Displaying items by tag: Fortnite

Ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft, Epic Games announced on Monday that Fortnite is adding a new "Get Griddy" emote, an endzone dance immortalized by the Minnesota Vikings’ standout rookie wide receiver, Justin Jefferson.

In addition to the new Emote, Justin Jefferson becomes the first NFL player to have his own Locker Bundle. 

The new Justin Jefferson locker bundle will be available on Wednesday, April 28th and includes the following items:

• Outfit: Hit Man Outfit
• Back Bling: Hit Me! 
• Emotes: Get Griddy & Signature Shuffle
• Pickaxe: Weathered Gold
• Wrap: Arcade Kid

Welcome to the 3rd weekly AYS Gaming Column, and the first of 2021, where Sam Ellis, Jr. Editor for Allyourscreens, discusses new gaming news and events in the gaming world. I am fueled by the New Year, and nothing else.

Epic Games, who is known for creating Fortnite, decided to turn a North Carolina mall into a new HQ. As the company’s current HQ is also in Cary, NC, and is a mere 10-minute drive from the mall. It will start this year, and will be finished by 2024.

For the Kanto event in Pokemon GO, you can win your custom NPC in the game, and you have to submit it to Twitter with the hashtag #PokemonGoTourContest, and it must follow these conditions: it must have your trainer profile visible with your trainer name and outfit, a list of the 3 Pokemon you want to use, and the hashtag above. If you want to compete, you have to submit it by January 11 at 11:59:59 PST, and meet those requirements mentioned above. Niantic will pick the people who best meet those requirements, and will be added to the game on February 20th, when the Kanto Tour will take place.

Also, for the Pokemon, you have to pick Kanto Pokemon, and you can’t pick Ditto, or any Legendary or Mythical Pokemon. Only 8 people will be selected, and winners will be DM’ed around the 18th of January. Everyone can enter and Niantic will choose winners based on those categories, not counting the hashtag.

There are a lot of people in the television industry who hate bingeing. Some of it is just a generational unease: watching eight episodes back-to-back isn't the way I grew up watching television! Most TV critics hate it because viewers getting an entire season at once compresses the amount of time they have to cover the series. And because they tend to think they have more influence on viewing habits than they do, they conflate fewer opportunities to write weekly episodic recaps with less buzz about a show.

A lot of Hollywood creatives dislike the practice as well. They have some of the same qualms as the critics do when it comes to compressed promotional timelines. There is a sense that dumping an entire season at one time makes it feel as if the season has come and gone within several weeks. And that not releasing an episode a week means the show doesn't have an opportunity to build an audience and drill its way into the cultural zeitgeist.

And any time a show does very well being released an episode a week, there are lots of snarky hot takes along the lines of "See, The Mandalorian did just great and it was released one episode at a time!" Which is a version of the same creative impulsive that led every music label in 1967 to tell the rock bands they had signed that "See, The Beatles did well with a concept album. Everyone should do one!"

While the best answer to the question "Is bingeing a good idea" is the very practical but not all that exciting response "It depends." But the question also opens up another related conversation about how bingeing television is at its core a marketing tool.

My 15-year-old son plays the Battle Royale game Fortnite. At its core, Fortnite isn't all that different that a lot of other games with similar concepts. But Fortnite has become a gaming juggernaut because of the way it uses change to create an overall experience greater than the game. Fortnite creator Epic Games has crafted a series of built-in changes into the game, ensuring that there is always something new to experience. The game is broken down into discreet "seasons," which are massive changes to the gameplay that happen about every 10-12 weeks. But inside each season are a seemingly endless number of new tasks, challenges, mini-games, characters, skins and weapons. When you play Fortnite, it feels as if there is something new every time you log on. The game uses change as a way to increase engagement.

And I'd argue that Netflix uses bingeing in the same way. Sure, given the amount of new content Netflix adds each week, drawing out every season with a once-a-week episode release would be a marketing and promotional nightmare. But more importantly for Netflix, the rapid cycling through of content has become a core feature of the service. While there are going to be some times when you sign onto Netflix for a specific show, most times you just sign on and see what's new. The bingeing release schedule ensures that there are always new options and plenty of good things to watch that you missed when they originally premiered. For Netflix - like Fortnite - change is the best marketing tool it has.

