Is Fortnite the next YouTube? Perhaps — but Epic Games has higher aspirations.
As Fortnite evolves from a popular video game into a robust ecosystem of creators, brands and virtual worlds, some observers have begun to compare Fortnite to other creator platforms, like YouTube. These comparisons have only grown as Epic Games continues to build out its creator tools, including expanded data collection tools and AI-enabled coding assistants that were unveiled at last week’s Unreal Fest conference in Orlando, Florida.
Although Epic Games’ leadership appreciates the parallels, CEO Tim Sweeney has mixed feelings about the analogy. He views Fortnite’s ongoing push to onboard creators as a stage of the platform’s evolution, rather than a means to an end. Epic Games is trying to build the metaverse, per Sweeney, rather than just create a destination for creators to entertain audiences and generate revenue.
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