Fortnite
Fortnite
New Storm Scout rifle details leaked through Fortnite data mining
M Alzamora
Storm stragglers in Fortnite may soon find it even more difficult to survive. Data miners have uncovered an exotic new sniper rifle that could spoil their storm-exploring fun. Evidence of this “Storm Scout” sniper rifle exists within the game files for Fortnite Patch 9.40. There was no available description for the new rifle’s capabilities, but there is early speculation that the sniper rifle will make it easier to look into …
Fortnite
Endretta joins Misfits ahead of Fortnite World Cup finals
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Misfits Gaming has welcomed Norwegian player Endre “Endretta” as an addition to its Fortnite World Cup squad. Endretta qualified for the Fortnite World Cup Finals in the ninth week of European qualifiers, where he achieved the highest number of points in the solo tournament. He is considered to be one of Norway’s top competitive Fortnite players. He has previously played for Xypher Esports, a European Fornite team that represents more …
Fortnite
Fortnite patch 9.40 arrives with shotgun changes and tournaments
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
The latest Fortnite patch, version 9.40, is up and running on live servers and has brought with it a few new things for Fortnite players. The new patch is bringing the tactical shotgun back in both epic and legendary forms. The patch also includes changes to some existing weapons and items, new tournaments, miscellaneous gameplay changes, and some assorted game improvements and bug fixes. The new tactical shotgun variants will …
Fortnite
Shroud says playing competitive Fortnite is just free money
Olivia Richman
Twitch streamer Michael “shroud” Grzesiek might be well known for playing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professionally or for streaming Apex Legends with a broken elbow, but he also has a very strong opinion about Fortnite. According to shroud, Fortnite is the best battle royale to go pro in if you’re looking to make some quick cash. “It’s just free money. Even if you lose, you win. Not many games are like …
Fortnite
Fortnite Trios event returns after first attempt marred by bugs
M Alzamora
Epic Games will run another $1 million Fortnite Trios Cash Cup on July 21 after unforeseen bugs forced last-minute changes to the original event. Eager participants were all set for battle when developer Epic announced that it had to use default harvesting rates and disable material drops from downed enemies. Epic also disabled the Storm Flip item that altered the storm’s position and made for unpredictable moments in the late …
Fortnite
Fortnite Trios Cash Cup’s rules changed minutes before event
Steven Rondina
Fortnite esports continues to take two steps back for each one forward. The highly anticipated Trios Cash Cup event will be running with a special set of rules due to the discovery of some troublesome bugs. The news was announced by Epic Games on Twitter approximately 15 minutes before start time. “While addressing the material drop issue in the Trios Cash Cup, we ran into a different issue,” Epic said. …
Fortnite
Fortnite Team Rumble is set to become a standard game mode
M Alzamora
Team Rumble isn’t going anywhere. Epic Games has announced that the game mode is now a permanent part of the Fortnite playlist. Revealing the change on Reddit, Epic developer DustyDevo laid out the company’s plans regarding Team Rumble and other large-team limited-time modes. “Our new plan is to leave Team Rumble in as a default always on mode, continue rotating small team LTMs every two or three days, and to …
Fortnite
PS4 players to receive new exclusive Fortnite bundles
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
PlayStation is launching five new limited edition Fortnite Neo Versa bundles with PlayStation exclusive cosmetics. New bundles include the Epic Neo Versa Outfit, the Epic Neo Phrenzy Back Bling, and V-bucks. The code for this exclusive Fortnite content will be bundled either with a PlayStation 4, DualShock 4 Wireless Controllers, or a Gold Wireless Headset. Fortnite Neo Versa PS4 bundle includes a jet-black 500GB PS4, one matching wireless controller, a …
Fortnite developers promise to fix blinding shield effects
M Alzamora
Fortnite
Epic Games has confirmed that it will address the overdone special effects that take over players’ screens when they take shield damage in the next Fortnite update. The news comes via Reddit, where Epic developer Eric Williamson responded directly to a thread calling for a change. “Agreed, this is a priority fix for 9.40,” Williamson said. Currently, a blue orb blocks the player’s vision the moment they take damage while …
Myth criticizes Epic Games for another disruptive update
