Fortnite is Moving to Next-Gen Consoles and Unreal Engine 5
| Tags: Fortnite
| Author Matt Pryor
Fortnite will continue into the next generation of video game consoles.
First released in 2017, Fortnite has stood the test of time in terms of its lasting power. Players the world over continue to play the game/s ultra-popular Battle Royale mode. Since its release, Fortnite has evolved significantly from where it once was three years ago. The game has seen millions of players come and go over the years. Fortnite is free to play and has been since its release, which has undoubtedly drawn more players into its immersive gameplay.
The current state of Fortnite supports play on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Mobile and PC. In a recent blog post, The Fortnite Team announced that Fortnite will be moving to next-generation consoles including the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
The Next-Gen Experience
Along with the announcement of Fortnite moving to Unreal Engine 5 in 2021, Epic Games dropped a bombshell, which will preserve the game’s life into the next-gen.
“Today we’re excited to confirm that Fortnite will be headed to next-generation consoles at launch. This is the same Fortnite you know and love, ready to take full advantage of the newest consoles.”
The Fortnite Team provided a brief FAQ in their blog post to answer questions that will likely come out of the announcement. This next-gen version of Fortnite is not new by any means. Epic Games’ plan is to support cross-progression and purchased items as players journey into the next-generation. They also intend to support crossplay and continue working with the current generation of consoles i.e., Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.
Although minor details have come out regarding the move to Unreal Engine 5, the blog post featured a snippet of information in this regard.
Unreal Engine 5
According to The Fortnite Team’s blogpost:
“While we can’t share specifics at the moment, more powerful hardware will allow us to improve performance and visuals. At launch, the version of Fortnite we release on next-gen consoles will be built with Unreal Engine 4. We will migrate Fortnite to Unreal Engine 5 in mid-2021.”
A preview of Unreal Engine 5 is available to all on the Unreal Engine website. There is not much information on how the engine update will affect Fortnite directly. However, we can surmise that general in-game performance should improve as a result. From the video, we can tell that textures have significantly enhanced. Character renders seem more realistic than ever. We will have to wait until mid-2021 to see how this all will apply specifically to Fortnite.
Over 12.3 million concurrent players participated live in Travis Scott's Astronomical, an all-time record!
Catch an encore performance before the tour ends: https://t.co/D7cfd2Vxcc
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) April 24, 2020
If nothing else, Fortnite’s move to next-gen consoles speaks volumes for the game’s ability to draw people in and hold them. Although the game’s popularity had fallen off a bit since its initial boom three years ago, Fortnite remains one of the most popular video game titles in the world. The recent Travis Scott in-game concert pulled over 12.3 million attendees, which broke Fortnite’s previous record. It will be interesting to see how Fortnite evolves into a new generation of consoles and Unreal Engine 5.
Stay tuned to ESTNN for more Fortnite news and updates!
Source: Epic Games
Matt is a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University. He appreciates all esports titles but primarily focuses on Fortnite and Call of Duty. Matt continuously analyzes gameplay and plays the games himself to better understand in-game decisions by the best players in the world.