Disney has paid $1.5 billion for a stake in Epic Games and is planning to create a new open universe that will ‘interoperate’ with Fortnite and let players play as characters from Disney, Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel, among others.
This is Disney’s biggest move into the gaming market and will bring together Disney-owned franchises with Fortnite “in a transformational new games and entertainment universe”, according to Robert A Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
Disney say that in addition to interoperating with Fortnite, the new persistent universe will offer a multitude of opportunities for consumers to play, watch, shop and engage with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar and more. Disney says that players, gamers and fans will be able to create their own stories and experiences, express their fandom and share content with each other. It will all be powered by Unreal Engine.
“This marks Disney’s biggest entry ever into the world of games and offers significant opportunities for growth and expansion,” said Iger. We can’t wait for fans to experience the Disney stories and worlds they love in groundbreaking new ways.”
Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder, Epic Games, added: “Disney was one of the first companies to believe in the potential of bringing their worlds together with ours in Fortnite, and they use Unreal Engine across their portfolio. Now we’re collaborating on something entirely new to build a persistent, open and interoperable ecosystem that will bring together the Disney and Fortnite communities.”
Josh D’Amaro, Chairman, Disney Experiences, said: “This will enable us to bring together our incredible collection of stories and experiences from across the company for a broad audience in ways we have only dreamed of before,” said. “Epic Games’ industry-leading technology and Fortnite’s open ecosystem will help us reach consumers where they are so they can engage with Disney in the ways that are most relevant to them.”