The long-awaited collaboration between Fortnite and “The Simpsons” begins Saturday and will run for a month-long season. They will be joining the 80-player Springfield Island as “Fortnite crashes into Springfield,” with Fortnite promising a “fast-paced, back-to-basics battle royale experience.”
The Simpsons gameplay will change weekly throughout November. The show-themed “Springfield Battle Pass” includes costumes for Homer, Marge and Ned Flanders, as well as “Simpsons” versions of Fortnite characters, Blinky Fishstick and Springfielder Peely (skins also reportedly include alternate versions such as the evil Homer and witch Marge from “Treehouse of Horror”).
The Battle Pass also includes the first Peel of Fortnite’s “Sidekicks” announced on Friday, which are unlockable in the Springfield Battle Pass and are exclusive Sidekicks until more Sidekicks arrive in the shop on November 7th.
The cel-shaded “Springfield Island” features locations familiar to “The Simpsons” fans, including the Krusty Burger, Kwik-E-Mart, Moe’s Tavern, the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, Mr. Burns’ mansion and the Simpsons’ home.
Meanwhile, four original “Simpsons” short stories will premiere once a week starting Nov. 1 as a preview of that week’s gameplay narrative and map updates. The shorts will appear on Fortnite’s social channels and its “Quests” tab (under “Animated Shorts”), and will also run on Disney+. Co-produced by Epic Games and Gracie Films, the episode titles are “Apocalypse D’oh” (November 1), “Sugar High” (November 10), “Multiplidiocy” (November 17), and “The Incredible Bulk” (November 24).
The Simpsons gameplay will also be available at Fortunes Dell this weekend, with Rocket League x The Simpsons limited-time events including challenges to unlock in-game rewards. The Rocket League Challenge, which ends on November 17th, will have players running around Springfield and unlocking items like the Blinky Topper, Homer’s Hedges Player Banner, and Scrap Wheel. Unlimited Challenges award 20,000 XP each time.
To coincide with the launch of Fortnite x “The Simpsons,” this Sunday’s episode will feature a “special homage” to Fortnite, the company said.
Disney, the owner of The Simpsons, invested $1.5 billion in Fortnite developer Epic Games last year. As part of the deal, Disney announced plans to create a universe there using IP that includes franchises such as Disney, Pixus, Marvel, “Star Wars” and “Avatar.” This project is powered by Epic Games’ Unreal Engine.
