[ad_1]
For Brendan Hickey, the purchase of custom features for his character in the online game "Fortnite" was about to stand out.
He can now do electro shuffle. Eat popcorn, dribble a basketball or swing a "plunja" pick. Does it help the 22-year-old to move on to the next level, gain more lives or give him an edge by fighting his opponents in one of the world's most popular online games? Nope.
Estimates of $ 140 to $ 160 on "Fortnite" purchases since October simply set him apart when he participates in the game and help him bond with friends who also play the game. line.
Becky BBQ, Permit Patty and Why the Internet Shames Whites Who Make Police "Just to Be Black"
Hey mom, did you see that? Apple uses facial recognition, the latest controversial technology
Apple releases 70 new emojis
"This is the first time we are all excited to play together at the Xbox," says Hickey, a recent university of Graduate from Connecticut who says his friends are preparing to disperse in the country. "It's the same thing as going out and getting a beer or eating a piece with guys."
He has company. Its 125 million players have made "Fortnite" the most profitable free-to-play game. Every day, athletes and celebrities with school-aged kids fall on the brightly colored cards of the game, struggling to survive the other 99 opponents of each match, and spend money to personalize their characters.
. According to SuperData Research, the North Carolina-based Epic Games business figure outpaces other console games such as "FIFA 18" Electronic Arts and "Call of Duty". : World War II "Activision. This monthly catch has exceeded "Pokémon Go" at its peak. Between January and May, Fortnite raised more than a billion dollars, estimates the research firm
It's because when players launch the game, they bring their real-world portfolios with them.
Outfits and outfits allow players to show their personality and allegiance with friends and online competitors. In a study conducted by LendEDU on 1,000 "Fortnite" players, nearly 69% bought $ 84.67 each.
"It's almost as if young players were treating" Fortnite "skins as figurines," says Carter Rogers. Senior Analyst at SuperData. "It's really become part of the culture to have the latest skin, the latest fashion."
The financial windfall of players buying custom outfits like a basketball jersey or a hip dance movement is the most successful example of a new trend in online games. In the past, video game publishers sold in-game features, sales that allowed players to reach higher levels or unlock characters.
Last year, the Electronic Arts Star Wars: Battlefront II game drew gamers' anger for a system that incited them to pay to unlock characters like Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker by unlocking them more. Naturally Through the Game.
With "Fortnite", players fail to defeat their opponents by acquiring a new outfit or getting better weapons, which has only enhanced the appeal. of the game.
a national obsession, especially with teenagers and pre-teens. The popularity of "Fortnite" has led schools and teachers to complain that students are sneaking into class and playing on their phones. Epic Games has added a warning to the game's loading screen warning students to put the screens aside.
Asher Kim, a 14-year-old living in Georgia, estimates that he plays about 36 hours a week "unless I'm anchored."
What is the attraction? It's addictive, competitive and "like" The Hunger Games "except with guns."
Dance moves or "emotes" that players can buy, some of which are copied to rap artists, have become so successful. During the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday, several players talked about their love for the video game, with a Fox promotion showing some
. In the final of the World Cup between France and Croatia last Sunday, the Frenchman Antoine Griezmann celebrated his goal by doing the dance "Take the L", a movement popularized by "Fortnite".
For some players, buying a skin is their way of showing their gratitude to Epic Games for making the game free.
Shana Wilcox, who publishes her "Fortnite" exploits on YouTube under the nickname "SharkysHood", spent only $ 30 on the game. The 33-year-old from Jacksonville, Fla. has never been a great player of shooting games, and she even liked playing "Fortnite".
She only bought a skin, a rabbit costume called Bunny Brawler. because it was "really cute" and partly fun that the game gave him.
"I had so much fun playing, that it was like" ok, the least I can do is buy a skin that I really have "
For the players Frequent gambling, having a skin can also be seen as a virtual sign that you're not a rookie, or "noob" in the game.
Preston William Otterson, a radio host of 24 years of Lakeville, Minnesota, played "Fortnite" for nearly six months, attracted in the game by its free appearance.
At first he did not spend anything. But after being called online by his friends to be a "no-skin" – an insult to players who just use the standard and free avatars of the game – he decided to put some money into it.
"I've probably spent $ 80, which is more than I've ever spent on a video game," says Otterson, spending money to buy outfits, dances and axes.These can cost $ 5 for an entry-level bundle at $ 20 for a skin.
And given the fun that they have of the game, players say that the purchase of a feature like wings or a glider is worth it.pay $ 15 a month for Netflix, $ 10 a month for Hulu and I play more "Fortnite" than Netflix or Hulu "says Hickey, who occasionally sports the skin of a herbal supervillain named Flytrap. Once he had rationalized it like that, "it was not too much money to spend."
Cody Sipe, a special investigator for a company that checks the background from the government, uses Fortnite to connect with his younger brothers.
From Chesapeake, Virginia, Sipe, 24, and his brothers are scattered across the United States, one of whom is in military training in California with the other on the verge of being in the United States. go to college in Florida.
"We are all guys, we do not call me very often on the phone," says Sipe. "We are forced to be in the same team or to joke about who has the worst statistics (in the game) … who has the coolest outfits and stuff like that. "
Like other online games, players can chat communicate using a headset plugged into their controllers. that all sessions are not talkative,
"Sometimes we sit there for an hour and only share 10 words because we are busy playing a game," says Sipe
. he will drop a few dollars on a skin or outfit if he thinks it looks cool.One of his favorites: as part of a $ 5 package, he bought a "Wingman" skin, a suit similar to the combination of Tom Cruise in the popular film of 1986.
"I had a moment of weakness where I was But like "Hell yeah, I want to look like Tom Cruise in" Top Gun "" so I bought it, "says Sipe laughing.
[ad_2]
Source link
