Fortnite

What it is: release and platforms

Fortnite is a free-to-play online shooter and game platform developed and published by Epic Games. Its full release was June 29, 2020, following an earlier Early Access period. Today, the same application connects competitive shooting, cooperative defense, LEGO adventures, music performances and games built by independent creators. Fortnite is no longer limited to one battle royale playlist.

Fortnite's platform history spans Windows PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, Android and iOS. Current native support and individual mode availability are not identical: Epic directs Mac users to cloud streaming, while Save the World is unavailable on the original Switch and on phones or tablets. Fortnite arrived on Switch 2 on June 5, 2025, with 60 FPS support, higher-resolution graphics and greater view distances than the original Switch version.

Story and setting

Battle Royale centers on an Island whose locations, equipment and crossover characters change with its seasons. Chapter 7 Season 4, Override, began on August 20, 2026. Its officially introduced features include Override Consoles that change rules for an entire server, Squad Overrides affecting the team that claims them, and a new generation of Sprites. The season also adds Sprite Garden, where players can interact with Sprites collected during the preceding Runners season.

Fortnitemares 2026 began on October 1 and brings a corruption theme to Battle Royale, Horde Rush and Reload. Epic's announcement names Freaky Fields and Nightmare Neighborhood, where players can confront Freddy Krueger and claim Freddy's Nightmare. Save the World follows a separate fight against the Storm, providing a cooperative campaign alongside Fortnite's competitive Island battles.

Gameplay and modes

Standard Battle Royale combines third-person shooting, scavenging and building in a contest to become the last surviving player or team. Constructing defenses is part of that ruleset, whereas Zero Build removes construction. Fortnite OG and Reload offer additional battle royale formats, while Blitz Royale provides another no-building alternative with smaller-scale matches.

Arenas, introduced on April 9, 2026, focuses on consecutive fights rather than a conventional battle royale match. Solo lobbies contain 16 players competing in 1v1 rounds; Duos lobbies contain eight teams fighting 2v2. The first player to win 20 fights, or the first duo to win 15, wins the competition. An unranked challenge option also lets invited opponents compete until one reaches seven eliminations.

Save the World is the cooperative PvE component, combining fort construction, traps and combat against monsters. LEGO Fortnite Odyssey focuses on survival and crafting, while LEGO Fortnite Brick Life is a separate social experience. Fortnite Festival retains Main Stage and Jam Stage for its music-based activities.

Fortnite Creative and Unreal Editor for Fortnite provide tools for building and publishing additional islands. Crossplay lets friends form parties across supported platforms using Epic accounts, although everyone still needs access to the selected experience on their device.

Reception

Metacritic's default Fortnite listing reports a 78/100 Metascore from 16 critic reviews for PlayStation 4, classified as generally favorable. Its collection includes reviews from earlier stages of the game, so the number is not a newly commissioned assessment of every mode available in 2026. IGN's March 27, 2018 review praised the interaction between shooting, building and player expression.

Battle Royale currently carries an ESRB Teen rating. Individual Fortnite islands have their own ratings, and Epic's parental controls allow access to be restricted by age rating. The application does not make every included experience suitable for the same audience.

Post-launch updates and editions

Fortnite's major December 2023 expansion introduced LEGO Fortnite, Rocket Racing and Fortnite Festival as separate experiences within the application. The lineup has also contracted: Ballistic and Festival Battle Stage went offline on April 16, 2026, and Rocket Racing was removed on October 1, 2026. Festival's Main Stage and Jam Stage remain available, and retiring Rocket Racing did not remove players' Vehicle Locker items.

Save the World became free-to-play on April 16, 2026, also extending the mode to Switch 2. New players have access to the full experience without buying an access pack. Free players earn X-Ray Tickets; the V-Bucks earning privileges associated with eligible Founders are a separate entitlement.

The latest numbered update verified for this page as of October 25, 2026 is v42.40, released on October 15, 2026. Battle Royale's notes add more hackable loot and new Sprites, including Honey Sprite, which can spawn bees after ranged damage. The accompanying ecosystem release enables publishing islands with custom abilities, adds 50 LEGO bricks to the Brick Editor and begins a phased Discover redesign.

Current spending options are optional rather than a required premium edition. Fortnite Crew costs $11.99 per month in the US and currently includes 800 V-Bucks, a monthly Crew Pack and access to the Battle Pass, OG Pass, LEGO Pass and Music Pass while subscribed. The current Battle Pass separately costs 800 V-Bucks.