Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips have established themselves as frontrunners in the laptop market, particularly known for their impressive battery longevity. However, a notable gap in their offerings has been the gaming experience. In a significant move to bridge this divide, Qualcomm announced on Thursday its plans to enable the popular multiplayer game Fortnite to run on Snapdragon processors, alongside the integration of Epic Games’ Easy Anti-Cheat software.
Enhancing Gaming Compatibility
The introduction of Easy Anti-Cheat is particularly crucial, as it addresses a common challenge faced by many multiplayer games: the prevention of cheating. This software must not only be present but also operate at the kernel level to ensure minimal CPU usage, a requirement that Qualcomm claims to have fulfilled.
With Fortnite set to be available on Windows devices powered by Snapdragon later this year, Qualcomm is actively collaborating with Epic to extend Easy Anti-Cheat support across the platform. Historically, the gaming landscape has been dominated by X86 CPUs, leaving Snapdragon at a disadvantage. Qualcomm is determined to shift this paradigm, with a few titles like Control already demonstrating compatibility.
While Qualcomm’s earlier ambitions suggested that most games would seamlessly run on the Snapdragon X Elite, the current narrative reflects a more nuanced approach. The company acknowledges that the optimization process is ongoing and will likely remain so, emphasizing a commitment to enhancing compatibility with essential platform services like Easy Anti-Cheat.
“Hundreds of today’s multiplayer games—including Fortnite—rely on Easy Anti-Cheat to counter hacking and cheating in multiplayer PC games,” Qualcomm stated. “In addition to releasing Windows on Snapdragon anti-cheat support for Fortnite, we will bring this support to developers through an Epic Online Services SDK release. This will enable developers using Easy Anti-Cheat to bring this compatibility to their own games.”
Qualcomm’s proactive stance is commendable, as the company has swiftly addressed compatibility issues with third-party software, including applications like Google Drive and various VPNs. Dave Durnil, the global head of gaming and Snapdragon Studios, emphasized the company’s dedication to the gaming sector during a recent press call, stating, “We’re all in on gaming — PC gaming.”
