Fortnite has built a new "specially designed [...] Creative Island, made to reflect sport shooting competition" for the Olympic Esports, and competitors will vy for the gold medal on June 24.
While Fortnite is joining the Olympics Esports, it won't be played as a battle royale. As reported by the BBC, the event will instead pull 12 players from the Fortnite Champion Series to play in Singapore, organised by the International Olympic Committee, to test their accuracy. The aforementioned island has been designed around shooting targets, so it's not the last person standing who wins, it's whoever can aim the best.
This is because the Olympic Esports uses video games to reflect real-life sports, so Fortnite is taking on the role of archery. As the official Olympics website lists, the following games will also be included alongside Fortnite, taking on the role of the following real-life sports: WBSC eBaseball: Power Pros for, as you can probably guess, baseball; Chess.com for, yep, chess; Zwift for cycling; Just Dance for dancing; Gran Turismo 7 for motorsport; Virtual Regatta for sailing; Virtual Taekwondo for taekwondo, and Tennis Clash for tennis.
Each game will be held in Singapore's Suntec Centre, but for those abroad who want to catch the action, the games will be streamed globally on the official Olympics website and social channels. Tickets cost $7.50 per day, or $20 for a three-day pass.
Not only will the Fortnite match see 12 players competing to see who has the best accuracy in a custom map filled with targets, but it will also push them to "navigate the in-game environment as they compete". What this will look like in practice is unclear, but we only have a month before the event goes live to find out.
This news comes just over a year after an Olympic gold medalist was added to Fortnite, though they earned their medal for snowboarding, not shooting targets. Chloe Kim was announced back in March 2022, and she arrived in the battle royale skating on a giant frozen dragon while donning her usual snowboard attire.
Fortnite World Cup winner Kyle 'Bugha' Giersdorf was also added to the game in July 2021 as part of the 'icon series'. Perhaps the winner of the Olympic Esports tournament will see similar treatment, being immortalised as the champion in the very battle royale they competed in. Even if they didn't compete for a Victory Royale.