William Davis
Fortnite
Team SoloMid’s Ali “Myth” Kabbani recently had some harsh words for the Fortnite community on Twitter. The reaction comes after the most recent Fortnite update that includes the controversial air strike weapon. “The Fortnite community is the saddest fucking lot. Stop thinking things are ever gonna change from us getting a new content update that you might hate every 2 weeks. This is our reality,” Myth said on Twitter. Myth …
Svennoss and The Fortnite Guy embroiled in dramatics, accusations
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Fortnite
Sven “Svennoss” Edelenbosch has called out The Fornite Guy for the misinformation he’s been spreading in his YouTube videos. Competitive Fortnite player Svennoss tweeted out a Reddit comment highlighting many wrongdoings of popular YouTuber Mykal, better known as The Fortnite Guy. The Fortnite Guy’s YouTube channel focuses on covering recent news and controversies in the Fortnite community, and it is through the channel that he has allegedly been intentionally spreading …
Young streamer zyITV raises thousands for father’s cancer treatment
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Fortnite
A 13-year-old streamer from Canada under the username “zylTV” has turned to Twitch in hopes of raising money for his father’s cancer treatment costs, and viewers responded generously by donating well over the initial goal that was set. zylTV has been playing and streaming Fortnite ten hours a day for five days with a wish to raise $5,000 CDN through charitable donations. Goal donations would all go towards the funding …
Air Strikes are up for debate days before Fortnite World Cup
Olivia Richman
Fortnite
If there’s one thing Epic Games doesn’t shy away from, it’s completely changing Fortnite’s meta right before, and sometimes during, major esports tournaments. An Air Strike weapon was introduced in the game’s most recent update. Players can clear out areas with a simple toss, since Air Strike does 75 damage per hit to players and a whopping 200 damage to structures. With each Air Strike sending 20 bombs to the chosen …
Air Strikes will change Fortnite meta weeks before World Cup
Steven Rondina
Fortnite
Fortnite added a big new feature and pro players won’t have much opportunity to adjust to it. The third update to version 9.30 has arrived and though the list of changes is short, it includes the devastating new Air Strike weapon. The addition of a new weapon may not be surprising, but the fact it comes just two weeks ahead of the Fortnite World Cup raises an eyebrow. The Air …
Mongraal joins FaZe Clan as Fortnite team beefs up in wake of Tfue
William Davis
Fortnite
FaZe Clan has added to its already stacked Fortnite roster by signing Kyle “Mongraal” Jackson from Team Secret. Mongraal is known in the competitive Fortnite community for his impressive building skills and his strong competitive drive. He has already qualified for the Fortnite World Cup in both the solo and duo competitions. Mongraal is currently teamed up with Martin “MrSavageM” Foss Anderson and Benjy “Benjyfishy” Fish for the trios section …
Fortnite streamer pleads guilty to hitting wife on Twitch live stream
Olivia Richman
Fortnite
After attacking his wife while streaming Fortnite last year, Luke “MrDeadMoth” Munday has pleaded guilty to common assault. Pregnant with their third child at the time, MrDeadMoth’s wife had been attempting to get his attention while he was streaming on Twitch. After becoming angry during the subsequent argument, MrDeadMoth got up and hit his partner off camera. But the stream was still on, and his viewers heard her cries of …
Bloodx splits with sponsor after accusations of racist language
William Davis
Fortnite
A racism scandal has hit the Fortnite esports scene Competitive Fortnite player Erik “Bloodx” Guttormsen has left Eleven Gaming after he was accused of using racial slurs by Issa “Issa” Rahim of Ghost Gaming. Bloodx announced the news on Twitter. “I am sorry to my fans, friends, family and Eleven Gaming for the events that have transpired over the last 3 days,” Bloodx said. “This is simply too much for …
Fortnite and Stranger Things event brings Upside Down portals to map
gabhernandez
Fortnite
A surprise collaboration between Stranger Things and Fortnite has manifested in the form of Upside Down portals. Netflix released the third season of its hit show on July 4. In an effort to promote it, Netflix partnered with Epic Games to add hellish, glowing portals in the game’s Mega Mall destination. In addition to the in-game changes, skins modeled after Chief Hopper and the Demogorgon have been made available in …
Cloud9 recruits new Fortnite roster ahead of Fortnite World Cup
Syed Mujtaba Naqvi
Fortnite
