Sony Invests Another $200 Million into Fortnite, Unreal Engine Creator Epic Games

Smart move, Sony, and props to Fortnite as well. Absolutely not my thing, but I had expected its bubble to burst long before now.

Dark and gritty Fortnite cinematic third person action game spin off inbound?

Well, their valuation could go through the roof if they win their suit against Apple. Not a bad bet either way.

Another 10% of ownership?

fairly bizarre, sounds like they have a bit of cash and have no idea what to do with it

It’s nothing to do with Fortnite let’s be honest. Unreal Engine 5 is the main draw here.

As long as Epic keep giving out free games on EGS, keeps upgrading UE and bring the fight to rotten Apple. Money well spent.

Tbf the Unreal Engine powers not only major games but now with it being used in TV and movies it's a decent bet.

Remember playing around with the unreal editor back in the day to make incredibly basic Unreal Tournament maps.

Really impressed me how big they were then and how they've somehow managed to get even bigger. Just wish Fortnite didn't get as big as it has or I would have had another Unreal Tournament.

@agramonte

The only reason Epic is fighting apple and Google is to make a bigger cut for themselves. They're undercutting steam to take their customers away. They're no robin hood here they just want a bigger proportion of the market to themselves.

Sony and Microsoft charges the same 30% cut to publish on their store. The only reason Epic isn't going after them is that it'd be almost suicidal.

Hoping for the rumoured Epic IPO. Pioneering the replacement of green screen, so it's a good investment.

Well that explains it.

I guess it gets them early access to engine builds/updates and maybe a VIP tech support service?

Still it's money well spent for all the uses Sony has for it.

Still no new studio acquisitions?

Make playstation Home on fortnite sony, a place where ps users can just hangout and explore like in the old Home 😃

@solocapers

And that means so can everyone else - we just need Epic to break the wall.

Then my Advertising/Design studio can build our own solutions for our clients iOS projects. Just like we do on Android, Windows and Mac OS. This is not just about videogames.

And Microsoft is supporting EPIC on the case. Microsoft does not want to deal with Apple's BS either. Why xCloud is a Web App on iOS.

Their mistake was go after Google - Android lets us do whatever we want. Shoul be 1 front against Apple.

@nessisonett I dont think Sony said we are investing in Fortnite they invested in Epic.

@Agramonte If they win then MS stores arent safe either so no idea why they would do that?

@Ben8371 epic is worth 28 billion today as a company so 200 million dollars doesnt worth 10 percent stake, not even close. i think it's around 1%

Playstation Home revival incoming?

@wiiware This was the first thing that came to my mind after first reading the news.

If only they could invest that into Bend Studio and Days Gone 2, of which the original happens to run on Unreal Engine 😔

Called it on Aloy in Fortnite weeks ago 😉

Sound investment.

Now it is the time to invest in more studios? Perhaps Bluepoint? Housemarque?

@nessisonett $450 million dollars to access Unreal Engine 5? Seems odd when any one can buy a license to use it. Something is going on here.

@arsmolinarc I don't like battle royale game but I like fortnite characters design, it's how I imagined if playstation make new ps home and we can use ps characters in that game.

@Jarobusa It’s not about accessing Unreal Engine 5, it’s about ensuring it has a slice of the pie. Especially when you consider that it’s Sony, not Playstation making the move and that Epic have been making inroads within movie production.

I'm confused. Are they investing into Fortnite or Unreal Engine? Or Epic Games? Huh??

@wiiware well said
How about a ps home themed fortnite map
Or ps home with fortnite artstyle

@Americansamurai1 id be extremely surprised if an announcement concerning bluepoint and housemarque was not forthcoming

Would be nice to see money like that going towards original I.P. that doesn't involve cinematic bang bang Ubisoft me too games. Sorry I'm still salty about Japan Studios. 🥺

Smart investment, but would've been better spent on Patapon x Loco Roco

Fortnite the game that throws you back from the 50's to level 1? Yeah that can go you know where. Seems like Microsoft and Sony are both doing bad investments of recent.

@Agramonte For the advance user, Android allows them to whatever they want. But for the every day causal Fortnite player. Google is just as bad as Apple. Google drives away user from installing any apps outside of Google Play meaning we're back to same problem that EPIC have with Apple which is that 30% cut.

@Flaming_Kaiser MS have leverage due to the massive install base of Xbox users. EPIC attacking Microsoft would be basically attacking the hand that feeds you. Like someone said earlier, going after them would be almost suicidal.

Great news. Primal is probably the best season of Fortnite I’ve played so far. I didn’t enjoy the last one much but this season’s map feels much more organic.

Plus, Lara fricken’ Croft! Now Aloy (and hopefully a Jurassic Park/World crossover eventually). I wonder... does Aloy’s glider confirm flying/rideable Dino-robots for HZD2???

That money will just end up being used in epics legal battle against apple

I'm guessing this has less to do with investing in Epic specifically as much as it is trying to counter the control Tencent is gaining of it. I'm not sure it's just Sony it benefits but probably the industry at large by having a better balance of power there.

This could be super when the Unreal 5 engine hits. Maybe some Sony exclusive time with Unreal 5? Or maybe some tech support for their in-house developers when using the new engine? Either way, 200 million buys you something.

Phil Spencer recently said that Microsoft's goal was to make their game studios develop games that "runs best on Xbox". Maybe Sony's strategy is to make the next Unreal Engine (and games created with it) run best on PlayStation 5?

Honestly I think it's weird when one company invests money in another company. If one goes down it creates a domino effect that can crash industries or even economies.

@perseus7 Probably around 1% for sure considering they previously threw 250 million for 1.4% last time. So I'd guess they now have 2.4% stake in the company. Doesn't sound like much to some, but if you're making billions in revenue each year, 2.4% is quite a lot. I see it as a win/win.

@Floki So there is nothing nice about MS on this its just extra profit good to hear. And yes the Microsoft store isnt that big then.