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Fortnite v42.40 downtime began at 08:00 UTC (4:00 a.m. ET) on October 15, 2026. Epic disabled matchmaking about 30 minutes earlier, and its public status record marked maintenance complete at 10:02 UTC. Use 08:00 UTC as the reliable reference if your local time-zone abbreviation is affected by daylight saving.
Fortnite v42.40 release times by region
The scheduled start was one global moment: 08:00 UTC on October 15, 2026. The following local conversions show when scheduled downtime began, not necessarily when the update finished downloading or when login became available on every platform.
| Region or time zone | Scheduled local start |
|---|---|
| Pacific Time (PT) | 1:00 a.m. |
| Mountain Time (MT) | 2:00 a.m. |
| Central Time (CT) | 3:00 a.m. |
| Eastern Time (ET) | 4:00 a.m. |
| Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) | 9:00 a.m. |
| Central European Time (CET) | 10:00 a.m. |
| Eastern European Time (EET) | 11:00 a.m. |
| India Standard Time (IST) | 1:30 p.m. |
| Singapore Time (SGT) | 4:00 p.m. |
| Japan Standard Time (JST) | 5:00 p.m. |
| Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST) | 6:00 p.m. |
| New Zealand Standard Time (NZST) | 8:00 p.m. |
The table follows the published conversion of 08:00 UTC. October includes daylight-saving time in several jurisdictions, so a clock may show the same instant under a daylight-time abbreviation rather than the standard abbreviation listed here. For example, parts of Europe, Australia and New Zealand may use seasonal labels that differ from CET, AEST or NZST. Converting from UTC avoids that ambiguity.
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Epic’s public status message said: “Scheduled downtime for v42.40 begins at 4 AM ET (8 AM UTC). Matchmaking will be disabled 30 minutes prior.” In practical terms, matchmaking was expected to stop at approximately 07:30 UTC (3:30 a.m. ET). Players already in a match could be returned to the lobby as the maintenance window approached, so avoid starting a game close to that cutoff.
#1 Best Overall
- Redeemable on accounts in the United States and in U.S. Dollars.
- Gift card must be redeemed at EpicGames.com/redeem. This gift card WILL NOT work if redeemed directly on a console device (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, etc.)
- If you play Fortnite experiences on a console device, you need to link your Epic Games account to your console account(s) so items purchased at Fortnite.com/item-shop appear across all of your linked accounts
- Requires internet connection, valid Epic account and prior acceptance of the terms
- Redemption: Online
Is Fortnite v42.40 live yet?
Epic recorded the v42.40 maintenance as completed at 10:02 UTC on October 15. That is the official completion point for the service event, but it is not a promise that every player could launch immediately. Your platform may still need to download and install the client update, verify files, apply a patch, or finish regional service checks.
If you still cannot log in
- Fully close Fortnite rather than leaving it suspended in the background.
- Check for an available game update in your platform’s game library.
- Allow the download and installation to finish before launching again.
- Restart the game after installation; a queued update can leave an old client open.
- Use 08:00 UTC and the 10:02 UTC completion record as the timeline when distinguishing a local platform delay from continuing global downtime.
Epic does not guarantee one identical client-ready time for PC, console and cloud or remote-play platforms. Download speed, platform distribution and regional service propagation can make the practical return-to-play time later than the maintenance record.
Rank #2
- Redeemable on accounts in the United States and in U.S. Dollars.
- Gift card must be redeemed at EpicGames.com/redeem. This gift card WILL NOT work if redeemed directly on a console device (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, etc.)
- If you play Fortnite experiences on a console device, you need to link your Epic Games account to your console account(s) so items purchased at Fortnite.com/item-shop appear across all of your linked accounts
- Requires internet connection, valid Epic account and prior acceptance of the terms
- Redemption: Online
What changed in the v42.40 update?
Epic’s October 15 release notes identify several creator and discovery changes alongside the Fortnite update.
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Fortnite abilities and template abilities described in the release notes are moving out of Experimental status. That indicates Epic is treating those systems as part of the regular feature set rather than an experimental-only release path; individual ability behavior remains governed by the current in-game implementation and notes.
Rank #3
- An Epic Games account is required to redeem an Epic Games Store Card code
- If playing on a console platform (PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Nintendo Switch or Mobile) you need to link your Epic Games account to that gaming platform (one time) to redeem your gift card code
- The 16 digit code on the back of the card WILL NOT work if redeemed directly through your gaming platform (PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Nintendo Switch, Mobile, etc.)
- Note: Nintendo devices do not support Fortnite Shared Wallet, so V-Bucks purchased using your account balance will not show up on your Nintendo device. However, if you purchase items in the web Item Shop — or another platform where you play Fortnite — those items will be available in your Locker across all platforms.
- Redemption: Online
LEGO Brick Editor expansion
The LEGO Brick Editor receives 50 new bricks. For creators using the editor, the change expands the available building vocabulary when constructing LEGO-themed environments and layouts.
UEFN source assets through Fab
Epic says UEFN source assets can be licensed through Fab. Licensing terms and asset availability depend on the specific asset and the applicable Fab listing, so creators should review those conditions before using an asset in a project.
Rank #4
- An Epic Games account is required to redeem an Epic Games Store Card code
- If playing on a console platform (PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Nintendo Switch or Mobile) you need to link your Epic Games account to that gaming platform (one time) to redeem your gift card code
- The 16 digit code on the back of the card WILL NOT work if redeemed directly through your gaming platform (PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Nintendo Switch, Mobile, etc.)
- Note: Nintendo devices do not support Fortnite Shared Wallet, so V-Bucks purchased using your account balance will not show up on your Nintendo device. However, if you purchase items in the web Item Shop — or another platform where you play Fortnite — those items will be available in your Locker across all platforms.
- Redemption: Online
Phased Discover redesign
A redesigned Discover experience begins a phased rollout. Because the rollout is phased, two accounts or regions may not display the same Discover layout at the same time immediately after the update.
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New publishing requirements begin October 22
Epic says portrait thumbnails, landscape thumbnails and logos become required when publishing or updating an island starting October 22, 2026. Creators with an island update planned after that date should prepare all three image types before submitting the publication or update.
Best Value
- Redeemable on accounts in the United States and in U.S. Dollars.
- Gift card must be redeemed at EpicGames.com/redeem. This gift card WILL NOT work if redeemed directly on a console device (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, etc.)
- If you play Fortnite experiences on a console device, you need to link your Epic Games account to your console account(s) so items purchased at Fortnite.com/item-shop appear across all of your linked accounts
- Requires internet connection, valid Epic account and prior acceptance of the terms
- Redemption: Online
Downtime start versus the time you can play
These are separate milestones:
- Matchmaking cutoff: approximately 07:30 UTC, 30 minutes before scheduled downtime.
- Scheduled downtime: 08:00 UTC (4:00 a.m. ET) on October 15.
- Recorded maintenance completion: 10:02 UTC.
- Client-ready time: varies by platform, download size, installation speed and regional service availability.
If you are planning around a tournament, livestream or commute, schedule against the UTC downtime and leave additional time after 10:02 UTC for your platform update. A local conversion tells you when the window starts; it cannot guarantee when your own device will finish patching.
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