XXiF qualifies for Fortnite World Cup despite getting caught cheating

Olivia Richman Published 03/06/2019

One of the recent players to qualify for the World Cup has only caused even more controversy in the Fortnite community.

After returning from a 14-day ban for cheating, Damion “Rise XXiF” Cook has earned a spot in the Fortnite World Cup Finals.

XXiF and his duos partner Ronald “Ronaldo” Mach scored 91 points in yesterday’s qualifier. They are now one of three duos from the North America East region to qualify for the World Cup this past weekend.

And the Fortnite pros, players, and viewers are not happy.

XXiF cheating controversy begins

At the beginning of May, many people viewing that week’s open qualifiers noticed something really fishy about XXiF’s gameplay. To many viewers, it appeared that two of XXiF’s opponents had purposely landed where XXiF had already started collecting loot. This was a bit odd to experienced Fortnite players, who pointed out that you would not want to land where someone has already established themselves.

But then it got weirder.

The two players who landed near XXiF completely ignored powerful weapons right next to them, instead opting to make clumsy plays that got them easily eliminated by XXiF.

Once Fortnite personality Tyler “Ninja” Blevins pointed out that the two seemingly clueless players were XXiF’s friends, it cemented everyone’s theory that the two guys had purposely gotten themselves eliminated to give XXiF a spot in the World Cup.

As a result of the match fixing fiasco, XXiF received a 14-day ban from competitive Fortnite. Pros and casuals were both livid with small slap on the wrist.

XXiF cheating controversy continues

Since the World Cup qualifiers were still taking place after the end of XXiF’s 14-day ban, pros were quick to point out that this blatant cheater would have the chance to compete, and potentially qualify, after the two weeks were up.

During an earlier qualifer match, streamer Ben “DrLupo” Lupo called XXiF a “bot” on a live broadcast on Fortnite’s official Twitch channel.

But not all of the anger was directed at XXiF. Most Fortnite players and fans seemed to blame Epic for the developer’s lackadaisical approach to dealing with such a serious offense.

Luminosity’s Ali “SypherPK” Hassan even mocked Epic for the painfully light punishment.

“Here’s Rise XXIF and his teammate Ronaldo showing up big in today’s competition. Definitely an amazing come back after they were banned in week three for literally cheating,” SypherPK said.

Although a joke at the time, SypherPK’s tweet is now a reality. Someone who cheated just a few weeks ago is now allowed to compete in the World Cup Finals for a shot at a piece of the $30 million prize pool.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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