REVIEW: Fortnite (Gaming Platform)

A dynamic social gaming platform that provides access to various types of games. This includes the classic Fortnite: Battle Royale, LEGO Fortnite, along with role-playing adventures, and a variety of horror and racing games.

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On the site «Kids and Media» we give information and tips for fresh immigrants and language minorities in Norway.

Some Quick Tips on the Fortnite Platform:

  • The Fortnite platform is not just a single game but a platform that grants access to different types of games. Some feature blood and horror elements, while others are kid-friendly minigames.
  • Here you will also find the classic shooter game Fortnite: Battle Royale.
  • Games on the platform are categorized with PEGI recommended age limits ranging from 3, 7, to 12 years.
  • Talk to children about spending money. There is a lot of pressure in the game to use real money for season passes, skins, dances, and more. Children may be tempted to purchase costumes inspired by superhero movies and other popular universes.
  • Use parental controls to manage friend requests, chat functionalities, games with higher age ratings, and the online visibility of children.
  • Be aware that online games may feature both positive and negative language.

Our Review of the Fortnite Platform

Fortnite was once a simple game, the short form for Fortnite: Battle Royale. This game mode still exists, but now we must distinguish between two concepts:

  1. The Fortnite platform has evolved into a space where you can download a variety of games, similar to Roblox. We may call it the ‘Netflix’ for games.
  2. Amidst this evolution, the original shooter game, Fortnite: Battle Royale, maintains its presence as a distinctive offering within the expansive Fortnite platform.

The Fortnite platform can be downloaded for free. While in-game purchases exist, the entry barrier is low. Moreover, the platform is social, allowing players to engage in diverse games collaboratively or competitively with friends.

The game developers heavily incorporated things from popular culture in Fortnite experiences, for example, costumes for game characters inspired by superhero movies, Star Wars, Dragon Ball, MrBeast, and more. Indeed, you can dress up as these characters in the game as long as you have purchased or earned “skins” (costumes).

It’s also possible to participate in competitions on the platform that offer cash prizes. Some of these competitions have age restrictions for participants.

Examples of various games within the Fortnite platform:

Save the World: A story mode where you battle alone or with friends against zombies.

Creative: Build your own island. Construct whatever you desire. Create minigames. Place vehicles, planes, and more. Invite friends to your island and play together.

Fortnite: Battle Royale: Form one, two, three, four, or many teams competing against each other until one team remains victorious. All players navigate a massive island, gathering resources and weapons to overcome opponents.

Ranked: Competitive mode where players strive to improve their ranking on a leaderboard.

LEGO Fortnite: A Minecraft-inspired game where players gather resources and build bases using LEGO blocks.

The Fortnite platform is now a cool place with lots of games. Anyone can create their own games here – like racing, mazes, scary stuff, adventures, and more. There are games for younger kids too, labeled for 3, 7, and 12-year-olds.

Here’s a list of games on the Fortnite platform that we have talked about:

The Fortnite platform has a «parental guidance» label from PEGI. You can still play the «classic» Fortnite where players fight using guns, and it’s rated for 12-year-olds, just like before. «Parental guidance» means Fortnite has all kinds of stuff made by users, and parents can adjust settings for different ages. Parents are therefore advised to guide their children and familiarize themselves with the parental settings.

PEGI explains the basis for the assessment: «This game is labeled with parental guidance. The reason is that the game includes a lot of user-generated content, which may contain material unsuitable for younger children.»

Additionally, PEGI states that the content found on the platform is continually changing. Some of the new content added may be unsuitable for younger children. There are also games created by the developers themselves. In these games, players battle each other, and the last survivor wins. The violence is unrealistic and without blood. Otherwise, players can purchase content with real money.

Account Requirement

To access the Fortnite platform, you must have an Epic Games account. Children who provide an account aged under 13 years receive a child account. Parents must give consent to create the account on behalf of their children.

It’s essential to be aware of spending money in the game. You don’t have to use real money to play the game, but you can if you want cool looks and gear. These do not make you better at playing, however. Some kids might want to buy fancier game versions or things in the game, but others can have fun without spending at all.

