Fortnite x Disney and Avatar
Disney and Epic games announced today that they are going to collaborate on a new game and entertainment universe. Disney is also investing 1.5 billion into Epic Games to buy a stake of the company. Here are some of the highlights of the Disney press release-
"The new persistent universe will offer a multitude of opportunities for consumers to play, watch, shop and engage with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar and more. Players, gamers and fans will be able to create their own stories and experiences, express their fandom in a distinctly Disney way, and share content with each other in ways that they love. This will all be powered by Unreal Engine."
“Our exciting new relationship with Epic Games will bring together Disney’s beloved brands and franchises with the hugely popular Fortnite in a transformational new games and entertainment universe,” said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “This marks Disney’s biggest entry ever into the world of games and offers significant opportunities for growth and expansion. We can’t wait for fans to experience the Disney stories and worlds they love in groundbreaking new ways.”
“Disney was one of the first companies to believe in the potential of bringing their worlds together with ours in Fortnite, and they use Unreal Engine across their portfolio,” said Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder, Epic Games. “Now we’re collaborating on something entirely new to build a persistent, open and interoperable ecosystem that will bring together the Disney and Fortnite communities.”
“This will enable us to bring together our incredible collection of stories and experiences from across the company for a broad audience in ways we have only dreamed of before,” said Josh D’Amaro, Chairman, Disney Experiences. “Epic Games’ industry-leading technology and Fortnite’s open ecosystem will help us reach consumers where they are so they can engage with Disney in the ways that are most relevant to them.”
There is a lot said here, however there is still a lot we don't know. But I feel like Disney making an investment of 1.5 billion shows they are dedicated to making this game/social universe work. Something that was from another article by IGN that really stood out to me is this, "fans will be able to play, watch, shop, and engage with their favorite characters and stories from (Avatar)." This sounds a bit like a game but also metaverse, where you'll be able to explore not only Avatar but many of the most popular Disney franchises. I like that it sounds like we should be able to get characters we know and love, for instance Jake and Neytiri, instead of totally new or made up Na'vi/Avatars. It would be really fun to finally be able to play as both of them in a game setting.
I don't want to pretend I have a great handle on what this game will be exactly, however attaching Fortnite to it is a good move due to the huge popularity of the game, the fact that you'll almost surely be able to use your new Disney characters seamlessly in Fortnite, or avoid Fortnite altogether and explore and socialize in other Disney worlds. I get the impression you'll be able to do things like use Jake Sully and slide over to the the Star Wars portion and fight the Empire, or any other countless combinations you can think of. It also sounds like it will be a fun place for us as fans to go and hangout together online. So while I'm not a Fortnite player or even fan, I am very optimistic about what Disney is going to do with this. I'll post more updates as they become available.
www.avatarsequels.com
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Full Disney release - https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-and-epic-games-fortnite/