Qualcomm Boosts Windows on Arm Gaming With Fortnite and Easy Anti-Cheat Support
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips have made a name for themselves by delivering exceptional battery life in laptops, but one key weakness has held them back: gaming support. To tackle this challenge, Qualcomm announced on Thursday that Fortnite will officially be supported on Snapdragon-powered Windows on Arm devices later this year. More significantly, Qualcomm is working with Epic Games to ensure Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) support for Snapdragon-based systems, which could open the door for more multiplayer titles to run on the platform.
While Fortnite’s arrival is a major milestone, the bigger win for Windows on Arm gaming is anti-cheat compatibility. Many popular multiplayer games—including Fortnite—rely on Easy Anti-Cheat to prevent hacking and unfair play. However, for anti-cheat systems to be truly effective, they must run at the kernel level, ensuring minimal CPU usage while maintaining security. Qualcomm says it has successfully implemented this, bringing Easy Anti-Cheat natively to Windows on Snapdragon devices.
For years, Windows gaming has primarily been optimized for x86 CPUs, leaving Arm-based devices at a disadvantage. While some games—such as Control—already run on Snapdragon-powered systems, broad compatibility remains an ongoing challenge. Qualcomm has softened its stance from last year, when it boldly claimed that most PC games would run smoothly on the Snapdragon X Elite. Now, the company acknowledges that game optimization is a continuous process, requiring long-term collaboration with developers.
However, enabling fundamental platform services like Easy Anti-Cheat represents a significant step forward. Qualcomm confirmed that it is working with other anti-cheat services, including BattlEye and the built-in anti-cheat technology used in Roblox, to further improve gaming support on Snapdragon-powered PCs.
In a statement, Qualcomm said:
“Hundreds of today’s multiplayer games—including Fortnite—rely on Easy Anti-Cheat to counter hacking and cheating in multiplayer PC games. 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.”
Additionally, Qualcomm has been actively addressing compatibility issues with third-party applications like Google Drive and VPN services, ensuring that essential software runs smoothly on Snapdragon-powered laptops.
Dave Durnil, Qualcomm’s global head of gaming and Snapdragon Studios, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to PC gaming during a media call on Thursday.
“We’re all in on gaming—PC gaming,” Durnil stated.
With Fortnite’s arrival and anti-cheat support rolling out, Qualcomm is taking another step toward making Windows on Arm a viable platform for gamers. While the road to full compatibility remains long, these updates mark meaningful progress in the effort to expand Snapdragon’s presence in the PC gaming space.
