Before Fortnite Battle Royale became the 40-million-plus players, live-streamed-by-Drake phenomenon it is today, Epic Games treated the competitive mode and its original with a more serious-minded tone.
Zobrist explained Epic knew Fortnite was a game that would evolve and change over time, and that they wanted this idea conveyed to players.
Speaking at GDC in a panel titled “Fortnite: An Unconventional Launch,” Ed Zobrist, head of publishing at Epic Games for Fortnite, Spyjinx, and Fortnite: Battle Royale touched on the surprising aspects of both the original and Battle Royale launches of Fortnite.
But a certain player benchmark, and a realization of the excitement players had while playing Fortnite, caused a huge tonal shift in how Epic marketed its Battle Royale mode, and the game as a whole.