'Fortnite' Nate Hill & FunkBomb Banned from Fall Skirmish for Cheating

Fortnite players Nate Hill and FunkBomb have allegedly been banned from the game's tournaments after cheating in last week's Fall Skirmish. Nate Hill made the claim during a stream Tuesday morning.

NateHill and Funkbomb cheating during Fall Skirmish! (Repost because he deleted the original clip.) from r/FortNiteBR

The incident in question, shown below, happened during Friday night's matches. In the clip, FunkBomb can be heard telling Hill there's an enemy to his west with 30 health. Hill then snipes the other player, while FunkBomb admits "I feel like it's cheating but…"

While it took a few days for the suspension to be handed down, Epic has responded definitively. Hill will be barred from all Fall Skirmish events through Oct. 11, but is still a member of the Dusty Dogs club and will remain eligible for club prizing at the end of the season at TwitchCon. For giving the callout, FunkBomb has been kicked out of all future Fall Skirmish events and will not be eligible for club prizing for Dusty Dogs. Funk will, however, be able to participate in the TwitchCon tournament starting Oct. 26, if he so chooses.

FunkBomb responded to the cheating allegations in a string of tweets shortly after reports surfaced. Here's what he said:

"I want to apologize about my actions in the Skirmish today. During one of the matches, I was dead and spectating the Fortnite stream. I called out Dmo's health and position to my partner not fully realizing there was zero delay on the main stream. I quickly noticed my mistake and went silent in the comms. After the game, I informed the Epic admins about the possibility of ghosting the main stream. I realize how this callout I made could have impacted the integrity of the tournament and I want to apologize to everybody participating.

"I especially apologize to Dmo, Epic Games, and my fans. I take full responsibility for any repercussions that come my way. This is truly was a mistake, this is not who I am."

Hill echoed Funk's sentiments in his own message: "Both Funk and I have apologized to others behind the scenes, but I on behalf of both of us want to apologize to the community. This is not what either of us represents and we will try to be the best people and players we can be moving forward." After learning he would be impacted by the ban, however, he said "I didn't fu-ing do anything bro" and called the ruling "the vaguest thing I've ever heard in my entire life."

This is not the first time Fortnite's Skirmish tournaments have faced cheating allegations. Hours after the second week of Summer Skirmish in July, players questioned the gameplay of newcomer iDropz_Bodies. At that time, however, Epic determined there was no foul play. Today's action, then, is the first formal disciplinary steps the developer has been forced to take. The Duo did not win any prize money in the first week of Fall Skirmish, but their points will still be counted towards the larger Dusty Dogs total.

Fortnite is available on PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC and mobile. Fortnite's second week of Fall Skirmish is expected to begin Sept. 28 at 12 p.m. EDT.

Did Epic respond correctly to these cheating allegations? Will you still be tuning into Fall Skirmish next week? Tell us in the comments section!