What Parents Need to Know About Fortnite Battle Royale
Particularly if you have children, it’s quite likely that you have heard about Fortnite if you have any familiarity with video games. Fortnite’s enjoyable gameplay and accessibility across a wide range of gaming platforms, including PCs, game consoles, cellphones, and tablets, swiftly solidified its appeal to players of all ages.
Fortnite has developed over time, including well-known businesses, celebrities, movie screenings, concerts, fashion displays, and more to become a fully realized cultural phenomenon. You might be asking as a parent what you should know about Fortnite, especially if your kids should play it. That question should be addressed by the following.
What’s Fortnite?
With a content descriptor for violence and interactive elements like user interaction and in-game purchases, Fortnite is classified T for Teens. There is no blood or gore and cartoon-like images of firearms and violence in Fortnite. At times, the game seems fanciful and even ridiculous.
While the Save the World option in Fortnite is enjoyable on its own or with friends, the online multiplayer Battle Royale variants are what most players find most compelling. One hundred players are dumped into a map in each match, and their only goal is to be the last person standing. Though player experiences can be as brief as a few seconds due to the free-for-all nature of the competition, most contests endure about 20 minutes.
By acquiring objects, such as firearms and other weapons, players can eliminate other players. A “Zero Build” game has grown in popularity since its launch in March 2022, although other modes let players protect themselves by instantly constructing intricate buildings. The most desired “Victory Royale” is won by the final player standing.
Players may create their own Fortnite games and experiences in creative mode, which they can then share online with others. Epic just unveiled UEFN, or the Unreal Editor for Fortnite. With the aid of these tools, users can create and release games and experiences that appear more professional from within Fortnite. To put it briefly, UEFN lets users create and share their own Islands—empty landscapes where users and producers may construct their own unique experiences—stories, and more using some of the same technologies that Epic employs to develop Fortnite.
Collaborations and partnerships, such as an in-game confrontation with Marvel superhero Galactus, attract players from various “fandoms,” who then frequently return to explore what the game has to offer. Fortnite is appealing because of its intricacy, strategy, and narrative flow over each “season.” Regardless of a player’s skill level, its joyful playground simplicity makes it simple to take up and enjoy for players of all ages.
How to Reduce the Danger in Fortnite?
It’s crucial to remember that your children will have access to other people’s Fortnite creations if they visit Islands made using Fortnite Creative or UEFN. The good news is that Epic presently verifies all user-generated material to make sure it is suitable for Fortnite’s audience and adheres to their content guidelines before it is released, using a combination of automatic technologies and human inspection.
Because there are so many people playing the game, your child may come across players who don’t always provide the best models of good sportsmanship. This is a great chance to have a conversation with your child about proper and inappropriate behavior online. And never forget that you can always complain, mute, or ban the offending player if they ever cause your children to feel uncomfortable. To further guarantee that your child has a good time, Fortnite has its own set of strong parental controls and default settings.
A Cabined Account: What Is It?
In late 2022, Epic introduced Cabined Accounts, a brand-new fortnite account category that offers a customized experience meant to help make sure that games are suitable for younger players.
If your children are younger than 13, their account will be automatically categorized as a “cabined account,” requiring you to grant them access to specific in-game features. (This serves as a helpful reminder of why it’s crucial that your children always provide their true age when registering for a service or product.) Your child’s experience will respect your selected Parental Control settings and they won’t have a Cabined Account after they acquire parental authorization.
Your children will need to provide the email address of a parent when they sign up for Fortnite. After that, Epic will notify you via email about your child’s Epic account and giving you the option to provide access to certain features and establish parental restrictions that:
- Utilize the ESRB ratings to control which games your children may purchase from the Epic Games Store;
- Limit voice and/or text communication on the internet to Friends and Teammates, Friends Only, Nobody, or Everyone;
- Block or restrict the amount spent on in-game purchases made with an Epic Games payment method; and
- Establish parental restrictions to limit the people your child may add as friends on Epic and who they can accept;
- Keep tabs on how much time your children spend playing Fortnite each week
Where Is Fortnite Playable?
Several gaming systems, including Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and the Epic Games Store, are offering the game for download. It may also be accessed by Android users through the Epic Games App on all other Android devices or the Samsung Galaxy Store on Samsung Galaxy smartphones. The game’s mobile version can still be played if it was previously loaded on an iOS or Android device, however it is no longer accessible for download from Google Play or the Apple App Store as of this writing. Additionally, Fortnite can be played through cloud streaming on Xbox Cloud Gaming, GeForce Now, and Amazon Luna.
Interestingly, Fortnite lets users play with friends and other users on multiple devices with only one device. It’s known as “cross-platform” playability, and while not all games have it, it significantly increases the number of players who may be found online.
What Is the Price of Fortnite?
Anyone may use the free Fortnite app to access and play. Nevertheless, the game allows you to buy things using V-Bucks, an in-game money that costs $7.99 for 1000 of them. In order to personalize their gaming experience, players may purchase in-game things like cosmetics with V-Bucks. Additionally, for 950 V-Bucks, they may purchase a Battle Pass, which adds an extra layer of unlocked devices and benefits for every 10-week gameplay “season.” Players may access the most recent Battle Pass, unique costumes, and a monthly bonus of 1,000 V-Bucks with a $11.99 monthly membership to Fortnite Crew.
To be clear, purchasing V-Bucks is not necessary in order to enjoy Fortnite, as they offer no edge over other players. Staying with the free choice does not result in any penalties for players. Furthermore, gamers may obtain V-Bucks through the fulfillment of in-game activities, meaning that making extra purchases is completely optional.
Saving the World requires a payment in order to access, however Battle Royale and Creative modes are free to play. The cost has varied over time, ranging from $15.99 to $39.99, based on the platform.
Remember that some of these prices might change, so it’s a good idea to confirm before you buy.
Extra Advice for Parents
Although parental controls and caged accounts provide parents a lot of nice options, there are other things you can do to make sure your children are playing video games in an acceptable manner.
We usually advise calling a family gathering to set some ground rules about video game use as the best place to start. By starting the conversation with the scenario, you’re laying the groundwork for an honest, frank discussion about video games. Additionally, you’re communicating to kids that although you value their passion for gaming, there are limits that the entire family—including you—must adhere to.