It is not uncommon to hear of games becoming very popular. We have had many of the Call of Duty games become very popular, as well as Fifa being an instant hit for many people. However, for the past months, all of the attention has been on a new sort of game: Fortnite Battle Royale. With over 40 million active players and billions of views generated from the game play on YouTube, Fortnite has become a sensational hit globally. What is Fortnite and why is it so popular?

What is Fortnite?

Originally, Fortnite was a game for online players to defend themselves against zombie waves, similar to the Zombies mode with Call of Duty games. However, after a change of direction by the creators, Epic Games, Fortnite looked to capitalize on the Battle Royale game mode.

Battle Royale works as a mode of game where players are shipped into a map, with the aim to be the last man standing. Players can roam the map to find guns, health ups and more. Within a certain time frame, the map is shrunk, and then shrunk again and again, forcing players to confront each other until there is only one player left – the winner.

Fortnite is slightly different in that it has a cartoon-style, whilst you can destroy the map with your axe. From this, you can gain resources you can use to build into stairs and walls.

Why is Fortnite so popular?

Fortnite is the game of 2018 it seems. With huge success on PC, PS4 and Xbox, Epic Games have even made a Fortnite version for the Nintendo Switch. There are now rumors of Fortnite coming to iOS and Android.

• It’s Free – Any game that is free is going to become a hit, regardless of how good or bad it is. The fact Fortnite is a really good game really gives those that own a PC, PS4, Xbox or Switch no reason to not download the game.
• Huge Map – Fortnite: Battle Royale comes in a huge map, that is adapted over time by Epic Games. For example, a month ago a meteor crashed into the map changing the map slightly. The great thing about a large map is that it takes quite a long time to explore the map – a Battle Royale makes it possible to do just that.
• Different strategies and tactics – Battle Royale is an effective game in allowing the player to adopt many different types of tactics to win. Where should you parachute in? Should you camp? How to deal with conflict? There are many ways to play the game.
• Cartoon style – Because the game is a very ‘cartoony’ that does not show blood and is quite ‘goofy’ in some sense, it is great for all sorts of ages.
• Building – The fact that you can harvest the map of resources, to build your own walls and stairs, makes it different from other Battle Royale games. This effectively also adds to the tactics, where players can quickly build walls as barriers to bullets.