Fortine Betting
Fortnite Betting 101: All you need to know
The Fortnite scene is getting bigger by the day. With Epic Games investing $100 million into tournament prize pools in 2019, competitive Fortnite is at its highest point yet. Combine that with hundreds of thousands of fans following popular streamers and tuning in to esports events, and it’s clear there’s a huge demand for this battle royale title.
A similar trend exists in gambling.
Despite the young age of the battle royale genre, many bookmakers are releasing Fortnite betting markets on a regular basis. And while some sites are still trying to figure out how to approach Fortnite esports, others have already found ways to capture the thrill and excitement of competitive battle royale matches. Of course, the scene is still growing, so it may seem difficult to get in on this action. Which is exactly why we prepared this guide on how to bet – and win – real money on Fortnite!
Quick Introduction to Fortnite Gameplay
Before we get to the meat of the matter, let’s go over the basics. Fortnite is a battle royale title, so it carries several attributes of the genre. For example, a standard Fortnite match includes up to 100 participants with each player (or squad) fighting a huge free-for-all skirmish with the goal of being the last ones standing. Moreover, players have to constantly move around the map to scavenge for weapons, equipment, and materials—all the while racing against the shrinking playable area.
The main difference between Fortnite and other battle royale games is the concept of building.
Remember how we mentioned materials? Well, players can harvest wood, stone, and metal from various objects scattered around the map to later use them to create their own structures and custom terrain. With that, every player has constant access to cover, so competitive matches aren’t decided by who has the fastest trigger finger, but rather by which pro can take advantage of the building mechanic.
That’s only the tip of the Fortnite iceberg. Whether it’s picking the best landing zones, managing your inventory, staying on top of numerous game mechanics, or having the confidence to risk it all on a single game-winning shot, there are a lot of things that go into succeeding at this battle royale title. And it’s this combination of skill and game knowledge that makes Fortnite so fun to follow.
Fortnite Tournaments & Competitions
Alright, now that you’ve learned a thing or two about battle royale gameplay, what is the best way to make use of this knowledge? The simplest answer is to follow Fortnite tournaments. The esports scene has gone a long way since Ninja and Marshmallo won the first Pro-Am event, so it might seem confusing at first glance. Fortunately, most events can be split into a couple of descriptive categories, and it’s the way you approach them that will determine how good you are at Fortnite betting.
Third-Party Tournaments
We’ll be frank: third-party tournaments is a pretty broad category. Fortnite is at the peak of its popularity, so it’s not exactly surprising that there’s a constant stream of events for this battle royale title. Some are fairly minor.
Others come with the prize pools and production standards that could rival the biggest esports events in the world. The easiest way to differentiate between the two is to look for reputable tournament organizers.
Companies like ESL, PGL, and DreamHack are renowned for their ability to create immersive esports experience, and while not all of them have boarded the Fortnite hype train, you should still keep an eye out for these brands when browsing betting markets.
Epic Games Tournaments
Of course, it’s still difficult for third-party organizers to go toe-to-toe with official events. The game’s publisher—Epic Games—is constantly trying to push the boundaries of Fortnite esports, and it’s doing a great job of it too. With that, official tournaments like Winter Royale or Fortnite Summer Skirmish often come with prize pools ranging from $50,000 all the way to $1,500,000.
Throw in creative formats that keep professional players on their toes, and it’s clear that Epic Games events will remain at the top of the Fortnite food chain for a very, very long time.
Fortnite World Cup
Okay, technically the Fortnite World Cup is also an Epic Games tournament, but it deserves to stand in a league of its own. This is the ultimate Fortnite esports experience with a gargantuan prize pool of $30,000,000.
The competition features the top 100 Solo players and the top 50 Duo squads from all over the globe, so you will be hard-pressed to find a tournament with a higher level of gameplay. Add in a top-tier production crew and wide esportsbook coverage, and Fortnite World Cup is a must-see for anyone interested in gambling on Fortnite matches.
A Crash Course in Fortnite Betting
That’s all fine and dandy, but how exactly do you bet on Fortnite in the first place? Well, the first thing you need to do is find the right betting site. This is the foundation of your gambling career, and even the most thought-out betting strategy won’t amount to much if you’ve set up your account at a shady operator. To make matters worse, many traditional bookmakers still treat battle royale esports as a fad, so it can be difficult to find a reputable operator with Fortnite betting markets.
But every rule has exceptions.
