Fortnite Mania: What’s All the Hype About?

Video games have been a part of young kid and teenage culture for years now, all of them coming in different iterations. From playing Tetris on a Gameboy, to Pacman at an arcade, and Fifa 18 on the Xbox One, everyone has played a video game at some point or another in their lives. None of these games have attracted such an immense following in such a short amount of time like Fortnite has, a game that just about any 11-25 year old male will recognize if they hear it mentioned.

Fortnite has taken over the lives of just about every guy at Darien High School. You can’t go anywhere without hearing someone talk about it or boast a first place finish that they had. The premise of the game is based in a post-apocalyptic as you and about 100 other players battle it out to be the last one standing while a deadly “storm cloud” closes in on you, making the space you have to run around and defend yourself gradually smaller. Sort of like an animated Hunger Games.

The game has taken over pop-culture from every angle. Twitch stars make a good living off of live streaming the games they play, and in many cases inviting big time celebrities on to play with them. A few weeks ago a Twitch streamer named Ninja played several games with rappers Drake and Travis Scott and Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. The live stream of all of them playing together garnered a record shattering 635,000 views. Not only are people playing the game non stop, but when they finally decide to take a break, they watch their favorite celebrities play.

Fortnite certainly has captured the attention of just about everyone. Freshman Joe Sheehan admitted to playing the game for hours on an end, telling me: “The game is just awesome. On some of the last few snow days that we’ve had I’ve played for six hours straight.” These long hours are no surprise to anyone else who plays the game, or to myself, either. I have two younger brothers who have also bought in to the Fortnite hype, and they could both spend a countless amount of time sitting on the couch in front of the screen without being bothered.

To an outsider, the game doesn’t seem like anything groundbreaking. Games like Halo or Grand Theft Auto have already incorporated the run around, do what you want, and don’t get killed concept into their games, so what’s the big deal with Fortnite?

I asked one of my aforementioned younger brothers, Jack (a sixth grader), this exact question. Here was Jack’s description; “The building aspect is something that a lot of other game haven’t done yet. I really like how I can build up a wall within seconds to protect myself, it adds a whole other level of creativity.” What Jack was talking about is the ability players have to gather materials from trees and walls to then build up bases to protect themselves from opponents.

Most recently, the release of the app “Fortnite Mobile” has increased the game’s popularity even more. Players are given the chance to enjoy the same exact game but on their smartphone; offering DHS students the chance to play whenever they want. Senior Logan McGovern has utilized the new app as he doesn’t have a console to play on, he told me, “The mobile app is great because I can play in school if I have a free or am at lunch. Sometimes it might look weird if I’m on my phone at lunch, but I don’t really care cause I’m having a great time playing Fortnite.”

Another appeal of Fortnite that I should mention is the fact that the game is completely free. This piece is huge. Anyone and everyone has been able to download the game and play for no cost at all. How does anyone make money? Plenty of kids have been willing to make in-game purchases on different items and perks for $10.00 a piece. The creators of the game have definitely capitalized on this as the game has grown more popular, making it as easy as ever to create a cool looking “wardrobe” for your player in the game.
As the Fortnite mania continues to spread across DHS, we’ll have to wait and see if this revolutionary video game’s popularity will ever slow down. Until then, though, parents will have to find a way to get their kids to do homework rather than play “just one more game!” with friends.