In just three short years, Fortnite has grown from humble beginnings to become something of a cultural phenomenon. Released back in 2017 primarily as a single-player experience, the introduction of a battle royale mode – intended to capitalize on the success of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds – led to soaring player numbers and Epic Games’ quick scramble to accommodate the influx of millions eager to see what all the fuss was about. The rest, as they say, is history.
Fortnite still maintains its position as one of the most successful and lucrative entertainment products of all time, then, but recent figures provided by analytics website SuperData appear to suggest otherwise. In its latest monthly report (thanks, GamesIndustry), the site detailed how Fortnite‘s earnings had “continued their gradual decline and hit their lowest level since November 2017,” leading to the belief that Epic’s streak of success could, in fact, be finite.
Reaching out to Games Industry yesterday, however, the studio has hit back with a statement describing SuperData’s findings as “wildly inaccurate.” It reads:
SuperData does not and has not ever had access to Epic’s Fortnite revenue data, and SuperData’s reports to not accurately reflect Fortnite’s performance. We are disappointed that SuperData has repeatedly published wildly inaccurate reports about Fortnite based on what we believe is questionable methodology. While we do not and have not publicly shared revenue numbers for Fortnite, we will say that SuperData’s reports do not align with reality.
SuperData has since offered its own response to Epic’s scathing retort, saying it has “a proven methodology and validation process” and does not believe any previously reported figures relating to Fortnite to be inaccurate.
Want to have your own say on the matter? Let us know what you believe the general consensus among the community (is Fortnite bigger than ever, or is the appeal finally starting to wear off?) to be in the usual place below!
Published: Feb 28, 2020 09:42 am