The much-anticipated joint venture with Simpsons into Fortnite has been launched not as a mere Item Shop rotation but a big mini-season that changes the very foundation on which the game stands. Weeks of speculation from dataminers and official confirmations with teasers set the stage as players of Fortnite now experience newly merged features-cut from the familiar landscape of Springfield-with that of Battle Royale island. Outside of the seasonal Battle Pass format, this splendid crossover comes equipped with an entire Simpsons-themed advancement system and packed with content, showing Epic’s not-sleeping-at-the-well-indulgence in immersive and expansive licensed events.
The star attraction of this event is the newly-launched Battle Pass, which is supposed to boast an impressive list of the classic characters from the same animated show that has lasted for many seasons. Players who level themselves through the tiered approach to the season will receive premium cosmetic skins for such characters as Homer, Marge, Ned Flanders, and even the three-eyed fish, Blinky Fishstick. There is a new, unique skin, Springfielder Peely, which will become available as players complete the Bonus Page Quests, thus adding a little twist to a fan favorite.
In addition, Epic Games has a time-limited offer to make: anyone who shores up their Epic Games profile with a Disney account before the cutoff date – February 28 – will be rewarded with Kang and Kodos’s spaceship glider as a freebie, a nod to the aliens that made an appearance during the live event kicking off the season.
The Change makes a deeper impact on the game’s core mechanics. With the map closely resembling the Battle Royale island in its basic outlines, below it hangs locations and scenery patterns inspired from the geography of Springfield. Then, among those areas, occupied fully populated by new, present non-playable characters (NPCS) includes a rotating lineup of… hostile island bosses. The challenges this will bring are faced by Evil Homer, Witch Marge, and the grumpy Krusty the Clown. There’s a good reason, however, to shed these antagonists: each one drops unique Mythic-tier loot flavored with a touch of the Simpsons to the high-stakes competitive loop. According to developers, the gameplay experience will acquire even more new mechanics and elements themed on the Simpsons every week, thus encouraging this regular return to the game.
The measure of extent this synergistic collaboration stretches beyond the confines of the gaming environment. The Simpsons cartoon is now inducting Fortnite characters into the fold of new shorts. New animated shorts featuring the Fortnite characters will be available weekly on Disney+ and the official Fortnite social channels. Apocalypse D’Oh is the first of the shorts, now available for viewing. Positioning both platforms is an indicator of the considerable marketing and development efforts that underline what is without question one of the broadest and most conceptually realized seasonal takeovers in Fortnite yet.
