[Discussion] Longer Playtimes, Bigger Payouts: Epic's New Fortnite Creator Reward System

[Uncrowned Guard]

The virtual realm of Fortnite, developed by Epic Games, is innovatively altering the landscape for its creators by introducing a "time played" metric to its remuneration calculations for creators of Fortnite experiences, also known as "islands". This move comes as the first major tweak to the revamped payout system that was rolled out in March alongside the company's Unreal Editor for Fortnite.

The new payout system, which returns 40 percent of the game's net revenues to the creators, was initially launched to invigorate the creation of new Fortnite islands and potentially deter creators from migrating to rival platforms like Roblox. As a novel twist, the time spent playing in Fortnite islands will now weigh heavily in the overall metric calculations, according to Epic's official blog post.

Despite these changes, Epic assures that its updated creator payout system has been more rewarding than its predecessor, the Support-A-Creator (SAC) program. In its blog post, Epic mentioned, "The top 1,000 island creators saw a 5.2x median increase in earnings through engagement payouts over SAC in March." The revised system was implemented in April's creator payouts, resulting in "an increase of 1.45x more total money paid to creators when compared to March."

Looking ahead, Epic's forecast for the coming year shows that a select few Fortnite island creators could potentially earn over $1 million, with a handful surpassing the $10 million mark. However, the data also highlighted a relatively low number of creators currently earning significant amounts. Nonetheless, considering the program's recent inception, these initial figures might not necessarily reflect future trends.

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[Shortie]

Being an Epic Partner myself, this is something I would love to jump into. I would love to create my own creative game mode and be able to offer players something else new to be able to play if they are looking for something new.

I think it is amazing that Epic Games are doing this to help creators all over the world earn even that little extra which could go a long way. I mean, I say a little extra but looking at things, it could be a life-changing amount.

[Uncrowned Guard]

5 hours ago, Shortie said:

Being an Epic Partner myself, this is something I would love to jump into. I would love to create my own creative game mode and be able to offer players something else new to be able to play if they are looking for something new.

I think it is amazing that Epic Games are doing this to help creators all over the world earn even that little extra which could go a long way. I mean, I say a little extra but looking at things, it could be a life-changing amount.

Yes!  This is an awesome program for creators and a great way to help make dedicated fans some money.  I can't really see a downside as of right now.

[Heatman]

It's a good thing that Epic Games set up something that's capable of making it possible for their core fans to make real money from the game. It shouldn't always be all about taking from the gamers all the time. They are not giving back and it's a good development.