Disney and Epic Games to create a vast and open world of games and entertainment linked to Fortnite
The Walt Disney Company and Epic Games will collaborate on an all-new universe of games and entertainment that will further expand the reach of Disney’s most beloved stories and experiences. Disney will also invest $1.5 billion to acquire a stake in Epic Games as part of this multi-year project. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
In addition to being a global gaming experience and interoperating with Fortnite, the new persistent universe will provide a multitude of opportunities for consumers to play, watch, purchase and engage with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar and much more. Players and fans will be able to create their own stories and experiences, express their passion in a way distinct from Disney, and share content with each other in the way they prefer. Everything will be powered by Unreal Engine.
Our exciting new relationship with Epic Games will bring together Disney’s beloved brands and franchises with the wildly popular Fortnite in a transformational new world of gaming and entertainment“,
said Robert A. IgerChairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
“This marks Disney’s largest entry into the gaming world and provides significant opportunities for growth and expansion. We can’t wait for fans to experience the Disney stories and worlds they love in new, never-before-seen ways.“
Disney was one of the first companies to believe in the potential of joining their worlds with ours in Fortnite, and they use Unreal Engine across their entire portfolio“,
said Tim SweeneyCEO and founder of Epic Games.
“Today, we’re collaborating on something entirely new to build a persistent, open, and interoperable ecosystem that will bring the Disney and Fortnite communities together.“
This will allow us to bring together our incredible collection of stories and experiences from the Disney catalog for a wide audience, in ways we’ve only dreamed of before“,
said Josh D’Amaropresident of Disney Experiences.
“Epic Games’ cutting-edge technology and Fortnite’s open ecosystem will help us reach consumers where they are so they can engage with Disney in the way most relevant to them.“
Deepening the relationship between Epic Games and Disney
Disney and Epic Games have engaged hundreds of millions of players through Fortnite content integrations, seasonal collaborations, in-game activations and live events, including the Marvel Nexus vs. Galactus War, which attracted more of 15.3 million simultaneous players.
Unreal Engine is used to produce assets and content across the Disney portfolio, including in the development of video games such as Kingdom Hearts 3 and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor; in cinematographic editing and animation for films and streaming; and in the creation of more than 15 Disney Parks attractions, such as Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
This all builds on Epic Games’ participation in the 2017 Disney Accelerator program, which aims to influence the future of technology and entertainment.
Growth of the games industry and success of Disney Games
The digital world is growing and evolving with more than 3 billion video game players worldwide wanting to move securely and seamlessly between the worlds they love, unleash their own creativity, and experience exceptional gameplay.
Disney’s games business continues to see strong results since moving to a licensing business model in 2016. Disney is a leading provider of game licenses, working with top developers and publishers , including the best-selling superhero game of all time, Marvel’s Spider-Man. Disney-licensed games earned more than 150 nominations, wins and other awards in 2023, including multiple Game of the Year nominations for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Disney mobile games have 1.5 billion installations worldwide and, to date, nine Disney game franchises have each grossed more than $1 billion. In the United States, the world’s largest gaming market, Disney-licensed titles regularly rank in the top 10 annual bestsellers.
2024-02-09 15:00:05
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