ban at this time.