The game has introduced a «battle pass,» a kind of season ticket that can be purchased with real money. With this, you gain access to unique equipment and V-bucks (the in-game currency). There’s also a subscription option (monthly fee) that provides regular payouts of V-bucks, a battle pass, and other benefits.

Also, keep in mind that some minigames in Fortnite might be a little scary or have blood. But there are also games good for younger kids (from 3 years old) where you can drive cars, run a farm, go through mazes, and more.

Remember, the game has chatting (talking and typing). Sometimes people can be mean. They can argue, use bad words, or make rude comments. But don’t worry, you can report anyone being not cool. The game lets you turn off text and voice chat for everyone or just some people. There’s also a filter to block bad words (it doesn’t catch everything). You can hide your game name and say no to new friend requests automatically.

Parental Control

The Game has some good parental control settings that can be set up either through the Epic Games system or within the Fortnite platform.

You can create a six-digit code to lock various settings. To do this: go to the settings/menu in the game, where you can customize:

  • Content Rating: Set an age limit for the minigames your kids can access on the Fortnite platform. Choose from age ratings of 3, 7, and 12 years. Every minigame on the Fortnite platform has an assigned age rating. If a game’s age rating is higher than what you’ve allowed, your kids may ask you for permission to access that specific game.
  • Allow Kids to Create Their Own Minigames (Islands): Decide whether you want your kids to create and share their own minigames.
  • Filter for Inappropriate Language: Note that this filter likely works best for English words, not Norwegian. It applies to text and not voice.
  • PIN Code Requirement for Adding New Friends: Your kids won’t be able to add new friends on the Fortnite platform without you entering a PIN code as a parent.
  • Choose Who Kids Can Chat With (Voice Chat): Friends, everyone, only friends and teammates, or no one.
  • Turn On or Off Text Chat: Decide whether text chat is allowed.
  • Receive Weekly Reports on Your Child’s Gameplay Time to Your Email.

Please note that the settings made within the Fortnite platform do not restrict chat/communication on the game console and the computer programs outside the platform.

Guidelines for setting up such restrictions can be found here.

Set restrictions on spending:

Buying V-bucks is directly deducted from the bank card linked to the game store, whether it’s Xbox Store, Epic Games on PC, or PlayStation Store. To ensure secure purchases, it’s essential to establish a password barrier. Here’s how you can do it on PlayStation and Xbox.

On PC, log in to your Epic Games account and choose parental controls. Learn more about it here.

Reports and blocks

Within the game, you have the option to report other users for inappropriate behavior. Simply go to the settings/menu, where you’ll find the reporting feature.

You can also block players in your friend list or mute their microphone to avoid hearing them.

Two-factor authentication

Turning on two-factor authentication is a smart move. It prevents others from hijacking your child’s account, even if they know the username and password. To log in to the Fortnite platform on a gaming console/computer other than the usual one, you need to enter a unique code that will be sent by email or SMS.

You can enable two-factor authentication on the account page of Epic Games.

Additional settings

In the audio menu within settings, you can make some adjustments:

Voice Method – Push to Talk: Requires pressing a microphone button to speak, ensuring the microphone isn’t always on.
Voice Chat: Turn off chat completely or choose who can hear your kids when they use voice chat.
Voice Reporting: On or off to allow reporting of something said in voice chat. A recording of the chat is then sent to Epic Games for review.

In the account and privacy section, you can choose:

Language Filter: On/Off.

Friend Invitations: Allow from everyone/friends of friends/no one.
Gifts Reception: Decide whether your child can receive gifts from others.
Group (Party) Membership: Control who can join your child’s group.
Username Visibility: Choose who can see your child’s username (replace with “Player” for other players).

Difficulty:

0-6 years: The game may be technically challenging for many children in this age group, both in menu navigation and controlling the game character. All text is in English.

7-11 years: The game is manageable for many children in this age range. However, some games on the platform are recommended for ages 12 and up by PEGI. Additionally, there are numerous minigames with varying difficulty levels, where some are easier to navigate than others. For example, it could be straightforward car driving versus tackling logical obstacles and intricate mazes.

12-15 years: There are also games designed for this age group, offering increased complexity, including logical challenges and more.

16+: There are plenty of diverse minigames for those looking for a challenge.

(Translated from Norwegian by Ratan Samadder)