Ability to hire Fortnite Chapter 5 NPCs disabled: Possible reasons explored

NPCs provided a lot of utility and services in Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 1. For a small fee (Gold Bars), players can hire them and/or purchase items, services, and/or weapons from them. However, it would seem that Epic Games has disabled the ability to hire them, that too, without an explanation. Here is what veteran leaker/data miner iFireMonkey has to say about the situation:

"The ability to Hire NPCs in Chapter 5 - Season 1 has been disabled."

Players are reporting that they can no longer hire Fortnite Chapter 5 NPCs. The feature has been disabled. While Epic Games has yet to post about this change, there are multiple users who are confirming this news. That said, while the reason is yet to be disclosed officially, it would seem that NPCs are overpowered and, at times, glitchy.

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Ability to hire Fortnite Chapter 5 NPCs disabled, possible reasons explored

According to feedback from the community, the ability to hire NPCs in Chapter 5 Season 1 could have been disabled due to them being overpowered.

Numerous users under iFireMonkey's post mention how their NPC was above average. Given that NPCs underwent a change in Chapter 4 and were assigned different classes, it would seem that Epic Games has some tweaking to do.

Aside from the NPCs that can be hired, many users also mention that there are too many NPCs in and around the Boss NPC locations. However, it is unlikely that they are causing any issues in-game.

Here is what a few users have to say about the situation at hand:

Coming back to the issue, the NPCs that can be hired could have also been disabled due to a technical glitch. Some users reported hired NPCs standing in one place and not doing anything else.

Others mention that some features related to NPCs, such as the revive option, failed to work as intended in some matches. This could be a bug and one of the possible reasons why the ability to hire NPCs in Fortnite Chapter 5 Season 1 has been disabled.

Nevertheless, players can still purchase items and services from NPCs. Be sure to visit Vengeance Jones, located in the Underground Railroad near Pleasant Piazza. There is a lot of free loot to be found there, so it is perfect for gearing up during the early game.

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Note: An update will be provided when more information becomes available.