News

Fortnite Delulu proximity chat sparks chaos as Epic bans thousands

Fortnite’s new Delulu mode adds proximity voice chat to Battle Royale, and Epic has already banned thousands of accounts after weekend reports of abusive behavior. The mode first saw limited creator access and went public on September 19, 2025, then returned for a weekend run from September 26 at 9 AM ET to September 29.

Delulu introduces voice chat that links to proximity, so players hear only those nearby on the map. That mechanic was previously confined to creator-made maps in Creative. The change turns conversations into a tactical tool, letting strangers form momentary alliances with an emote or betray each other mid-sentence.

Epic confirmed the bans in a post on X, writing, “Remember to report voice chat behavior in-game that violates our community rules. This gives us evidence to quickly take action against rule breakers.” The developer did not provide an exact figure in the post, but said “thousands” were removed over the weekend.

Many creators praised the mode during early access. One streamer said, “Delulu is some of the most fun I’ve had in a BR game mode in years,” in an archer tweet from the creator access window. Once Delulu opened to the wider player base, reports of toxic and racist voice chat behavior began circulating on social platforms, prompting the crackdown.

Some players have argued the chaos served as a purge, and a handful welcomed the stricter enforcement. For a sample of community reaction, see this player post on X. Others say the mode is fun when creators populate lobbies, and messy when it does not. Who expected otherwise?

Delulu is available for a limited time, and returns are only accepted on weekends. Epic recommends enabling voice chat in settings and setting voice options to ‘Everybody’ if joining public lobbies for proximity chat.

This change matters because it puts real-world speech into a battle royale where voice can alter combat choices and social dynamics. Players who prefer to avoid open voice will need to adjust their settings, while streamers and creators will likely experience different audience interactions when Delulu is live.

Share thoughts in the comments on how this affects your games, and follow us on X and Bluesky.

Angel Kicevski

I've spent half of my life playing video games, ever since the competitive 1.6 era. Now I am happily married to Margarita Kicevski, and have two beautiful children. My goal is to deliver fresh news and updates, but most of the time I want to work on guides. Since I have rebooted this website, I am planning on making it huge. Just you wait!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button