What Does Rank Protected Mean in Fortnite?

Rank Protected in Fortnite is a feature that Epic Games uses to balance out Fortnite's ranking system. Rank Protected can be used to easily level up through the ranks in Fortnite's ranked mode.

By Mokshit Batra 17 Apr 2024 in Gaming

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Rank Protected Fortnite (Image via Epic Games)

Rank Protected is a common message that Fortnite players often see in the game’s ranked mode. However, the game does not provide much clarity on what this signifies. Despite all the casual game modes, cool crossover skins, and goofy emotes, Fortnite, at its core, can be a highly competitive game where you must master your aim, your builds and communication with your team.

In addition to the eSports opportunities like the Fortnite World Cup, Epic Games also introduced an Arena mode, which is essentially Fortnite’s Ranked mode. Ranked is available in both the normal battle royale mode and the Zero Build mode. Rank Protected is a feature utilised by Epic Games to balance out the game’s ranking and make the ranking process relatively easier for the players.

Take advantage of Rank Protected in Fortnite to safeguard your points

The Rank Protected feature in Fortnite is a safeguard that prevents players from losing ranked points after an arena mode game. Despite how poorly you performed in the game, if you get the Rank Protected message, you will not lose any rank for that particular match.

publive-image — Fortnite Death Screen (Image via Epic Games)

Rank Protected does not appear randomly. Your rank is protected for the first ranked game that you play in a day. After your first ranked game of the day, the ranked points system is reset to the original rules. Hence, you will lose ranked points as normal for every game afterwards.

Rank Protected resets daily at 12 AM GMT. After this reset, you will not lose any ranked points for the first game that you play after the reset, even if you are shot down immediately upon landing on the island. If you perform well in the first game, you will still gain your respective ranked points for that match according to your performance.

However, the Ranked Protected feature will still be removed for the next game, and you may lose points in the next game. Epic Games has applied the Rank Protected feature to allow players to get in a warm-up match, allowing you to adapt to the competitive environment and allow the players to get in their flow. This system also allows you to make riskier plays for that match.

Therefore, it is better for you to play ranked daily rather than concentrate on all of your ranked games on a single day. This ensures that you will get Rank Protected for at least some of the games that you play. The Ranked Protected system takes away some of the difficulty of progressing through ranks and makes levelling up in Fortnite’s ranked mode that much easier.