this post was submitted on 02 Aug 2026
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is there like ANY version of fortnite where you can play with windows users? if not what are the best alternatives?

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[–] Auster@thebrainbin.org 24 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Afaik Fortnite blocks access to Linux users due to anticheat? Options that come to mind are running on a VM with Windows, playing on consoles, and playing on a burner computer with Windows installed on bare metal.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 7 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

ive tried something like winboat and it was laggy as shit, i dont really have any modern console that plays fortnite other than the switch (yuck), and i dont think i have a spare Windows machine that isnt the slowet crap on earth

[–] BananaTrifleViolin@piefed.world 15 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (3 children)

I'd just get a cheap small second hard drive for your PC, install windows on it, dual boot set up (keep linux as the primary drive and Grub will have Windows as an option) and use it to play Fortnite. Windows will pester about activating but if you're just using it to play Fortnite so ignore it.

I Linux main, but kept my old Windows drive and install in case I ever need it. Haven't used it in ages, but it's pretty harmless to have an old drive sitting in my PC. I don't even mount the drive in Linux, it's just there if I need it.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 5 points 3 weeks ago

thats pretty smart actually, will maybe look into that

[–] Attacker94@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago

Using grub is a poor idea since Windows boot manager has a habit of breaking things if you do, the only way to avoid windows bricking your bootloader is to put windows on a separate drive and change the boot order in uefi

[–] Auster@thebrainbin.org 1 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Good idea. And if @goofsqueak@lemdro.id goes for it and is concerned about the physical drive with Windows potentially tempering with the Linux install or reporting back to MS or whomever else whatever it finds, goofsqueak could unplug the Linux drive before plugging the Windows one, so no physical access to the main system is given to Windows.

And to goofsqueak, any problem with Fortnite on the Switch? I don't play games as services so I wouldn't know, and at least from my experience with offline games, if the problem are graphics, Fortnite from the little I know of, I don't think would lose much in terms of quality.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

answer to the bottom question: the switches graphics sucks bum, yes, but the performance is also garbage. and paired with the joycons (i dont have a pro controller but can easily fix that) makes the experince horrible. i dont really remember how bad the performance was but i know it was bad. like imagine fortnite but compressed to shit, basically that

[–] RiQuY@lemmy.zip 2 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Fortnite on the Switch 2 looks like a normal game and has mouse support.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 2 weeks ago

sounds nice but i can NOT afford a switch 2 🥹

[–] Auth@lemmy.world 1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Windows cant read ext4 or btrfs so I doubt they care enough to be sneakily trying to identify and read data on another partion.

[–] Auster@thebrainbin.org 1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

When everything's data that could be harvested for who knows what nefarious reasons, I'd rather not risk their "can't read" to be actually "pretend not to be able to", specially coming from Microsoft.

[–] Auth@lemmy.world 1 points 3 weeks ago

Its not all nefarious. The bad is usually a byproduct of normal business usecase. Here there is little reason to hide ext4 and btrfs support just to spy on a few linux boxes.

[–] anguo@piefed.ca 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Winboat doesn't have GPU passthrough, AFAIK.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 3 weeks ago

oh, maybe ill need to try a real vm then

[–] ieGod@lemmy.zip 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I hate this coopting of bare metal. Bare metal means no OS. Having an os is not bare metal.

[–] offspec@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Sorry, containers and vms are prolific enough that we need good nomenclature for native software

[–] ieGod@lemmy.zip 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I agree, and bare metal doesn't fill that need. The term literally means as close to the metal as possible. A software layer in between is anything but bare.

[–] cows_are_underrated@feddit.org 1 points 2 weeks ago

And games have way more than one layer of software between them and the hardware.

[–] MurrayL@lemmy.world 16 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

If you have Amazon Prime you can stream Fortnite through Luna in a browser.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 6 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

oh wow really? my mom has a prime subscription so maybe i can use that, does it have privacy concerns or? idk what concerns there can be but its hard to trust a massive company

[–] SatansMaggotyCumFart@piefed.world 18 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Prime and Fortnite are one big bundle of privacy concerns.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 4 points 3 weeks ago

ouu shii 😭

[–] galmuth@feddit.uk 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

I don't think using Amazon Luna on your PC gives you any particular privacy concerns. It's just a website. If you're worried, as long as you're using a decent privacy-conscious web browser, and/or a separate browser to what youd normally use, IMO you're probably fine. I think Luna needs a Chromium based web browser to work if it helps.

I play Fortnite on my Fedora laptop with my son using my partner's Prime account, and it works pretty well. It pops up at the start to say it's not a supported platform, but then plays with generally no problem.

Oh one thing, you'd need to link your Amazon account and Epic account, so whoever has access to your Amazon account can play your Epic games through Luna. For me that's not an issue but it might be for you if it's your mom's account?

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 3 weeks ago

oh nice maybe ill try that lowkey

also i don think my mom will care, like at all

[–] warmaster@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Stream it from:

  • Amazon Luna
  • Xbox game pass
  • Nvidia
  • Windows PC
  • Console (Xbox/Playstation)

Anything else has a risk of an account ban.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

can i stream from my godawful windows laptop?

[–] warmaster@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Yes, the simplest way is to add it to steam as a non steam game.

[–] richardisaguy@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

will probably look and play like dogshit but what choice do i have lowkey

[–] richardisaguy@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Well, unless fortnite for android is unoptimized it should run fine.

Waydroid runs on top of the system kernel and uses the same drivers graphical drivers as the system, it's pretty much like running the game natively but with a bit more jank

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 3 weeks ago

ooo wait that sounds pretty good, ill look into that thanks

[–] 5PACEBAR@piefed.ca 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

It was a bit complicated to set up, but I have a USB key with Windows To Go installed for exactly this use case.

Mates insist on playing Fortnite when we LAN once a year smh

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 0 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

whats a usb key? is it just a normal usb drive?

[–] ViscloReader@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Yup. Maybe french because I call them this way too (clef USB)

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 2 weeks ago
[–] treesquid@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

They're the size of a key, people keep them on key rings, some of them actually look kinda like keys. People also call them thumb drives because they're thumb-ish sized, or jump drives because they can move, I guess. They're all the same thing.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 2 weeks ago

ah okay gotcha thanks

[–] lime@feddit.nu 4 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

the original version or the pubg version?

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

the monitized slop fest (battle royale)

[–] lime@feddit.nu 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

nah. you're actively blocked from doing it. if you run a vm and that information is in anyway visible, you get banned.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 3 weeks ago

i was mainly thinking one of those thingos that use old seasons of fortnite, like season 2 or 8 or something. i don memember what they're called and i tried to get one working but i couldnt do it

[–] buran@lemmy.today 1 points 2 weeks ago

I tested this a few years ago.

You can play Save the World alone but as soon as someone joins the party, it kicks you.

[–] RiQuY@lemmy.zip 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Your best bet is using a Nintendo Switch or GeForce Now.

[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 1 points 2 weeks ago
[–] oopsgodisdeadmybad@lemmy.zip -1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] goofsqueak@lemdro.id 0 points 2 weeks ago

yeah like WHO does this guy think he is 😭😭