Situating the Appeal of Fortnite Within Children's Changing Play Cultures. Issue 4 (June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Carter, Marcus; Moore, Kyle; Mavoa, Jane; Horst, Heather; gaspard, luke
• Is Part Of: Games and culture. Volume 15:Issue 4(2020)
• Page Start: 453
• Page End: 471
• Publication Date: 2020-06
• Subjects: online games -- Fortnite -- battle royale -- YouTube -- temporality -- first-person shooter games -- children -- children's digital cultures; Games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Video games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Computer games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Interactive multimedia -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; 303.4834
• DOI: 10.1177/1555412020913771
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1555-4120

Abstract

Fortnite is a massively multiplayer online "battle royale" game that rapidly grew in 2018 to become one of the most popular digital games in the world, with a reported peak of 10.8 million concurrent players and 250 million registered players in March 2019. Based on 24 interviews with young people aged 9–14 (17 boys and 7 girls), this article sets out to provide an account of the appeal and experience of Fortnite . While it is impossible to pinpoint exactly why Fortnite has been such a phenomenal, global success, in this article, we argue that its appeal can be better explained by its intersections with YouTube and game livestreaming, the way the game acts as a vehicle for social capital and the performance of identity, and the rich sociality of play.