Sorry, Epic's taking back those 'free' Fortnite V-Bucks from the Dumb Ways To Die bundle exploit

People say there's no such thing as a free lunch, and in much the same manner any opportunity to claim 'free' Fortnite V-Bucks is likely to come with a catch. So when players found a way to grab 800 V-Bucks for nothing using the new Dumb Ways to Die item gift bundle, it was only a matter of time before Epic Games took action. Predictably, it's done exactly that, temporarily removing the pack from sale and noting that anyone who erroneously received the bonus currency will have it taken away again.

It's a pretty busy time in Fortnite land, with the South Park event in full swing, foundational VTuber royalty Kizuna AI joining the lineup, and Epic recently introducing the ability to buy in-island items directly from creators, bringing the multiplayer game a little closer to rivals like Roblox. With all these additions, you'd be forgiven for seeking any ways to grab some quick V-Bucks, and the Dumb Ways to Die bundle offered just that.

Dumb Ways to Die, the chaotic minigame collection inspired by the Australian safety campaign that went viral to huge online popularity, is currently free to claim via the Epic Games Store mobile app. Doing so also gives you its corresponding item gift bundle in Fortnite for nothing - and if you already owned it, you'll be given the 800 V-Bucks it usually costs as a friendly make-good.

That's all above board, but entrepreneurial Fortnite fans quickly found that you could claim the game on both the iOS and Android versions of the store, and that doing so would cause you to be given both the Fortnite bundle and the free V-Bucks even if you didn't previously own it. As a result, Epic has temporarily pulled it from the item store while it resolves the exploit.

"We've temporarily disabled the Dumb Ways to Die Fortnite item gift bundle to prevent an issue with players in Fortnite receiving duplicate cosmetics and V-Bucks," the Fortnite Status support account writes. "Fortnite players who received multiple free copies and incorrectly received 800 V-Bucks will have the V-Bucks removed in the coming days." The bundle will be available again on Thursday January 22 at 8am PT / 11am ET / 4pm GMT / 5pm CET.

The statement suggests that players who were legitimately given the V-Bucks because they already owned the bundle prior to this offer should be safe, but keep an eye on your balance just in case. And bear in mind that any time something seems too good to be true, it's probably exactly that.