Disney spends £1.1billion to make a “universe” in ‘Fortnite’

Disney has purchased a £1.1billion ($1.5bilion) stake in Epic Games, it was revealed yesterday.

The official announcement on the Epic Games website states that the two companies will also be working together on a “persistent and social” game which will allow users to interact with various different Disney franchises, and that this new game is planned to be able to interoperate with Fortnite, though it’s currently unclear how this will work.

“In addition to being a world-class games experience, 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,” the blog post explained.

“This will be all powered by Unreal Engine.”

This is going to be… Epic! ✨ The Walt Disney Company and Epic Games are collaborating on an all-new games and entertainment universe featuring characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar, and more.

Learn more: https://t.co/vrMJft64o9 pic.twitter.com/HTs8asNBSm

— Disney (@Disney) February 7, 2024

An official statement has been released by both Tim Sweeney, CEO and founder of Epic Games, and Robert A. Iger, the chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company.

“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. This marks Disney’s biggest entry ever into the world of games and offers significant opportunities for growth and expansion,” Iger stated.

“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,” Sweeney said.

In other gaming news, Final Fantasy series producer Yoshinori Kitase has said in an interview that the reason they remade Final Fantasy 7 is to prevent the game from being the “game that my dad played”.