The next batch of free Epic Games Store games has leaked, and some of them deserve to be picked up.
11.12.2023 - 22:59 / ign.com / John Wick / Cristina Alexander / Calvin Harris / Ariana Grande / Nintendo
From Star Wars to Naruto, Epic Games has managed to nab all kinds of brand crossovers for its skins and characters - and it still hasn't counted out going for Nintendo.
Sax Persson, Epic's head of ecosystem in Fortnite, recently told Axios how difficult their attempts have been to add Mario, Princess Peach, Donkey Kong, Link, Zelda, Samus, and other characters from the Nintendo universe to Fortnite's ever-expanding roster of skins and avatars. He explained that Epic's efforts to convince Nintendo to allow the company to insert Mario and the gang into Fortnite have gone nowhere.
"I don't know what the word for, like, making diamonds is," Persson said. "Nintendo has their strategy and we have our strategy, and we hope at some point [to use their characters]. Our players would love it."
Over the years, Fortnite has managed to secure characters from across the gaming and entertainment industries, including Master Chief from Halo, Kratos from God of War, Indiana Jones, John Wick, Spider-Man, Rick from Rick and Morty, and more recently Peter Griffin from Family Guy. The game has also gotten skins based on celebrities, including tennis player Naomi Osaka, Olympic snowboarder and gold medalist Chloe Kim, singer Ariana Grande, and rapper Eminem.
During The Game Awards, Epic Games launched LEGO Fortnite within the base game as a direct result from the company's partnership with LEGO.
So why has Nintendo not budged on allowing its characters in the metaverse game? Speculation has largely swirled around the fact that Fortnite is a multiplatform game allowing, for example, PlayStation character Kratos to run around on Xbox consoles. It's possible that Nintendo doesn't want the same deal for its beloved characters.
Kit Ellis, a former Nintendo public relations managers who's since left the company, offered a pretty straightforward explanation in a video as well: "They don't need Fortnite. They're bigger than Fortnite. The stuff that they do is bigger than Fortnite."
"They've spent decades building up these characters, building up this IP to the point where it is now where The Mario Movie can be a billion dollars and Nintendo Switch is the best-selling console," Ellis said. "...They can just be one of a other dozen characters that all play the same, put into a game that's all about shooting people and is so against their brand? It makes no sense... This isn't gonna happen."
Still, while the prospects look dim, it's at least clear that Epic hasn't given up on it.
Cristina Alexander is a freelance writer for IGN. To paraphrase Calvin Harris, she wears her love for Sonic the Hedgehog on her sleeve like a big deal. Follow her on Twitter @SonicPrincess15.
The next batch of free Epic Games Store games has leaked, and some of them deserve to be picked up.
The Epic Games Store's holiday celebration is continuing with a giveaway of, the digital storefront's free mystery game for December 29. is available for free through the Epic Games Store until 11:00 AM ET on December 30, when it will be replaced by that day's free giveaway. It follows, which was the ninth game to be given away in a celebration that will continue through January 4, resulting in a total of 15 free games.
These are salad days for fans of novelty golf, from What The Golf? to Desert Golfing to Turbo Golf Racing. Released in 2022, Cursed To Golf set itself apart from the mini genre by being a golflike roguelike - and it's currently free to keep from the Epic Games Store.
Epic Games Holiday Sale: The Epic Games Store Holiday Sale is going strong with massive discounts on games like Alan Wake II, Hogwarts Legacy, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. In addition to the discounts, the Epic Games Store is also giving away a new free game every day! The platform gave away some big games for free last year including Destiny 2: Legacy Collection, and Horizon Chase Turbo. So far this year, it has given away some amazing titles such as Destiny 2: Legacy Collection, Fallout 3: GOTY Edition, and Ghostwire: Tokyo. This holiday season, the store is giving away a total of 17 games absolutely free to spread joy and cheer. The giveaway began on December 13, with the first free game being Destiny 2: Legacy Collection.
Ghostwire: Tokyo is gone, and now Obsidian Entertainment’s The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Edition is free to claim on the Epic Games Store. It’s available until 8 AM PST, December 26th, so if you have an Epic Games account, get it for free on PC now.
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The Epic Games Store Holiday Sale is back with another batch of exciting games set to be given away. The platform gave away some big games for free last year including Destiny 2: Legacy Collection, and Horizon Chase Turbo. Now, with Christmas approaching, the Holiday Sale is back! You can grab games with heavy discounts right now as part of the Holiday Sale on the Epic Games Store. And that's not all. The store is also giving away 17 games absolutely free to spread joy and cheer during this holiday season. That's right! As part of its free giveaway leading up to the New Year, Epic Games will be offering one free game daily. The giveaway began yesterday, December 13, and you can grab other free games thereafter.
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