More than 200 million gamers in the United States play Fortnite, a multiplayer survival video game released in 2017.
Free to play across multiple platforms, the digital last-man-standing game has earned its place among the most popular ever, bringing in more than $300 million in revenues each month.
Available on mobile devices, computers and gaming consoles, Fortnite has quickly garnered broad appeal, attracting recent public attention from professional athletes and musicians, including DJ Marshmello, who held the first-ever live virtual concert in a game in early February. (I heard about it on NPR.)
The 10-minute event, which was promoted on virtual fliers throughout the game and was listed on the entertainer’s official tour schedule, counted 10 million concurrent users in attendance.
DJ Marshmello’s Fortnite Extended Set subsequently debuted at No. 1 on the top dance/electronic albums chart.
The gaming space has long had the eye of marketers looking to target large captive audiences. As games have become more sophisticated and immersive, so have attempts to seamlessly integrate brands into the user experience.
Take, for instance, KFC’s Colonel Sanders’ appearance in WWE 2K18. With sleeves ripped off his iconic white suit, a muscular version of the fast-food brand ambassador and mascot stepped into the virtual ring as an actual playable character.
More: 5 things to know about Epic Games’ ‘Fortnite: Battle Royale’
And don’t discount the enormous success of the Lego brand. It has created nearly 70 video games based on the toy company’s interlocking plastic bricks, and in many cases, tied to its lucrative licensing partnerships. On the flip side, Lego sets branded to the block building video game Minecraft are available on retail shelves.
Brands that can create a memorable experience will generate a lot of enthusiasm. And the video game industry represents a huge opportunity.
According to the Entertainment Software Association, 64 percent of American households are home to at least one person who plays video games regularly, or at least three hours per week. And 60 percent of Americans play video games daily.
More: Controlling ‘gaming disorder’: When video games become an addiction
More: Knoxville is getting its own gaming convention: Here’s what to know
But it’s not just about playing video games; it’s also increasingly about watching others play video games on websites like YouTube and Twitch.
Last year, more than 600,000 people tuned in to watch Drake and popular online streamer “Ninja” play Fortnite over the internet, breaking streaming records on the Amazon-owned service Twitch. Rapper Travis Scott and NFL player JuJu Smith-Schuster also joined them in the stream.
Unless you are into gaming, it can be hard to wrap your arms around this phenomenon. What is evident is the ability to engage and build community in these virtual worlds.
For brands, it’s another opportunity to meet audiences where they are.
Carly Harrington is director of public affairs for Knox County Schools and chapter president of the Tennessee School Public Relations Association. She also serves on the board of the Volunteer Chapter of PRSA. She can be contacted at carly.harrington@knoxschools.org.
