Fortnite Continues to Be a Massive Success
A new Sensor Tower report reveals that the mobile version of Epic Games’ popular battle royale game Fortnite earned over 25 million in its first month, out-grossing other popular apps like Pandora, YouTube, and Hulu.
Although Fortnite mobile was invite-only at first, it opened up to all iOS users on April 1. Since then, average daily player spending has surpassed $1 million wordwide, and the game is now second only to Netflix is terms of the amount of money iPhone users have invested into it this month. It’s also made approximately 1.5 times the amount of money as the popular game Candy Crush Saga.
Since its Battle Royale game mode released in September 2017, Fortnite has become the most-watched title on Twitch and YouTube, with support from celebrities like rapper Drake and NBA star Gordon Hayward, who have both live-streamed themselves playing. At the moment, approximately 700 staff members at Epic Games are working on the game.
Sensor Tower estimates that the mobile version of the game could exceed $500 million in gross sales after it launches on Google Play. However, this hinges on a summer release and the game sustaining current hype levels.
A recent tweet suggests that Fornite might be making its way to China.
The Battle Bus is taking off!
Destination, China. pic.twitter.com/UTGHx86RRA
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) April 20, 2018
While China is definitely a lucrative market, it can be tough the break into. Fortnite’s competitor PUBG has managed to do it, but consoles aren’t as big in China as they are here in the west.
“It’s highly unlikely that a battle royale game on console will see the same level of success that it will on PC or mobile, as PUBG has demonstrated in China,” said Daniel Ahmad, an analyst at the consulting firm NikoPartners.
“Despite only being available on Steam, millions of Chinese gamers signed up for a Steam account just to buy the game and join in on the fun,” he said of PUGB’s success. “By the end of 2017, more than 10 million copies of PUBG had been sold on Steam in China and around 45 percent of active players globally were based in China.”