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Teen 'Fortnite' champion won more than Tiger Woods at the Masters
It's not entirely fair to say Kyle "Bugha" Giersdorf became a millionaire overnight. You don't beat out millions of other players on the path to winning the first Fortnite World Cup without untold hours of practice and playing at a consistently high level over an extended period. But after utterly dominating six matches of battle royale chaos at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City Sunday, the 16-year-old Pennsylvania resident walked away with the title and a $3 million check in his back pocket.
John Wick drops into 'Fortnite' for a bounty-hunting brawl
John Wick will be back in theaters this weekend, but the assassin will take up residence on small screens too, as he's starring in a Fortnite event. The Wick's Bounty limited-time mode pits you against other players in a race to earn the most gold tokens. You'll start with several tokens and claim another player's tokens when you take them out. You start with have three lives, and the more tokens you have, the more visible you are to other players on the map.
Epic Games will receive a BAFTA Special Award next month
Epic Games will add another award to its trophy cabinet next month, when it picks up a BAFTA Special Award for its contribution to game development. Not only has the company created several hits of its own, including the all-conquering Fortnite, but it's helped other studios build games using Unreal Engine and distributed them through the Epic Games Store.
'Avengers: Endgame' event is coming to 'Fortnite' this week
Epic Games is again linking up with the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the developer has teased a Fortnite and Avengers: Endgame crossover. We don't know many details yet, other than a start date of April 25th, the same day the movie hits theaters, and that it might have something to do with Captain America's shield.
Epic Games Store plans include cloud saves and achievements
Don't worry if you think the Epic Games Store's features are threadbare at the moment -- there's a good chance the features you like are in the pipeline. Epic has posted a public roadmap for its portal, and you can expect a steady stream of additions. Most notably, it's hoping to add cloud saves as soon as May, with offline mode upgrades planned for April. Things should get rosier after that, with user reviews, wish lists, mod support and in-game overlays expected in the next four to six months.
Epic Games' Unreal Engine will support HoloLens
You can't call HoloLens 2 a gaming platform, but Microsoft is at least laying the groundwork. Epic Games has announced that it's adding HoloLens support to Unreal Engine 4, the technology that powers a wide range of games and 3D productivity apps. It's "up and running" now, Epic's Tim Sweeney said, and should be available to all developers in May. You're not about to play an augmented-reality version of Fortnite. It should allow for "photorealistic" 3D in AR apps, though, and it's really just the start of Epic's plans.
Nerf's 'Fortnite' guns will be here March 22nd (updated)
If you thought Hasbro was already milking the Fortnite trend for all it's worth with an official Nerf gun, you haven't seen anything yet. The toy maker has unveiled its full line of Fortnite-themed Nerf guns (including Super Soakers), and while it's not a complete reflection of the battle royale shooter's arsenal, it's likely you'll find something that suits your tastes. People who prefer dart-based havoc can pick up the AR-L assault rifle ($50) or SP-L pistol ($20) for conventional weaponry, but they can also wield $10 MicroShot dart blasters for surprise attacks. If you've ever wanted to shoot foam projectiles from a llama's mouth, now's your chance.
The 'Fortnite' dance lawsuits are close to falling apart
Epic Games has found itself slapped with a flurry of lawsuits, all alleging the company of stealing people's dance moves and selling them on for a profit. These dances are incorporated into its world-conquering game Fortnite, which are bought by players for a quantity of in-game currency (costing real money). That's angered a number of musicians and viral video stars, who feel that they've been ripped off, but in one high-profile case, the law might be on Epic's side.
'Fortnite' account merging cleans up Sony's cross-platform mess
Sony screwed up with Fortnite. When Epic Games' blockbuster landed on the Nintendo Switch in June, it included cross-console capabilities for every platform except PlayStation 4, due to Sony's long-standing reluctance to make nice with rival hardware manufacturers. Sony fans were able to play with people on PC, Mac and mobile devices, but they were locked out of games with Xbox One or Switch buddies. This all meant PS4 players with existing Fortnite accounts couldn't access them on Switch, and vice versa, so plenty of folks ended up creating a separate profile for each device.
'Fortnite' will host a Marshmello concert this weekend
With Super Bowl LIII only days away, Epic Games is ensuring that Fortnite players will be able to partake in some of the festivities. As reported by The Verge, the game's creators have booked EDM artist and producer Marshmello to perform an in-game concert the game, which will be hosted directly on the football field in Pleasant Park.
'Fortnite' now lets you use a Bluetooth controller to play on your phone
Epic Games is helping to level the playing field for Fortnite players on mobile with its latest patch. The update brings support for Bluetooth controllers to iOS and Android versions of the hit battle royale game (as promised back in November). Switching from touchscreen to an external gamepad should make the experience less fidgety on the go. And that could be critical when you're locked in a cross-play battle with PC and console players.
