Fortnite is a cross-platform game that was launched in 2017, is one of the most popular games of 2018, taking the number one spot with children and young people. It is available on PC, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, Playstation & Mobile Devices.

Age: You need to be at least 13 years old to play Fortnite. It also has a PEGI rating of 13+. 

Fortnite: Battle Royale features up to 100 players, who can be playing alone or can join the game in small squads. The aim of the game is to stay alive; striving to be the last player remaining after the others have been killed.

The nature of the game (staying alive) is proving to to be very addictive to those who play. Therefore, if you allow children in your care to play the game, it is important to enforce screen time  limits to ensure children don’t spend too much time playing it.

The game features ‘cross-platform play’ between either the PC computer, gaming console or on a mobile device. This means that children in your care can play on Xbox against someone playing on a mobile device.

Whilst there is no global text-chat function, there is a voice chat function utilised through the use of a headset.

Game Privacy Settings

? Public – anyone can join your game

? Friends Only – only Friends can join (make sure to deselect the option to allow friends of friends)

? Private – only your party leader can send out invites

Top Tips 

? Don’t be afraid to make your own account & play Fortnite to find out for yourself how it works. Make yourself a party master and add the children in your care to a private group. This means any friend requests will need to be approved by you.

? Show children in your care how mute? voice chat so they aren’t contacted by players they don’t know in the real world.

? Advise children to never give out any personal information, e.g their phone number, real name, address, school and or any club names they are members of.

? Play along with children to find out how the game works.

? According to games analytics firm Superdata, Fortnite made $126m in February this year from in-game purchases, Make sure children in your care know not to purchase anything in the app without your consent.

Fortnite: Jargon Buster 

Squad – Children can join other friends and play together against other players.

Schematics -Schematics are plans found hidden throughout the world of Battle Royale. They are recipes allowing other players to craft their own weapons & traps from materials.

V-Bucks – Battle Royale’s internal currency.  V-Bucks can be used to purchase things such as weapons, weapon skins and new clothing. V-Bucks can also be built up within the game without having to add a credit card, contributing to the addictive nature of the game.

Looting – ‘Looting’ can be collecting anything from ammunition, weapons, traps or resources in the game. These are also referred to as “Loot Boxes”.

The Storm – You need to be aware of “The Storm” as it can bring Monsters, meaning play will be harder. Otherwise known as “The Wall”, the Storm is a large, blue, transparent wall that covers the entire map. Anyone caught in the storm can lose health.

Battle Pass – The Battle Pass is a method Battle Royale players can use to gain access to exclusive in-game rewards. You can for a Battle Pass with V-Bucks.

Challenges – All players in Battle Royale will receive “Daily Challenges”, each night at midnight you are set a maximum of three challenges.

Item Shop – The Item Shop is Battle Royale’s online shop. This is where you can purchase outfits, weapons and emotes.

Locker – Your locker lets you store the stuff you have bought from the Item Shop via your battle pass.

Emote – An emote is a way to animate your character to show your emotion. E.g you can make your character “dab”, or blow kisses.