Find out what happened when Fortnite rose to popularity, was sued for copyright infringement, and started a movement in free-to-play video games.

Image by amrothman from Pixabay; copyright-free

It's 2022, and most non-video game-playing adults don't care about Fortnite anymore. Right? It's been 5 years since the game launched, which means most kids have moved on by now.

There was a time when parents were literally ripping video game console power cords from the wall and flipping power strips off to get their kids unglued from this game.

Fortnite vs. PUBG: Battlegrounds

Children and adults addicted to the game want more and more and more of the same repetitive action, albeit a vastly different experience each time.

Most people are unaware that the battle for Battle Royale supremacy was taking place between another game and Fortnite. This other game was PlayerUnkown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), and to this day, it has never reached the same household popularity as Fortnite. It's considered a more serious game, that is similar to going on a hunt. It can require more patience, and more slow grinding as compared to the action found in Fortnite.

Fortnite Changed the Video Game Landscape

Fortnite by Epic Games first launched its early access on July 25, 2017, with its Save the World mode. This is when players team up against monster hordes. This mode wasn't exactly a hit. It wasn't until Fortnite offered Battle Royale mode, that the game really took off in popularity.

The Fortnite: Battle Royale Gameplay Experience

Both kids and grown-ups alike were instantly hooked on this player-versus-player game, where up to 100 players ride into the map in a hot air balloon bus, and your team of 3 drops into the map to battle to the end. Your character not only battles, but also has the ability to mine resources and construct objects in your defense of an area, or to get to unreachable places.

The whole time, the map size grows smaller as the circular wall closes in on you, forcing your team to move to the epicenter to continue battling. If you don't, you will die.

The map on this type of map largely keeps the same overall areas, while the developer can make changes, tweaks, and adjustments for various events. Sometimes, they do release a completely different map, but they typically end up back at the original map.

It is important to note that there are other types of gameplay, such as Fortnite: Save the World mode and Fortnite: Creative game modes, but the classic Fortnite: Battle Royale mode is the most controversial because other game developers saw the popularity of this and quickly got in on the action.

If you are a gamer that uses a headset, then you would quickly find out when playing Fortnite, that there is a diverse player base that included many young children. The cartoon graphics lend themselves to a younger crowd, but you can still find adults that play the game (when they aren't working).

Fortnite's Battle Royale is Free-to-Play

Fortnite: Battle Royale has always maintained the free-to-play format, but if you want the cool customized outfits, characters, and weapons, you will need to buy them with the in-game currency — V-Bucks. Despite the fact that the game is free-to-play, they have made some serious revenue.

"By April 2018, Fortnite: Battle Royale made almost $300 million USD." -Dave Thier, Former Forbes Contributor

Epic Games made headlines when it offered $100 million in prizes for its 208–2019 competitive season. (Source: Forbes)

Most importantly to the conversation of most gamers, no one has to pay to win in Fortnite. The customizable characters and features should have no impact on the outcome of any Battle Royale matches.

This is largely how Epic Games demonstrated that they could make a free-to-play video game that is accessible to everyone, yet still bring in incredible revenue from the bonus accessories and features.

Another feature worth mentioning is the Battle Pass system. If a person buys the V-Bucks, then use their V-Bucks to buy a Battle Pass, which allows a player to unlock premium custom accessories and items, that are not available in the store. The free tier of the Battle Pass grants lesser custom items and V-Bucks, but not as much as the Premium tier.

The Battle Pass system is now a commonplace found in almost all other online PVP video games today.

Fortnite is on every major console and on mobile phones, both iOS and Android.

Since its launch in 2017, Fortnite has won 19 video game awards.

Fortnite's First Competitor: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG)

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG: Battlegrounds) by Bluehole first launched its early access beta program on March 23, 2017, before Fortnite actually launched, but the full release of the game was not slated until December 2017. One could say it was around first, but the full game was not launched before Fortnite launched their game.

Bloomberg reported on 27 June 2018 that PUBG had sold more than 44 million copies of its game.

However, there was a reason for PUBG to be jealous: Revenue.

The Verge reported that Fortnite surpassed PUBG: Battlegrounds in revenue in February 2018.

In February 2018, PUBG has $103 million in sales, while Fornite made $126 million in sales. (Source: TheVerge)

Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Filed Against Epic Games

To state the obvious PUBG: Battlegrounds did not like that Fortnite had features in its game that were so similar to theirs. So much so, that it filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement against Epic Games in Korea in January 2018.

However, in June 2018, PUBG ended its lawsuit against Epic Games, without publicly disclosing why the lawsuit was dropped.

Differences between Fortnite and PUBG: Battlegrounds

Insider shares the main differences between Fortnite and PUBG: Battlegrounds:

"PUBG does not allow characters to build structures out of thin air or tear them down with a pickax, and you won't find any cute astronaut-style or "John Wick"-themed character outfits or brightly colored weapons in the abandoned structures scattered across the maps.
PUBG relies on realistic art and controls to raise the stakes for the player, creating an adrenaline rush that makes each round more exhilarating than the last." -Kaylee Fagan, Insider Writer

Some gamers might argue that PUBG: Battlegrounds is for more serious gamers with more serious graphics, while Fortnite is for more casual gamers with its cartoonish graphics.

Another point to be made is that in-game cheating has been more significant in PUBG, and Bluehole has had to spend resources to stop the cheating, while Fortnite is constantly putting out new content, and is much easier to learn, making it much more kid-friendly.

Since its launch in 2017, PUBG: Battlegrounds has won 12 video game awards.