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Epic Mega Sale loses two pre-order titles on day one
Yesterday, Epic launched a "mega sale," offering games at up to 75 percent off and additional $10 credits for purchases over $14.99. It looked like Epic was preparing to go head-to-head with the Steam Sale, which is scheduled to arrive at the end of June. But by the end of the day, fans noticed two titles mysteriously vanished from the Epic Store, and the price of another seemed to increase.
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.
'Fortnite' lets you fight Thanos with Avengers weapons
Legend has it that you must be truly worthy to be able to wield Thor's hammer, but thanks to Epic Games, all you actually need is a free copy of Fortnite Battle Royale. That's right, with Avengers: Endgame finally hitting theaters, the online shooter is hosting another Marvel-themed crossover. You'll be asked to either help Thanos and his Chitauri invade the island and find the six Infinity Stones or wield the MCU's most powerful weapons in an attempt to stop him.
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.
Holiday 'Fortnite' outage leaves players in limbo (updated)
We hope you didn't plan on spending your holiday week indulging in a Fortnite marathon. Epic Games has confirmed an outage preventing players from joining games, or even signing in. The developer hasn't been specific about the nature of the issue, but TechCrunch noted that it took multiple tries to log in, and that the queue was timing out. The company's status page pointed to a "partial outage" for game services as well as "degraded performance" for both signing in and matchmaking.
'Infinity Blade' will live on inside 'Fortnite'
For any studio, stopping development on a game is never fun. Just ask Epic Games, which just announced that it will no longer dedicate any more resources to its Infinity Blade trilogy because it couldn't support the series to "a level that meets [its] standards." However, when you're also behind one of the biggest games of 2018 (hint: Fortnite), it often provides opportunities for some of those older ideas to live on. That's exactly what's happened in the battle royale title's latest update, which welcomes the Infinity Blade as its new weapon.
Epic pulls its 'Infinity Blade' mobile games from the App Store
Ever since being introduced as Project Sword alongside iOS 4.1 back in 2010, the Infinity Blade games have shown the kind of graphics and action that are possible on Apple's mobile devices -- until now. At the same time owner Epic Games is launching its own game store and pricking Apple over App Store policies that impact its Fortnite juggernaut, the company has decided to pull all three games without warning. In a post the company said "it has become increasingly difficult for our team to support the Infinity Blade series at a level that meets our standards."
After Math: Hope for the Holidays
While Christmas decorations have already been festooned throughout big box retailers since the start of November, the holiday season is finally in full swing now that Thanksgiving is over. As such, industry and government both are gearing up to celebrate the reason for the season: capitalism.
'Fortnite' season seven adds planes, custom weapons and lots of ice
I don't want to undersell this, but if you've been looking to play as a swole Father Christmas, Epic Games' latest Fortnite update has got you covered. Season seven of the battle royale shooter has arrived, bringing with it weapon customization, a brand new icy biome, a bunch of new skins and even a new vehicle: planes.
'Fortnite' ends Halloween event with an in-game bang
When Epic said it was going to end its Fortnitemares Halloween event in spectacular fashion with a one-time occurrence, it wasn't kidding around. If you happened to be in Fortnite at 1PM Eastern on November 4th, you saw the mysterious cube on the map not only explode, but trigger an in-game cutscene that left players floating in a mysterious void reminiscent of Rez, right down to the butterflies. It's rare that you see a cutscene like this in the middle of a competitive multiplayer game, especially one with upwards of 100 people.
'Fortnite' celebrates Halloween with themed outfits and challenges
Fortnite is a gaming juggernaut that just won't quit. No doubt part of its success are the constant changes and updates that keep things fresh, and with Halloween just around the corner, what better time than now to unveil a new in-game event and patch?
Fox Sports’ new virtual studio runs on Unreal Engine
It's no secret that Epic Games has enabled a number of gaming studios to create more-realistic visuals with its Unreal game engine. Since its debut in 1998, powering the first-person shooter Unreal, the technology has evolved to power hundreds of games, from Fortnite to Street Fighter V, and with that process, the virtual has become increasingly more realistic. Now in its fourth iteration, Unreal Engine is no longer exclusively being used for gaming, as other industries have taken notice of the possibilities. Unreal Engine 4 has become a key element for film and television in recent years, and Fox Sports is using it to power its new, completely virtual studio set. "Virtual sets have been around for quite some time, and we've done our fair share of using them," Zac Fields said. "But it's always been a struggle to give that sense of photo realism." Fields oversees Fox Sports' Graphic Technology and Integration department, which includes the addition of new gear during a studio build. He said the team started thinking about the idea of a virtual set about two years ago. Around 15 months ago, the network started getting staff familiar with the software and began tests. Then last winter, the broadcaster did a virtual show. Fields described this as a "full run-through" of a show on the virtual set that was built in Charlotte, North Carolina.
