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The rumoured new anonymous appearance option could be a live saver for popular Fortnite streamers.
Stream sniping has been an issue for content creators for many years, across multiple titles. By keeping their eyes on a livestream whilst playing, people are able to get into lobbies with their favorite (or least favorite) streamer and hunt them down. Some do it to cheat and gain a competitive advantage, but primarily on Fortnite it’s simply someone looking to get their name on the screen for clout.
If you are a fan of Fortnite and watch any of the top players when they are live, you will be all too familiar with how crazy this problem can get. Sure, sometimes it seems like streamers get into the habit of accusing every single person they fight of foul play, but often they make it gleamingly obvious, by instantly emoting or stopping to make a clip.
There are already a number of measures that streamers can take to minimize the risks of stream sniping. The strongest solution is to add a delay to the broadcast, making it hard to keep track of their location. Unfortunately, this makes it almost impossible to engage with the stream chat and lessens their experience, hence this option is usually reserved for big competitions.
New Anonymous Setting Under the Account Tab from r/FortNiteBR
This is where the potential new setting comes in. After the most recent Fortnite update, one Reddit user found an interesting option showing up in his account. Omii-X shared a screenshot of the “Anonymous Appearance” setting, the description says that it “Alters your cosmetic loadout that will appear for opponents during a match. You will still appear as your selected cosmetics to yourself and teammates”.
The new mode isn’t there for anyone else, so it was obviously not intended to be added. However, this means that it is likely something that Epic Games are working on and could well be coming soon. More recently, popular Fortnite leaker “FireMonkey” added further confirmation, tweeting that there had been a hotfix added to a hidden setting. The string reads “HiddenSettings=” AnoymousCharacterMode”.
Fortnite appears to once again be working on a mode that would randomize your skin in matches for other players, while you would still see the skin you have.
— FireMonkey • Fortnite Intel ?? (@iFireMonkey) November 24, 2019
Recently they added a hotfix to a setting that is hidden, here is that string:
HiddenSettings="AnonymousCharacterMode"
This setting could be a real help for streamers who are regularly targeted by snipers, as the skin they are wearing is a huge factor in identifying them. Of course, it is not a complete solution, as it will still be possible to head to their location and push anyone in site.
Some members of the community are concerned about what this would mean for the collection of skins they have built up. How exactly it would work we don’t know, perhaps it would only show you in outfits that you own, it could just use default skins or even use gear that you don’t have. If it does show you as any random skin, people feel that this makes it pointless to purchase anything new.
