This is one of the most discussed issue with Fortnite Creative on Twitter and other feedback channels.
Here’s my summary, together with a simple idea on how to fix it.
Why XP calibration is a problem
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Map updates reset calibration, which stops XP rewards until the new calibration is complete. This causes several issues:
– Small maps may never finish calibration, meaning they will never give XP
– No XP means lower playtime and lower player ratings, which hurts the map’s visibility in the discovery algorithm
– Creators are discouraged from updating maps, even top creators can’t make frequent (multiple times a day) updates without penalty -
Calibration doesn’t prevent abuse and fails its purpose:
– Some creators bypass calibration by hiding XP triggers during calibration process and revealing them afterwards by making TikTok/Yt tutorials
– These maps give far more XP than others for a few hours or days
– The only safeguard - stopping XP after too much is gain on a map - is easily bypassed by rejoining even the same map
Solution
Imagine XP as a resource pool that refills with playtime that creators can grant to players. It’s a bit like playtime xp connected with current accolades device. It has following parameters:
- Refills with playtime
- Has maximum hardcap limit
- Can be given to players freely or even use current Accolades Devices settings with following values:
- Very Small - 5% of the pool
- Small - 10% of the pool
- Medium - 20% of the pool
- Large - 40% of the pool
- Very Large - 60% of the pool
It’s up to creators to balance how they give XP to not run out from the pool too quickly making larger accolades feel insignificant. THIS PROBLEM ALSO EXISTS WITH CURRENT CALIBRATION SYSTEM, IT’S NOT NEW!
Example
Advantage of this system is that we can see XP values even while testing before release and thus balance XP gain properly. From what I remember current playtime XP is 30k/10 mins, based on this we can imagine new xp system with following concrete values:
- Refill - 66/sec (40k/10 mins),
- Hardcap - 120k (after 30 mins of playtime),
- Example rewards with current Accolade settings above after playing a map for ~1 minute (4k exp):,
- Very Small - 5% - 200xp,
- Small - 10% - 400xp,
- Medium - 20% - 800xp,
- Large - 40% - 1600xp,
- Very Large - 60% - 2400xp,
Additional Verse API to access remaining pool value and a way to grant specific amount of xp would allow creators to make their own self-balancing systems, in other words their own calibration.
Note: AFK playtime shouldn’t refill the pool, it’s not a big deal since even these players would gain the same amount of exp as active players. Lowering the hardcap could help at this issue. (ALSO EXISTS WITH CURRENT CALIBRATION SYSTEM!)
