What #Metaverse builders can learn from Fortnite, a🧵 for those who want to take a self-tour.
(Recommended reading for #AR / #VR industry folk who are unfamiliar with the details)
1. Login system. Epic Games allows seamless logins from a series of platforms in order to play Fortnite. They’re all linked to a single backend account so you have full cross-play available, making it easily accessible to play w friends on just about any system setup.
2. Accessibility. Being cross-platform, Fortnite controls are set up differently for each system, for example kb / mouse vs gamepad vs touchscreen phone etc.
3. Fair play: As a result of the above, some players in battles can be seen as having an unfair advantage Bc the controls offer more precision. Thus cross-play can be turned off if you want a level playing field, or on to play w friends on any system. gamerevolution.com/guides/645606-…
4. Free to play. Fortnite is completely free to download, log in, and play with friends. No restrictions if you have a compatible system. (Not discussing Mac / iOS in this thread) This allows anyone to jump in at no cost, which is another form of accessibility & allows sampling.
5. Cosmetics system. Fortnite is free, but their revenue kicks in if you want to decorate your avatar with a specific “skin” or other accessories, which are hugely popular.
6. Item shop. Items for sale rotate daily, producing 2 important elements: reason to check-in daily, + ephemeral scarcity. You never know when items will be back so if you want something you have a 24h window or you might miss it.
Daily tracker: fnbr.co/shop
7. Battle Pass. This is offered every (roughly 3 month) season. This costs around $8 USD once, but there’s ways to make that back in vbucks (their in-game currency) & also is free with a Crew subscription. With each BP you can earn well over $100 of cosmetics value by playing.
8. Scarcity, again. Battle Pass cosmetics are only available that season. You need a BP & to level up for that season’s cosmetics (like Deadpool). Once a BP is gone / season ends, you’ll never have a chance to get these exclusives again, encouraging active play & bragging rights.
9. Ephemeral gameplay. Every Fortnite season has its own unique game map & themed gameplay elements, whether it’s superhero powers, primal weapons or alien technology. No 2 seasons play exactly alike, & once it’s over, it’s done & moved on.
10. Mythology. Fortnite has an ever-evolving storyline unfolding throughout each season. It makes it more than a typical sandbox game as some of the characters in each Battle Pass play roles in the saga, creating new IP and opening it up to cross-media.
theverge.com/22338403/fortn…
11. In-game events. Continuing on the ephemeral nature, I 1st started paying attention when the Monster vs Robot fight was shared on social. If you missed it, you YouTube it but the full interactive event will never happen again. Similar to the real world
sportingnews.com/us/other-sport…
12. Showcase events. Fortnite has hosted two “short film” events, a BTS music video premiere, & other prerecorded content in their in-game venue (Party Royale). This allows other media to be exposed to the captive Fortnite audience. epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US…
13. Live events. In Dec 2019 a Star Wars event was held in Fortnite as an extended piece of the TROS movie. Starships flew overhead & a JJ Abrams avatar addressed the crowd with a peek at the movie. forbes.com/sites/davidthi…
14. Concert events. Last year’s Travis Scott concert in Fortnite was attended by over 27 million players. Check out YouTube videos to see the use of 3D models & animations juxtaposed with Travis Scott avatars as a new way of concert production.
cnet.com/news/fortnite-…
15. Cross-over partnerships. Too much for one tweet, but Fortnite has collaborated with musicians, sci-fi, comic books, animation, tv shows, movies, sports heroes, esports personalities & TikTok stars for in-game skins, emote dances, & more.
16. World building. The collaborations are going beyond in-game to out-of-game where a Batman Fortnite crossover limited comic book series expanded the mythology & was constantly sold out day of release, & ofc also included codes for in-game cosmetics epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US…
17. Community. The above were all related to getting into Fortnite & experiencing an unfolding narrative spanning cross-media partnerships that touch upon just about every band on the spectrum of entertainment in a fully engaged audience, incl participation by Hollywood giants.
18. Emotes / expression. I admit I first thought of emotes as “silly”, then started noticing how much they were forms of speechless communication in-game, & came to understand this new “language”. “Have a seat” is popular in live events. & yes emotes also need to be purchased.
19. Esports. There’s a competitive Fortnite Championship Series every season that’s insane to watch, with multimillion $ prize pools & partnerships with Twitch.
epicgames.com/fortnite/compe…
20. Creative Tools. Fortnite has a Creative mode that allows all types of custom gameplay, & they showcase different creator maps constantly.
(Crowdsourced world-building is a key #metaverse concept.)
epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US…
21. Creator rewards. Creators are incentivized to build content for Fortnite either through building maps and / or creating content on social media, in both cases Fortnite players can enter an affiliate link so creators get a portion of purchases.
epicgames.com/affiliate/en-U…
22. Shared Activities. Playing Fortnite with friends (especially during quarantine) is basically having an activity (like golf) while catching up across continents, learning more about each other & just shooting the breeze.
23. Camaraderie. I’ve been in awe watching my kids figure out amazing strategy & coordination inside Fortnite when battling together. They’re problem solving at 60fps & teaching me & Andre a thing or two w their coaching as we play & bond over shared victories
24. Summary: There’s a lot Fortnite figured out & iterated on over the past few yrs, breaking barriers (cross-play btw Sony / Microsoft / Nintendo, look it up) & crossing over to mainstream entertainment. Pay close attention, & check out Ariana’s concert! epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US…
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