If recently revealed internal documents are any indication, Fortnite players will soon be able to ride the Battle Bus as two incredibly famous real-life individuals.
For those not aware of current affairs, a legal dispute between the battle royale’s creator Epic and Apple officially commenced in the courtroom last week. The case, which essentially boils down to a squabble over royalties and profit sharing, first took root last year when the former intentionally bypassed the tech giant’s requirement that in-app purchases account for its share of the pie. Apple ultimately removed the game from its storefront in response, triggering the formation of a #FreeFortnite social media campaign.
While the outcome of this petty war of words will undoubtedly take some time to resolve, the process has resulted in the release of several documents not intended for external viewing, with many depicting content that has yet to be released. This includes, among other things, planned additions to the title’s premium Icon skin series, with specific references being made to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and basketball superstar LeBron James.
While we’d normally take this as unequivocal proof that both celebrities are due to be immortalized in Fortnite shortly, the slides on which they appear reference dates that have already long passed. The Rock is listed as Q1 2021 and LeBron as Q4 2020. That being the case, there are two possible outcomes here. Either the studio decided against adding the likeness of both, or has opted to delay their arrival for unspecified reasons.
Regardless, now that this information is public, it’s likely that Epic will have no other option than to provide an explanation for their continued absence, so watch this space for further developments.
Published: May 4, 2021 10:18 am