Betway was one of the first gambling providers to branch out to esports betting, so it goes without saying that it also embraced the battle royale genre. Founded way back in 2006, this bookie is renowned for its competitive esports odds, wide tournament coverage, and a generous €30 free bet welcome bonus. The fluid mobile app and 24/7 customer service via email, live chat, and phone act as the icing on the cake, and this site has all the moving parts of a first-class betting experience.
William Hill is also an option to consider. Much like Betway, this operator comes with a quality mobile games app and a €30 free bet welcome offer for esports wagers. It’s also one of the oldest betting providers in the world with over 85 years of experience in the bookmaking industry.
Betway
- Double Welcome bonus
- King in Esports coverage
- Great Live in-play and streaming
William Hill’s markets are a bit more narrow (although that isn’t much of a factor in Fortnite), but the bookie makes up for it with fast settling times and a plethora of different payment methods. And in the end, it’s the ease of getting money on and off the platform that separates William Hill from other bookmakers sites.
Best Fortnite Betting Markets
Much like most battle royale titles, Fortnite doesn’t come with a ton of betting options. In fact, most of your gambling choices will boil down to match winner, tournament winner, top-3 finish, and region of winner. Let’s go through them one by one to determine which are the most profitable markets.
Match Winner
Match winner wagers are the bread and butter of esports betting. Pretty much every competitive game has them, as there’s nothing more straightforward than predicting who’s going to win in a specific matchup. Unfortunately, this logic doesn’t apply to Fortnite. A competitive battle royale match has a large number of participants simultaneously fighting each other. Every single one of them wants to become the last one standing, creating a volatile environment where even the best players in the world can fall because they ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
That’s not to say that match winner bets offer no value. On the contrary, these will usually provide a high return on investment if you get them right, so if you trust your intuition, by all means, go for them. Just be mindful of the risks involved.
Tournament Winner
Tournament winner bets are the advanced version of match winner wagers. If you thought that predicting the outcome of a single game is hard, then the tournament winner requires you to determine the result of the entire event. This isn’t as crazy as it sounds, though.
Good players will naturally find more opportunities to shine in the long run, so even though a single game might come with unpredictable swings, a series of games will reduce the variance to a minimum. In short, it’s much easier to eliminate amateurs and inconsistent up-and-comers when dealing with tournament winner wagers. The downside is that there’s still plenty of high-level Fortnite pros out there, so you will have to do a lot of guesswork to arrive at the right conclusion.
Top-3 Finish
It wouldn’t be an understatement to say that the top-3 finish is the most secure Fortnite betting market. Sure, it’s still hard to tell whether your favorite player is going to meet the requirements of this bet, but it’s way easier than predicting the outright winner. After all, if the pro is any good, they should have a high chance of breaking into the top-3.
Most bookmakers are well aware of this. With that, top-3 finish wagers have the lowest odds out of all Fortnite markets, so you won’t earn as much if you get them right. Even so, if you’re looking to eliminate the unnecessary variance and become a winner in the long term, this is the right option for you.
Region of Winner
The region of winner market is a tricky one. At first glance, it might seem like this bet is a simpler version of the tournament winner wager since you only need to choose the right range of players to qualify for the payout. However, it’s easy to get lost comparing the strength of different regions—especially if you’re dealing with large-scale tournaments like Fortnite World Cup. To make matters worse, region of winner bets tend to come with worse odds, so you need to be really good at evaluating huge pools of players to make them profitable.
Solo vs Duo Bets
Competitive Fortnite matches come in two flavors: solo and duo. The difference between them is self-explanatory, as the former has one player engaging in free-for-all combat, while the latter involves a squad of two fighting together against the rest of the world. Both formats have their pros and cons in terms of gameplay, and both can be enjoyable to watch.
But which one is better for esports betting?
The short answer is duos. Of course, it’s exciting to watch players taking on a tournament with their own skill, and solo matches provide an excellent viewing experience. However, duos come with extra insurance. There’s nothing more reassuring than having a trustworthy partner at the side of your favorite pro player because even if the player in question messes up, his teammate will still have the chance to save him. So if you see a strong duo where both players complement each other’s strengths, there’s a much higher chance of making a winning wager.
Final Word on Fortnite Betting
Hopefully, our guide managed to give you some insight into the world of esports gambling. Whether it’s game knowledge, tournament selection, or analytical skill, there are many things that separate the good bettors from the great ones. And it’s nigh impossible to bridge this gap overnight. With that, the best way to approach Fortnite betting is to focus on filling the gaps in your betting strategy and improving one thing at a time. And it’s this strive for continuous improvement that will make you a winner in the long run.
