Nearly everyFortniteplayer has at some point purchased V-Bucks, the in-game currency used to buy cosmetics such as emotes and skins– including theAlways Fantabulous Harley Quinn skin. In fact, many of the children that make up a chunk of the battle royale’s large fanbase save up their allowances to buy V-Bucks for the game.
That’s why manyFortnitefans were shocked to hear the recent news from the Internal Revenue Service suggesting that players may have to pay taxes on V-Bucks. After a bit of overblown panic, however, it seems that it is no longer the case.
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This misunderstanding all started when CNN reported language on the IRS website suggested thatFortnite’s V-Bucks would be treated similarly to other virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, with purchasers having to report and pay taxes on them. This turned out to be a mistake on the IRS' end and that language has now been removed. The IRS then issued a clear statement on Friday on where they stand on video game currencies, saying that virtual currencies that are “part of a game that do not leave the game environment (virtual currencies that are not convertible)” would not have to be reported on tax forms.
The IRS does not consider V-Bucks to be a real virtual currency like Bitcoin because V-Bucks can’t be turned into actual money.Fortnitedeveloper Epic Games added to this in a statement made on Friday, saying that V-Bucks cannot be traded between users and cannot be converted into “US dollars, Euros, and other real or virtual currencies.” After all, it would be weird to have to report spending V-Bucks on a dab emote andHarley Quinn skinson a tax return.
While the government may not be taxing V-Bucks, there are some politicians who are concerned with the recent loot box trend that has popped up in video games. Some political groups both in the US and Europe consider it a form of unregulated gambling, made even more troublesome by the participation and targeting of children. Even some members of the video game industry have taken a stance against loot boxes, includingEpic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, comparing the practice to gambling at slot machines. Due to Sweeney’s belief that loot box systems are hostile to players, it’s safe to say that trend won’t appear in any upcoming Epic Games projects.
The different skins and emotesFortnitefans can buy with V-Bucks offer plenty of customization options, but it’s not as deep as some fans might want. However, onefan has created a brilliant character creation conceptthat could make the battle royale shooter even more popular than it already is. Frankly, it’s amazing Epic Games didn’t think to go down this route already.
Fortniteis available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and iOS and Android devices.
