Seriously...

Game Changer: Fortnite on 4


Listen Later

If you are a parent, you probably do not need an introduction to Fortnite Battle Royale. It's the online video game that's been absorbing the minds and time of millions of children and young adults since its launch last September. To the uninitiated, it's an online shooter game that has elements of The Hunger Games movies and the building video game Minecraft. In each match, 100 people are air-dropped onto a cartoon-rendered island where they run around searching for weaponry, building defensive forts and fighting to the death. The winner is the last one standing. It's free to play on multiple devices from computers to games consoles to smartphones. Presenter Kevin Fong (medical doctor, broadcaster and father of two) asks, is Fornite more like the new crack cocaine or more like the Beatles? It's estimated that more than 125 million people have played Fortnite Battle Royale and that 3 million people around the world are playing it at any one time. Its creators Epic Games have earned more than US$1 billion from Fortnite within the last year, and that is just from players buying virtual outfits and victory dances for their avatars. These dances or 'emotes' have leaked out of Fortnite's virtual world into the real one as anyone watching the World Cup will have seen. Football players now emote on scoring goals. There are also professional Fortnite players who are making millions by playing the game while vast numbers of people spectate via live streaming internet channels. Fortnite's Ronaldo is Ninja, a 26 year old man in Illinois, USA. It's said he makes US$ 500,000 from the 300 hours he spends playing the game each month. There are now Fortnite e-sports scholarships offered to students at one university in the United States. Is Fortnite a revolutionary development in video gaming and what is the formula of its undoubted success? With the World Health Organisation recently adding Gaming Disorder to its list of disease categories, how concerned should parents be about the risks of gaming addiction for their Fortnite-playing offspring? Kevin Fong explores the culture and conversation around Fornite with gamers of all ages, games creators, games culture experts, psychologists and psychiatrists. Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Seriously...By BBC Radio 4

  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3
  • 4.3

4.3

257 ratings


More shows like Seriously...

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,718 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,066 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,474 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,809 Listeners

In Our Time: History by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: History

1,880 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,784 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,043 Listeners

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,119 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

2,078 Listeners

Comedy of the Week by BBC Radio 4

Comedy of the Week

485 Listeners

Desert Island Discs by BBC Radio 4

Desert Island Discs

2,011 Listeners

Great Lives by BBC Radio 4

Great Lives

477 Listeners

Lives Less Ordinary by BBC World Service

Lives Less Ordinary

595 Listeners

Profile by BBC Radio 4

Profile

107 Listeners

Last Word by BBC Radio 4

Last Word

46 Listeners

Thinking Allowed by BBC Radio 4

Thinking Allowed

298 Listeners

The Audio Long Read by The Guardian

The Audio Long Read

851 Listeners

All in the Mind by BBC Radio 4

All in the Mind

66 Listeners

Private Passions by BBC Radio 3

Private Passions

43 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,223 Listeners

The Bomb by BBC World Service

The Bomb

1,042 Listeners

Life Changing by BBC Radio 4

Life Changing

101 Listeners

This Cultural Life by BBC Radio 4

This Cultural Life

101 Listeners

When It Hits the Fan by BBC Radio 4

When It Hits the Fan

48 Listeners

Young Again by BBC Radio 4

Young Again

51 Listeners