'Fortnite' eliminates blind loot boxes in its PvE mode
Epic Games has kept paid blind loot boxes out of Fortnite's signature battle royale mode, but now it's clearing them out of the cooperative Save the World mode, too. As of the 7.30 update, Epic has ditched V-Buck Llamas in favor of X-Ray Llamas that show you what you'll get when you shell out 50 V-Bucks. You won't spend real money on a set you don't want, in other words. If you don't like what's on offer (and aren't prepared to earn it through gameplay), you can wait until the following day.
Fortnite’s legal battles probably won’t result in big payouts
As Fortnite continues its astronomical rise, the legal troubles keep piling on for its developer, Epic Games. With more than 200 million players on Fortnite: Battle Royale (which reportedly earned over $1 billion in 2018), the title isn't just a cultural phenomenon -- it's also a serious cash cow. And, as the great Notorious B.I.G. once said, "mo' money, mo' problems." For Epic, those problems have been caused by Fortnite's Emotes, a collection of real-world-inspired dance moves that players can use with their avatar in the game.
BlocBoy JB is the latest to sue Epic over a 'Fortnite' dance
No, artists still aren't done suing Epic Games for allegedly violating copyright by using their dances in Fortnite. TMZ has learned that BlocBoy JB is suing Epic for reportedly copying his "Shoot" dance with the "Hype" emote in the battle royale game. Like Fresh Prince star Alfonso Ribiero, BlocBoy said he didn't have the copyright yet but was in the midst of securing it. And like before, there's no doubt that the dance is similar -- the question is whether or not there's a case.
'Fortnite' Ice Storm event blankets the map in snow
Fortnite has had its share of map-changing events, but its latest might be the most conspicuous to date. Epic kicked off its Ice Storm event on January 19th through an in-game spectacle where the mysterious ice sphere (added with the recent 7.20 patch) broke open to reveal the Ice King, who promptly blanketed the entire map in snow and populated it with undead Ice Fiends. Unlike some events, it won't matter where you prefer to drop -- you'll be more conspicuous (unless you have the right outfit, that is) and may have to fend off zombie adversaries.
Epic Games will pause 'Fortnite' updates ahead of events to help pros
Epic Games is changing the way it handles Fortnite patches to give pros more time to adjust to game-impacting tweaks. Competitive players can now expect updates to arrive a few days to a week prior to a tournament so as not to catch anyone by surprise, the developer said in a blog post. The changes will come into effect with the Fortnite Summer Smash event at the Australian Open on January 26th, which Epic says will use the core Battle Royale modes.
A 'Fortnite' security flaw could have exposed players' accounts
Fortnite fans who are able to log in and play without any issues (other than being eliminated before so much as building a ramp) might thank their lucky stars Epic Games has resolved a security issue. Check Point security researchers found vulnerabilities on Epic's site that could have let hackers access accounts.
Unity rolls out new rules for devs after Improbable fight
Unity has had a change of heart. The company is updating its terms of service so that any third-party software, including SpatialOS, can be used in conjunction with its popular game engine. "Some of these services will be supported, others will not," Joachim Ante, co-founder and CTO of Unity said in a blog post. That's in stark contrast to the previous terms, published last December, which banned games from being run in the cloud, or on a remote server, "without a separate license or authorization from Unity."
Orange Shirt Kid's mom is suing 'Fortnite' creators over dance
Epic Games is facing yet another lawsuit over the use of dance moves in Fortnite, although this one might not be so straightforward. The mom of Orange Shirt Kid, whose Random dance reached the game as Orange Justice, is suing Epic for allegedly using the routine "without consent or authorization" and thus violating his copyright and trademarks. Rachel McCumbers' son submitted the dance to Epic as part of its BoogieDown contest and initially didn't pass muster, but a wave of support (including a petition) led the developer to include it in the game regardless. There's no question that Orange Justice is his -- it even uses his catchphrase, "it's also a great exercise move." However, there are a number of reasons this case might face daunting odds.
Epic's updated game store refund policy matches Steam
The Epic Games Store wasn't all that refund-friendly on launch. You could only ask for two refunds in an entire year (albeit after unlimited hours of play), and you had to submit details like your IP address in a support ticket to have a hope of getting your money back. It should be easier from now on, at least. According to Epic's Sergey Galyonkin, the company has updated its refund policy to allow unlimited refunds as long as they're within 14 days of purchase and with less than two hours of play time. You still have to submit a support request for now (there's a "self-service" option coming), but you no longer have to provide a bevy of information so long as the refund meets the criteria.