Cloud9 is returning to competitive Fortnite with a brand new roster. Joining Cloud9’s Fortnite team are three top tier Brazilian players and one of the most wanted free agents from the United States. The new team consists of Igor “drakoNz” Fernandes, Patrick “BlackoutZ” Babinski, Nicollas “Nicks” Polonio de Oliveira, and Skylar “snow” Baibinski. Snow, the only player from the US, qualified for the 2019 Fornite World Cup Finals in the …
Tfue gets rare Quadcrasher kill by crashing on top of opponent
Olivia Richman
Fortnite
“Yeehaw!” Turner “Tfue” Tenney exclaimed as he flew through the air in a Fortnite Quadcrasher. The competitive Fortnite player started out his latest stream innocently enough. He built a ramp to race his Quadcrasher up, looking to soar high above the map. But his goals changed when he saw an opponent minding their own business obliviously down below. Tfue decided it was time to aim his rocketing Quadcrasher at the …
Fortnite has come a long way over the course of the game’s lifespan. What began as an upstart early-access title with base-building mechanics would eventually transform into the world’s most popular and lucrative video game, capturing the attention of millions upon millions of players across the world and entering into the mainstream cultural lexicon.
But how exactly did that happen? How did one of many games released by developer Epic Games manage to transform in real-time into something with such potential, and to what extent did Fortnite really grow? The answers are indicative of what it takes for a game to go from new and struggling to becoming a global phenomenon.
The original vision for Fortnite was very different compared to the game that is so widely popular today. Developers at Epic Games intended to create a game that would merge base-building mechanics with the popular shooting gameplay that the company was best known for, from its experience releasing such titles those found in the Unreal Tournament and Gears of War franchises.
While that vision was altered even prior to Fortnite’s initial release, with a darker creative look becoming brighter and more reminiscent of children’s cartoons, the first release of Fortnite did feature that original focus. Titled Fortnite: Saves the World, this was a paid early-access release that met moderate fanfare and player enthusiasm.
A follow-up release would do far better. That follow-up was Fortnite Battle Royale, a free-to-play version of the game that featured the core mechanics and experience players most associate with the Fortnite name today. The battle royale game mode, thrown together in just a couple of months by developers, was at the time a relatively new concept. A multitude of players would be dropped onto one map to do battle with each other, accruing resources and weaponry in an open-world environment to better equip themselves for combat. Eventually, the game’s playable map size would shrink over time, forcing players to engage with each other until only one winning player was left standing.
It’s a simple concept, but in 2017 it was fresh and new. Players quickly flocked to try this early battle royale game, and within weeks of its free-to-play release, Fortnite Battle Royale was playing host to millions of players.
First and foremost, the success of Fortnite can be seen in the extreme revenue numbers generated by the game for maker Epic Games. Just a few short years after its release, Fortnite had already led to billions of dollars in revenue for Epic. This success was enough to send reverberations throughout the entire video game industry. Dozens of clones would follow, trying to recapture the battle royale magic that Fortnite had so successfully crystallized, but it proved difficult for most.
Money wasn’t the only marker of the game’s ascendance, however. Fortnite broached popular mainstream culture in a way that few video games ever have. Popular streamer and former Halo pro Tyler “Ninja” Blevins was at the fore of this wave of popularity, co-streaming with rap superstar Drake and appearing on numerous television talk shows to discuss the game and the craze surrounding it. Popular musicians beyond Drake also got involved with the game, as Travis Scott and Marshmello hosted live, in-game concerts to both popular and critical acclaim.
The Fortnite World Cup raised the game’s profile even further in some circles. Held at the famous Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City, the event awarded $3 million to 16-year-old phenom Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf, who then found himself paraded through mainstream media circles just as Ninja had been before him.
While its apex may have come and gone, Fortnite remains one of the most popular and successful games in the world today, continuing to play host to many millions of players while generating major revenues for Epic Games.