Apple announced on Thursday that it had removed the Fortnite app from the Apple app store, claiming that Fortnite parent Epic Games knowingly violated the terms of its agreement with the tech giant.

Apple's has had a long-standing insistence that any company distributing an app through the Apple app store had to agree to pass along about 30% of any revenue from digital goods purchased through the app. That requirement has been a source of anger from many developers. Obviously the lost revenue is an issue, but some developers are also unhappy with the deal because they claim that Apple is then able to launch similar products through the app store with no revenue share, essentially giving the company a financial advantage in the app marketplace.

Epic Games updated its Fortnite app early Thursday morning to allow iPhone users to purchase the in-game currency V-Bucks directly from the gaming company at a 20 percent discount. Apple quickly removed the Fortnite app from the app store, which means that while Fortnite iPhone users will still be able to play the game on their phones, they won't be able to update the app. Apple also issued this statement explaining the move:

"Today, Epic Games took the unfortunate step of violating the App Store guidelines that are equally applied to every developer and designed to keep the store safe for our users. As a result their Fortnite app has been removed from the storr. Epic enabled a feature in its app which was not reviewed or approved by Apple, and they did so with the express intent of violating the App Store guidelines regarding in-app payments that apply to every developer who sells digital goods or services.

Epic has had apps on the App Store for a decade, and have benefited from the App Store ecosystem - including its tools, testing, and distribution that Apple provides to all developers. Epic agreed to the App Store terms and guidelines freely and we're glad they've build such a successful business on the App Store. The fact that their business interests now lead them to push for a special arrangement does not change the fact that these guidelines create a level playing field for all developers and make the store safe for all users. We will make every effort to work with Epic to resolve these violations so they can return Fortnite to the app store."

For its part, Epic Games seems to have made this move in a calculated effort to provoke a reaction from Apple. One which would hopefully lead to a negotiation over the current App Store agreement between the two companies. Epic Games pushed the updated app out from the server side instead of sending the app to the App Store submission process. That process would have almost certainly denied the update, but left the old version Fortnite app available through the App Store. But by forcing Apple's hand in this way, the issue will no doubt receive a great deal more attention from the press and from users than Epic would have gotten by simply having the latest version of its app turned down.

It's also worth noting that someone from Epic Games was contacting journalists and industry writers Thursday to give them a heads-up on the move. The company clearly wants more attention paid to its complaints and it will certainly get its wish now. They have also expanded the issue to their entire customer base. Users who sign onto Fortnite through any platform now see a protest video that is based on the iconic Apple "1984" Super Bowl ad. The service has expanded its 20% off discount on V-Bucks to all users, not just those using an Apple device. 

It's a dispute that is very reminiscent of the current battle between streaming services HBO Max & Peacock vs. Roku and Amazon. The issues of revenue sharing between content owners and marketplace/distribution companies is an increasingly contentious problem. The current revenue share from a digital product can be substantial. But content owners also realize that these tolls won't go away and over a period of years and even decades, it can add up to hundreds of millions of dollars of lost revenue. The app analytics company SensorTower estimates Apple customers have spent $1.2 billion on Fortnite in-app purchases since March 2018. That would translate to roughly $840,000,000 to Epic Games, and $360,000,000 to Apple. 

Update (3:31 p.m. CT): Epic Games has posted an update for users, explaining what the dispute with Apple means in the short run. It is also encouraging users to share their unhappiness by including the hashtag #FreeFortnite:

"Fortnite remains available on Google Play, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac, GeForce Now, and the Epic Games app on Android. Your account, progression, and purchases also remain available on these platforms.

Because Apple has BLOCKED your ability to update, when Fortnite Chapter 2 - Season 4 releases you will NOT be able to play the new Season on iOS. Make your voice heard with #FreeFortnite"

Update (3:50 p.m. CT) Spotify has released a letter supporting Epic Games in this fight. It's worth noting that Spotify had a similar battle with Apple several years ago over the issue of revenue sharing:

"We applaud Epic Games' decision to take a stand against Apple and shed further light on Apple's abuse of its dominant position. Apple's unfair practices have disadvantaged competitors and deprived consumers for too long. The stakes for consumers and app developers large and small couldn't be higher and esuring the iOs platform operates competively and fairly is an urgent task with far-reaching implications."