Fortnite Maker Epic Games Made $3 Billion Profit in 2018: Report

A new report claims that Fortnite Battle Royale maker Epic Games has raked in $3 billion (roughly Rs. 21,008 crores) in profits in 2018 alone. This is primarily due to the phenomenal success of the game Fortnite, which is a battle royale game where 100 players are paradropped on an island and the last one standing wins. If this information is accurate, it explains why Epic Games has shifted its focus solely to Fortnite and its own Epic Games Store. Fortnite is a free-to-play game on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS, and it has been immensely successful in markets such as the US even if its presence barely registers here in India.

A TechCrunch report cites an unnamed Epic Games source and claims that the company made a $3 billion profit thanks to Fortnite. It is important to note that Epic Games is a privately held company and any revenue figures cannot be independently verified via publicly available information. However, if TechCrunch's report is accurate, it is in line with previously reported figures of $1 billion in Fortnite micro-transaction revenue from July 2018.

Fortnite does not have ads, but it makes its revenue from micro-transactions via the in-game store, which has led to staggering numbers such as $2 million per day in in-game revenue for Epic Games. While this is great news for Epic Games, Fortnite's barely relevant in India. PUBG Mobile is the dominant battle royale game in the country, thanks to the game being very well optimised for Android, unlike Fortnite.

Epic Games also makes money from Epic Game Store, which is a marketplace for PC games, and Unreal Engine — licensed to developers to make games. These numbers make it clear that while Fortnite is Epic's primary source of revenue, it's not the only thing out there.

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