Fortnite's Latest Update Mimics Roblox?
Epic Games' popular Battle Royale game, Fortnite, recently underwent a substantial design update in version 29.10. As part of this redesign, the game tiles under the Discover feature are now square-shaped, differing from their previous rectangle form. This change came out of left field for many, sparking different reactions amongst players.
The Roblox gaming community has been among those most vocal about this transformation. They claim that Fortnite's design changes are undeniably similar to Roblox's tile display for user-created islands. Renowned Roblox YouTuber, KreekCraft, expressed his surprise, humorously referring the new Fortnite update as a Roblox upgrade.
Reactions to Fortnite's Change
Reaction from players have been mixed, with some finding humor in the situation, while others take a more serious tone. One comment from a Roblox player humorously suggested that Roblox and Fortnite are gradually adopting each other's designs. The argument was backed by an impending Roblox update rumored to introduce 16:9 game tiles, ditching the traditional square format.
A subsequent comment from a different user, alluding to the Lego-like skins introduced in Fortnite, claimed that Fortnite is subtly transforming into Roblox. Consequently, the opinion to the design changes is divided, with some players suggesting it's a case of copying, while others downplay the potential plagiarism.
Copying Controversy vs Game Evolution
One player simply stated, "Well they’re copying us. Fortnite vs Roblox," accusingdirectly Fortnite of copying Roblox. Another gamer posted a comment downplaying the controversy: "Bro everyone making such a big deal that they stole from Roblox. It’s literally just square icons, pretty much every game has that like wdym bro?"
This is not the first instance where Fortnite has elicited accusations of borrowing in-game features. Recently, following State of Unreal 2024, Epic further courted controversy with its intention to turn Fortnite’s discovery feature into a YouTube-like service, permitting players to follow their favorite game content creators. Some players took issue with this as they viewed it as blatant duplication.
Epic Games' Future
Despite the criticisms, Epic Games has remained undeterred, committed to its path of consistent updates and improvements. They have assured their player base of the implementation of substantial changes to the user interface, locker, and the Item Shop in the forthcoming months.
The game is also poised to venture into a first-person mode this year. This new feature has already generated considerable excitement among the community who eagerly awaits Fortnite’s continued evolution.