Man, I sure am enjoying this season of Fortnite, my favorite persistent, open and interoperable ecosystem.(1) And thanks to Disney’s new $1.5 billion investment, I can’t wait to hang out with my friends in a transformational new games and entertainment universe! (2)
Disney’s stake in Epic Games really is part of an ambitious plan to return The Walt Disney Company to a period of sustained growth and shareholder value creation. (3) And I can’t wait for the 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. (4)
But Fortnite is more than just a place where all IP can live together. (5) For one, it’s a great metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators (6), where anyone–even me!--could make a living building for the Fortnite ecosystem. (7) But Fortnite is so much bigger than a potential career for a die-hard player like me. It’s a way of life!
I know some people might say spending time in video games is silly, but they don’t understand all the valuable life lessons it’s taught me. For instance, did you know that with success comes arrogance and that’s typically the death of success? (8) If there’s one thing you learn after a hard-fought Victory Royale, it’s that! And that’s a lesson I can take with me into the real world, and one I never would have learned if I was doing something dumb like voice chatting with the entire world about politics. (9)
I love Disney, and I love Fortnite, and this really is a great chance to reach consumers where they are so they can engage with Disney in the ways that are most relevant to them. (10) So wherever we’re dropping, boys, I know it’ll be a place where magic is epic! (11)
- Tim Sweeney, “Now we’re collaborating on something entirely new to build a persistent, open and interoperable ecosystem that will bring together the Disney and Fortnite communities.” CNBC
- Bob Iger, “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.” Ibid.
- Bob Iger, “Just one year ago, we outlined an ambitious plan to return The Walt Disney Company to a period of sustained growth and shareholder value creation… Our strong performance this past quarter demonstrates we have turned the corner and entered a new era for our Company, focused on fortifying ESPN for the future, building streaming into a profitable growth business, reinvigorating our film studios, and turbocharging growth in our parks and experiences.” The Hollywood Reporter
- “In addition to being a world-class games experience and interoperating with Fortnite, 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.” Press release
- Donald Mustard, “Our goal is to try to create a metaverse, to create a place where all IP can live together.” Game Awards 2019
- Tim Sweeney, “For a while now, we've been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators.” Layoffs at Epic
- Tim Sweeney, “Creators are making a living building for the Fortnite ecosystem, with time in third-party games now exceeding first-party.” Ibid.
- Bob Iger, “Success can breed all kinds of other behavior and cause companies to behave a certain way that isn’t necessarily the ingredients for achieving more success. For instance, with success comes arrogance and that’s typically the death of success.” The Hollywood Reporter
- Tim Sweeney, “Fortnite’s design doesn’t have any emotes that are super negative where you can grief people. It’s all fun emotes. They’re whimsical or entertaining or fun. And you’re not voice chatting with the entire world about politics. It’s your party. Most of these experiences are designed to be fun and not things that can be hijacked.” The Verge
- Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Experiences. “Epic Games’ industry-leading technology and Fortnite’s open ecosystem will help us reach consumers where they are so they can engage with Disney in the ways that are most relevant to them.” Press release
- Epic Games, trailer
