By now, I’m sure you’ve heard about Fortnite. I mean, who hasn’t? Epic Games’ pop media juggernaut has done quite a bit over the last six years. Anyone who plays (I play way too much with my family) knew there would be new goodies in Chapter 5, but being a full-functioning Survival MMO wasn’t on my bingo sheet. Add in the fact that this is all Lego-themed, and my head is spinning.
What we know about LEGO Fortnite
There hasn’t been much directly said in regards to LEGO Fortnite overall. There have been leaks and rumors over the last year that have given us some info that is now true. Outside of those sources, the only other things we can reliably go off are the teaser from the Fortnite OG Season finale and the official LEGO press release.
Let’s start with what we know for sure via the press release:
“LEGO® Fortnite, a new survival crafting game that will go live inside Fortnite starting Dec 7 2023. LEGO Fortnite will be the first play experience to come from our long term partnership with Epic Games to develop fun and safe digital spaces for children and families.
Within LEGO Fortnite, players can explore vast, open worlds where the magic of LEGO building and Fortnite collide. Designed for people of all ages to enjoy together, the game will encourage creativity, experimentation and collaboration through play.
Last year, the LEGO Group and Epic Games announced their partnership to shape the future of the metaverse and make it fun and safe for all. Together the companies will build positive digital play experiences that enable young players to become the creators of tomorrow.
LEGO Fortnite is rated E10+ by the ESRB, and will launch inside Fortnite.”
With the official press release info and a few leaks that may or may not be completely legitimate, there is much to extrapolate here. Is this the game that makes you quit playing Rust or Ark: Survival Evolved? No, probably not. It will likely allow families to build, fight, and survive in a world of Lego bricks and serve as “My First MMO” for many gamers unfamiliar with the concepts.
How many bricks do you need to build an adventure? All of them. pic.twitter.com/L4iMEIWQIS
— LEGO Fortnite (@LEGOFortnite) December 6, 2023
A Friendlier Fortnite?
One thing that has been rumored but reinforced during the brief sneak peek, press release, and early in-game leaks is that any combat will likely be more hack-and-slash and less “pew-pew.” Guns don’t seem to be a thing in the LEGO Fortnite game. Emotes with guns now brandish bananas, and the minifig characters fighting monsters in the teaser were using tools, swords, and hands. The rhetoric about being fun and safe also seems to be a nod. I am thinking more Minecraft and less DayZ.
We also know that you can create and host worlds for LEGO Fortnite. Will these be persistent and allow players to build and explore indefinitely, or will they be wiped after specific periods? I’m not sure. My son said something about seven-day cycles, but based on what we have seen already, I’m not so sure. Some biomes seem selectable in-game, but even that raises more questions. Rumors state the map is going to be huge. Will biomes be where the starting points are, or are they directly contradicting the rumors of the map size?
No Skin Off Your… Minifig?
One thing I’ve already been able to play around with that has already sucked me in is that 1,200 skins from regular Fortnite will also be minifig characters within the game. That’s pretty awesome. No need to shell out a bunch of money for cool skins to match your favorite characters; they are already included from the get-go. Due to some glitches, I was able to explore my Fortnite locker and see which skins I have already completed minifigs, and I just have to say, some of them already look amazing! The Plague Doctor skin is absolutely one of my favorites already!
I’ve played Minecraft with my kids, and the LEGO games have always been a family staple (RIP LEGO Dimensions). The idea that I can build and explore with similar concepts is incredibly intriguing. Hopefully, the final product will be a complete experience that grows over time, and not some sort of limited more than Epic Games abandons after six months. I would assume it will be with all the cross-promotions, a dedicated game mode, and what appears to be a lot of work on the development side. However, there were a lot of promises for Save The World as well, and if you know how that went, caution is still warranted.
Will you be playing LEGO Fortnite? What are your expectations of it? Are you taken aback that we could consider it an MMO? We’d love to hear your thoughts on it!
