The Fortnite Effect

Hello fellow nerds,

Before thinking this article isn’t for you because Fortnite is dead or only ten year olds play fortnite think again! This article is actually a deeply rooted theory one of our writers has been pondering for quite some time in regards to the game and the explosive fame it has brought to the industry. Whether you are a fan of the game or not, this theory makes eyebrows raise and eyes turn when they here it… It is no secret or debate that Fortnite has blown up and became one of the most popular games of the past five years. But the more fascinating piece is all the individual content creators, athletics, and musicians that have been impacted and influenced by the game as well.

To give a brief background and history: I have not played the game for about a month or two now, and haven’t felt the need to. I have been preoccupied with other games that have been released. Gamers have seen various live events take place in the Fortnite universe (For example: Spaceship, Meteor, Black Hole, The Epic Duel, Volcano, Butterfly, Kevin, and the Vault). I have partaken in nearly every single one of these events, each usually after taking a small hiatus from playing the game. But this past weekend (April 23rd through April 25th), I felt so interested to partake in the specific event taking place. The specific event was “Astronomical Presented by Travis Scott” which was a virtual world tour all done through Fortnite. Not one, not two, but five shows! Perfect timing with everything currently running virtually due to COVID-19.

Now your probably wondering why was this so important, grab attention of so many people, or create excitement? Well my friend, that is the Fortnite Effect. Fortnite has increased the numbers for many peoples careers. One of the main communities popularity impacted by Fortnite is streamers. Although many of these streamers were full time streamers well before Fortnite, the game helped push their careers to the next level. Some of these streamers include but are not limited to: Ninja, Timthetatman, Myth, Nick Mercs, Dakotaz, Dr. Lupo, Bugha, Pokimane, and Nick Eh 30.

But everyone wants a piece of the Fortnite action. One of the key factors that showed the potential outreach the gaming industry has was reached when streamer Ninja, rapper/singer Drake, athlete Juju Smith-Schuster and rapper/singer Travis Scott all got online to stream and broke a record for people tuning into their Twitch livestream. Juju received many sponsorships after this because athletic sponsors realized he was an image for the new generation. Drake’s “God’s Plan” was already huge, but the numbers had increased even more to larger the top hit of 2018 after his livestream with Ninja. He also released a single a week later titled “Nice for What” which equally climbed the charts. Now we understand that Drake probably did not need the number boost, but received it anyway through Fortnite. We also understand that is not enough evidence for the Fortnite Effect.

Actors, athletes, and musicians all over the world want to participate to experience the Fortnite Effect. The list of famous people (Or people who want to kick off their careers) wanting to increase their clout through the Fortnite Effect is endless… But to name a few… Drake, Juju, Travis Scott, Lil Yachty, Joe Jonas, David Meyler, Brendon Urie, Harry Kane, Josh Hart, Marshmello, and all the little kids that get so excited when they are playing with a streamer like Timthetatman.

One of the musicians that received his own event was Marshmello. He hosted a live concert that people could attend virtually on February 3rd 2019. Later that month, Epic announced that this was their largest attended live event with an astounding 10.7 million players. If you factor in those who watched it live-streamed on Twitch and other platforms, the number will definitely be much larger, while the recap of the event is currently sitting at over 49 million views. Now obviously Fortnite benefited from this collaboration with the artist with a surplus of gamers but Marshmello also heavily benefited from the marketing, music sales, and longevity of the live concert. Don’t believe the Fortnite Effect yet, Marshmello released the hit single “Happier” on August 17th of 2018. Once the event occured, “Happier” reached top 5 on the Spotify charts and Billboards while some of his other items were also climbing up the top 100 for the following week. “Happier” remained in the top 10 for the remainder of the month of February.

Now back to this weekends event, “Astronomical Presented by Travis Scott.” Streamers came back for the premiere on Thursday, over 12 million people watched Travis Scott’s first performance live, and the numbers are yet to be finalized. It wasn’t by surprise that “Stargazing” started climbing the charts by 50% before the first show even had started. Travis Scott announced on Monday that he was having a tour on Fortnite.

The clock hit zero and the concert had begun. A huge planet came crashing/floating into the stage and a huge Travis Scott appeared. The performance was electric. I felt like I was watching the future of the music industry collaborating at a genius level with the gaming industry. It was the perfect combination for a wild performance (Because anything can happen in a fictional universe). Travis bends reality, creating a theme park on fire, electric people, sinking under water, shooting neon lights everywhere, and he brings you flying in space. All of these visual appeals occurring while a towering Travis Scott is going so hard his face is melting off revealing he’s a robot.

The Fortnite Effect is working its magic through the marketing geniuses that work for Epic Games and our musician. Following the performance an email was sent out to everyone who has an Epic account with an advertisement for the newly released $65 Travis Scott x Fortnite Nerf gun was for sale next to a $75 action figure. But the marketing for a new Nerf gun sponsorship is not where the real Fortnite Effect took place for Travis Scott. He preformed his classic first smash “goosebumps” released on December 16th, 2016, “SICKO MODE” released on August 21st, 2018, “HIGHEST IN THE ROOM” which was released on October 4th 2019, and his newest single “THE SCOTTS” which was released through the Fortnite tour. Still don’t believe the Fortnite Effect, well check this out…

Travis Scott is now running the top ten of Spotify charts and climbing the Billboards once again. He has not been in the top ten on these charts for quite some time (Barring his work with features and JACKBOYS). This is a huge testament to the Fortnite Effect. Each of these songs climbed from 178, 157, and 91. Now they are back within the top ten. His newest release THE SCOTTS was preformed and released Thursday April 23rd and it has already climbed straight to the number one spot. To see a single that was released four years ago be within the top ten is unheard of, unless they consider the Fortnite Effect.

Let us know in the comments below what you think of the Fortnite Effect. Is it real? Do you care about Fortnite anymore? If you are still playing what did you think about the Astronomical event? Overwhelming? Underwhelming? Indifferent? If you enjoyed the article, make sure to share with all your friends!

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