CARY – Epic Games says it wants Fortnite players who have complaints to contact the Cary-based gaming technology firm directly.

The privately held firm now valued at several billion dollars after the global success of the Fortnite multiplayer online adventure reacted to an “F” rating assigned to it by the Better Business Bureau for Eastern North Carolina. The BBB cited player complaints and Epic’s lack of response to its inquiries for assigning the rating, which is the lowest in its ranking system.

“Epic Games is not affiliated with the Better Business Bureau and has redirected all player submitted complaints from the BBB to our Player Support staff,” Epic said in a statement provided to WRAL TechWire.

The company spokesperson then pointed to a specific website where players could submit complaints.

“We encourage players with concerns about their accounts to reach out to us at https://www.epicgames.com/site/en-US/customer-service,” the spokesperson said.

The “F” is “due to unanswered consumer complaints,” the BBB said in a statement issued Wednesday morning.

Some 279 complaints have been filed over the past three years, all but eight of those coming over the past year during which Epic launched Fortnite.

In the announcement, the BBB says 247 complaints “have gone unanswered.”

The success of Fortnite has made the company worth several billion dollars in value. according to estimates from Bloomberg news.

“A majority of complaints submitted to BBB against Epic Games deal with customer service and refund or exchange issues,” the BBB said.

Epic offers Fortnite for free although other versions are available. Players also can buy accessories online.

“BBB has attempted to contact Epic Games on numerous occasions, but the company has failed to respond,” the statement noted.

BBB’s announcement included two statements from complaints:

“Epic Games failed to protect customer security, resulting in several unsanctioned charges over mine and my partner’s account.”

“There is no phone number or proper email response time to return my unauthorized charge of $160. Nobody will answer, and I feel cheated.”

BBB notes that its “ratings are not a guarantee of a business’s reliability or performance. BBB recommends that consumers consider a business’s BBB rating in addition to all other available information about the business.”