Fortnite is a survival co-op game by Epic Games and People Can Fly with a free Battle Royale mode where 100 players fight until one is left standing.

Where did Fortnite come from?

It shipped in July 2017 as a paid Save the World survival game, then added the free Battle Royale mode on September 26, 2017.

What does Fortnite mean?

The name references the game's core loop of building a fort out of snap-together walls, floors, and ramps to survive enemies.

How do you use Fortnite?

Players drop onto an island, gather weapons and materials, and build cover mid-firefight, often teaming up in duos or squads with cross-play across PC and console.

Is Fortnite still popular?

Epic reported 125 million players by June 2018 and pledged $100 million for competitive play, making it a defining game of that era.

Why did Drake play Fortnite with Ninja?

Drake said on stream he had been playing for a couple of months during recording breaks and had watched Ninja on Twitch before joining a duos session on March 14, 2018.

How many people watched the Drake and Ninja Fortnite stream?

The stream peaked at over 635,000 concurrent viewers, breaking the previous non-tournament Twitch record of 388,000.

Did PUBG sue Fortnite?

Yes, PUBG developer Bluehole filed a copyright injunction against Epic Games Korea in the Seoul Central District Court in January 2018, alleging Fortnite's Battle Royale copied core elements and UI.

When did Fortnite come to Nintendo Switch?

Epic released Fortnite as a free download on Nintendo Switch on June 12, 2018, without cross-play against PS4 players.

Who won the first Fortnite Pro-Am?

Tyler "Ninja" Blevins and DJ Marshmello won the first Fortnite Pro-Am at the Banc of California Stadium during E3 2018, splitting a $3 million charity prize pool.

Fortnite

2017video gameclassic

Published August 20, 2026

Fortnite is a survival shooter from Epic Games that exploded into one of the biggest games of 2017 and 2018 after adding a free Battle Royale mode. It hit 125 million players inside a year and pulled celebrities like Drake into record-breaking Twitch streams.

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Overview

Fortnite is a survival co-op game developed by Epic Games and People Can Fly for macOS, Windows, Xbox, and PlayStation 47. Epic originally pitched it as a cross between Minecraft and Left 4 Dead, giving players prefab walls, floors, and ramps that snap together into forts while enemies attack3. The base game launched in July 2017 as a paid sandbox survival title focused on that building loop4.

The version most players know is Battle Royale, a free-to-play mode Epic bolted on in September 2017 that drops 100 players onto an island to fight until one is left standing2. The construction system carries into fights, so players can throw up cover walls or ramps mid-shootout, which gives Fortnite a distinct look next to other shooters. That mix of shooting and building, plus a zero-dollar price tag on every major platform, drove the game's massive growth into early 20183.

Origin & Background

Platform

PC and console (viral spread via Twitch)

Creator

Epic Games and People Can Fly

Date

2017

Epic Games and People Can Fly worked on Fortnite for years before it shipped, first showing the project off well before release3. The paid early-access version arrived in July 2017 with only the Save the World mode, in which players harvested materials and built defensive bases against waves of zombie-like attackers4.

The turning point came on September 26, 2017, when Epic released a standalone Battle Royale mode for free on every platform, chasing the format that PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds had made popular earlier that year2. Epic openly cited PUBG as inspiration, telling the press it loved battle royale games like PUBG and thought Fortnite would make a great foundation for its own version2.

How It Spread

Fortnite's growth through late 2017 and early 2018 was steep. On March 14, 2018, rapper Drake joined Twitch streamer Tyler "Ninja" Blevins for a duos session that peaked at over 635,000 concurrent viewers, beating the previous non-tournament Twitch record of 388,000 held by Dr. DisRespect1. The BBC reported the audience topped 600,000 and grew again when Travis Scott and Pittsburgh Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster joined the squad5. Drake, Ninja, Travis Scott, and Fortnite briefly held the top four US Twitter trends that night1.

The stream turned Ninja into a household name and reportedly earned him more than 90,000 new Twitch subscribers, worth at least $250,000 a month in revenue1. Drake, who had over 36 million Twitter followers at the time, said during the broadcast that he had been playing Fortnite for a couple of months on breaks from recording sessions5. The pair used the game's cross-play system to team up, since Ninja was on PC and Drake on PlayStation 45.

By June 2018 Epic said Fortnite had 125 million players worldwide, a number it reached in under a year and one that put it ahead of League of Legends' 2016 monthly count of 100 million6. The game hit Nintendo Switch as a free download on June 12, 2018, following an earlier iOS release and ahead of the Android version scheduled for that summer8. Epic reportedly earned roughly $300 million from Fortnite in April 2018 alone8.

How to Use This Meme

Playing Fortnite Battle Royale typically involves dropping onto a shrinking island, scavenging weapons and building materials, then combining shooting with fast construction of cover walls, floors, and ramps during firefights3. High-level play often looks more like building than aiming, which is what set Fortnite apart from other battle royale games like PUBG2. Common convention among streamers is playing duos or squads with friends and using the cross-play system to team up across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox, the same setup Drake and Ninja used5.

Cultural Impact

The Drake-Ninja stream was covered as a milestone for the crossover between gaming and mainstream celebrity, with games analyst Piers Harding-Rolls telling the BBC the event showed the power of mixing a major celebrity with a very popular game in a live streamed environment5. Epic followed up in June 2018 with the first Fortnite Pro-Am tournament at the Banc of California Stadium during E3, pairing 50 pro players with 50 celebrities for a $3 million charity prize pool9. Ninja teamed with DJ Marshmello and won the Golden Pickaxe trophy after Ninja was knocked out early in the solo warm-up match9. Epic also pledged $100 million toward competitive Fortnite play over the following year and announced a World Cup for the year after8.

The game's rise triggered legal blowback from PUBG developer Bluehole, which filed a copyright injunction with the Seoul Central District Court against Epic Games Korea in January 2018, alleging the Battle Royale mode copied core elements and UI from PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds4. Bluehole had already voiced public concerns in September 2017, pointing out that Epic had licensed Unreal Engine 4 for PUBG's development, and it said Epic referencing PUBG in Fortnite's promotion was never cleared with them2.

Fun Facts

During the Drake-Ninja stream, Drake, Ninja, Travis Scott, and Fortnite briefly held the top four US Twitter trends at the same time1

The 635,000-viewer stream still fell short of Twitch's all-time record of about 1.1 million, set at the ELeague Major: Boston 2018 Counter-Strike final5

Ninja was a pro competitive Halo player before he switched to streaming as his main job3

Epic estimated Fortnite pulled in around $300 million in April 2018 alone8

Urban Dictionary jokingly defined Fortnite as the game that broke 2018 and is stealing your mans10

Derivatives & Variations

Epic Games Pro-Am celebrity tournaments, starting with the June 2018 Banc of California Stadium event won by Ninja and Marshmello[9]

The Save the World and Battle Royale split modes inside the same title, with only Battle Royale being free[4]

Cross-play squads between PC and PlayStation using Epic's cross-play system, as used in the Drake-Ninja duo[5]