The Fortnite professional Bucke had a really bad Friday the 13th. He had flown 6,500 kilometers from Detroit to participate in a major tournament at Fortnite in Copenhagen, but was disqualified even before the start of the tournament “2023 FNCS Global Championship”, had to leave Denmark and fly back to the USA. He said he had “messed up,” he said afterwards.
What kind of tournament was it?
- From October 13 to 15, the tournament “2023 FNCS Global Championship” took place in Copenhagen, Denmark.
- The tournament is somewhat like the World Championship in Fortnite and is held on-site: Most FNCS tournaments take place online.
- The event was a duo tournament: 50 teams with 2 players each from around the world competed against each other. The prize pool was around $4 million.
BuckeFPS is a good friend of his here, Fortnite’s figurehead and proud Lambo owner Clix:
North American duo wins $1 million prize money
Who won the tournament? In the end, first place and a prize of 1 million US dollars were shared by Cooper (USA) and Mero (Canada).
The German player “Cheatiin” finished in 4th place and still received his share of $300,000, which he shares with his duo partner.
19-Year-Old Disqualified Before Tournament Start and Put on a Plane
Who was unlucky? The US professional and content creator Logan “Bucke” Eschenburg (19) had a bad day. He is an established Fortnite professional who has won $247,000 in prize money so far – the most money came when he was still a minor. In 2022 and 2023, he only earned just over $7,000 in prize money (via esportsearning).
The 19-year-old lives in Detroit, had flown 6,500 kilometers to Copenhagen, and was determined to win the tournament with his partner Okis. However, before it even started, he was disqualified and immediately put on a plane by Epic Games and sent home.
On Twitter, he jokingly said he was disqualified because he looked too “fast” during warm-ups, but he quickly lost his smile.
Epic Games banned him for breaking the rules according to paragraph 8: This paragraph particularly includes violations of the impeccable behavior expected and demanded from a professional.
Professional Says: He ‘Messed Up,’ Therefore Was Banned
Why was he banned? The exact reason for his ban is not entirely clear. The player initially thought he was disqualified for changing the setting on his PC to “digital vibrance.” He informed a Blast employee about this change and asked if he could revert the banned setting (via Twitter). But apparently, the disqualification was not due to that.
However, neither Epic Games nor the 19-year-old professional state why he was actually banned.
Some believe he smoked and drank in places where it was not allowed. Others think he may have had a disagreement with an Epic Games employee.
In any case, Bucke had to leave the country immediately and fly back to the USA because he no longer had a valid work visa without participation in the tournament.
This is what the professional says: On Twitter, he apologizes to everyone and says he messed up. He particularly feels sorry for his partner Okis.
In any case, he seems not to contest that the disqualification was correctly pronounced.
In a Twitch stream, he later watched the appearance of the professionals at the tournament and felt quite different when his partner Okis appeared alone on stage.
Another Team Was Disqualified
Did anyone else get caught? Yes, Epic also banned the Australian players Jace and Repulse, who had qualified for the tournament in Copenhagen.
There is an allegation circulating that Repulse sold his account to a known cheater: The cheater then teamed up with Jace and won a tournament.
However, the reasons for the ban here are also not officially known: Neither Epic Games nor the disqualified players share the reasons. The players deny that they were given a specific reason for the ban.
Repulse, in any case, seems not to agree with his ban at all. He said he feels trolled by Epic Games and does not know why he was disqualified.
Some are now calling on Epic Games to clearly state the reasons for the bans.
Update 18.10, 15:12: There have been some new developments in the “Bucke” case. It is now pretty certain why Epic threw him out. There is a clip:
