In Fortnite: Battle Royale (PC, PS4, iOS & Xbox One), there is now an option for streamers to hide their names. This is intended to protect against the notorious stream snipers. However, players who want to relish in kills of famous players find this very frustrating!
What are stream snipers? Stream snipers are a nuisance that has arisen in the ever-expanding streaming culture in online games. These are unscrupulous players who stalk well-known streamers and try to get into the same match.
They then watch the stream to see where their victim is located and go on the hunt. Their goal: To treacherously ambush, troll, and ruin the stream of the poor streamer.
Anonymized Player Names Against Stream Sniping
Stream sniping is indeed a real issue, that’s why there’s the following solution: The developers have introduced an option in the latest update that allows streamers to anonymize their names. They are simply assigned a random name. No one will then know whether they may have just eliminated the famous streamer Ninja. This should significantly ruin the fun for stream snipers, as they will no longer know where their victims are located.
Streamers, including Ninja, think this is great! More than stream delays, this measure is expected to reduce interactions with these annoying trolls.
“If I can no longer see who I’ve killed, the game is pointless for me!”
However, not everyone is happy with the anonymity feature: Besides the stream snipers, who likely find this quite silly, honest players are also complaining. For many gamers, it is an enormous thrill when they catch a famous player like Ninja or Drake in the game and defeat them in a more or less fair fight.
No more chance for fame? For these players, it is a gigantic achievement that can lead some to fame and glory as streamers. This happened with the small streamer Tfue, who first became famous when he took out Ninja and gained a few thousand viewers as a result.
If no one knows anymore that they eliminated a VIP player, this effect is lost. “That completely ruins the game for me,” complains the forum user “TheHungerGame”, likely resonating with many of his fellow players.
What do you think? Do you prefer to protect streamers or do you feel a part of the thrill is missing when you no longer know who you’ve really taken down?
