Fortnite: Epic employee announces planned changes to pre-edits

Pre-editing in Fortnite is a feature which allows you to edit your builds before placing them down on the map. However, this feature is rarely used and often results in some mistakes in building, leading to many players asking for the feature to have an option to disable it, or have it removed from Fortnite completely. Recently a developer announced that they are planning to do something about it.

when is fortnite going to allow you to disable pre edits?!

— kybo (@oKybo_) October 24, 2020

Exactly when and how will pre-editing be changed in Fortnite?

Detailed information regarding when this kind of change will be seen in Fortnite is unknown. The only recent information we have on the pre-editing issue was a post on the FortniteCompetitive subreddit wherein a user asked “@FNCompetitive How many followers to disable pre edits?”

This prompted a response from TheStevieT, an employee from Epic, saying “We don’t have an exact timetable, but we’re going to do it. Don’t worry about followers ;)”.

This information, while reassuring, is vague and doesn’t answer the main questions Fortnite players have regarding the feature. Additionally, he didn’t say whether or not Epic plans to do away with the feature entirely, or simply give Fortnite players the ability to toggle pre-editing.

Cool disable pre edits please

— Chronic Elec 🌟 (@ChronicElec) October 24, 2020

How does pre-editing help, or hinder, building in Fortnite?

The biggest issue with pre-editing is when players attempt to build too fast in Fortnite. Because fast building is needed to corner your opponent and lock them down, it can be frustrating when you accidentally press your buttons in the wrong order and end up placing a wall or floor with a massive hole in it instead.

These little mistakes can cost players a lot. They can create openings that your opponents can shoot you through, or end up causing you to fall through the floor when you thought you were placing down a surface. All in all, they add a layer of clunkiness to the game that usually makes Fortnite play less smoothly.

It’s easy to see why some Fortnite players would rather the game simply always place down a basic build unit and allow them to only edit it after the fact. This simple change would go a long way towards improving the consistency of some players’ builds, and help fine tune muscle memory and other necessary skills.

If they do implement it, it’s most likely that it will be done in a way that allows players to toggle it in their settings. That way, those Fortnite players who want to avoid pre-edits from causing issues can do so, while those who use the feature will still have access to it.