'Fortnite' Tournaments pit controller against keyboard and mouse
Fortnite's 6.10 update arrived today, and with it, a new Tournaments feature gives everyone what developer Epic says is the chance to "compete directly alongside the pros for prizes and glory." Each tournament session lasts several hours, and everyone starts with a completely clean slate. The objective is to earn as many points as possible, either by achieving high placements or eliminating multiple opponents. Each tournament has a target score to aim for -- hit it and you'll receive a shiny pin which in the future could advance you to the next level of the tournament, or qualify you to win prizes.
'Fortnite' season six arrives with invisibility and pets
It feels like we had to wait forever, but it's finally here: Fortnite season six has begun. As is customary with any new competitive window, tonnes of new content has landed, but it's also time to say goodbye to items and locations you may have come to love (or really really hate). The theme for season six is "Darkness Rises," turning the island shadowy thanks to the otherworldly powers exhibited by "The Cube."
'Fortnite' for Android may launch on Samsung's app store
Global gaming phenomenon Fortnite is coming to the Android platform sometime this summer, but Epic said it wouldn't show up in the Google Play store. Now, there's evidence of how it will be distributed: Newly leaked code seems to show that 'Fortnite' will be available on Samsung's app store. This lends more credence to reports that the game will be a Samsung exclusive. In addition, the just-released Galaxy Tab S4 may be able to run the game along with upcoming Galaxy Note 9.
Epic quickly nerfs the new 'Fortnite' SMG after complaints
The v5.10 Fortnite update that brought back our beloved Playground mode also added something else -- this new gun. Unfortunately, the "high capacity, fast firing Compact SMG" was just a little too overpowered, and many high-profile players quickly complained that it made the game a race to get the SMG so one could chew through their enemies (and their buildings, as the starting and max health of many materials dropped at the same time). While Epic has been up front about wanting to make the endgame more exciting and less focused on build-offs as it pushes for esports viability, this particular tweak may have gone too far. As a result, the company quickly lowered the accuracy, range and damage done by the new gun and existing SMGs. Check below for the (now-live) adjusted SMG values, and a few clips of the gun at work as it existed prior to the nerf.
Even the World Cup couldn't escape the 'Fortnite' fever
Now that England is out of the 2018 World Cup, there's one thing we're really going to miss about its team: The goal celebrations from midfielders Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard. While professional athletes creatively expressing themselves after scoring is nothing new, these guys stood out because their quirky moves were inspired by none other than Fortnite. Best of all, they did it at the world's biggest sporting event. Fortnite's mark on the World Cup in Russia is just the latest example of how inescapable the Epic Games' survival title is.
'Fortnite' season five adds a desert locale, golf carts and rifts
Fortnite players, the event you've been waiting for is finally here. Epic Games has officially kicked off the battle royale shooter's fifth season, offering a whole host of new locations, weapons, vehicles and mechanics. After teasing a historical theme at the end of Season 4, today's update delivers viking ships, sandy outposts (goodbye Moisty Mire), ancient statues and plenty of skins to do them justice.
Delayed 'Fortnite' Playground practice mode is finally online
If you've been excited about Fortnite's new four-player practice mode, you're in luck. It looks as if Epic brought Playgrounds online Monday evening after a short delay due to technical issues.
'Fortnite' gets a four-player Playground practice mode
Fortnite: Battle Royale is relentless and unforgiving, affording players no time before 99 other wannabe champions set their sights on each other. In fact, the fast-paced action is one of the biggest barriers for new players -- people rarely have time to get to grips with the game's building mechanics and varying weapon types before they're set upon. Epic Games previously teased that it would introduce a new way for players to practice away from the main island. Playground Mode has arrived as part of today's v4.5 update, giving players a much-needed way to hone their skills before taking them onto the battlefield.
