Is Fortnite still child-friendly? A deep dive into collaborations & their repercussions 

Fortnite is well known for its collaboration. Given the number of them that have been introduced to the game over the years, there's something for everyone to enjoy. However, there comes a time when the question has to be asked and that is: Are all collaborations child-friendly?

Taking into consideration that some crossovers showcase a lot of violence or are inherently violent, can they truly be considered PG-13? Darth Vader, for instance, has killed half a dozen odd children on screen in the Star Wars universe. However, since it's purely functional, it can be excused to an extent.

Keeping the violent aspect aside, there are a number of other factors that can be taken into consideration as well. That being said, it's time to understand if the game truly is child-friendly or not.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the writer's views.

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Is Fortnite still a safe game for kids?

To answer this question, both sides of the coin will have to be looked at. To start, everything in Fortnite is PG-13. From cosmetics, to dialogs, and even interactions with NPCs. Nothing in the game can be deemed inappropriate for teenagers. While a few bad emotes slip through the cracks every now and then, the support team patches things quickly.

However, when talking about it from the perspective of collaborations, there is some concern — the biggest example of this is Travis Scott. After the fiasco that occurred on November 5, 2021, Epic Games took a step back and decided to allow players to delete cosmetics from their locker.

Given that this event occurred well after the collaboration, holding Epic responsible makes no sense. However, this is not the first time that something similar has happened. According to reports, Travis Scott pleaded guilty to charges in a 2015 and 2017 incident which involved him encouraging the crowd to rush the stage.

SInce this occurred long before the collaboration, it seems that Epic didn't do their due research before adding him in-game as an iconic skin. Considering that children play Fortnite, having such a personality in it may adversely affect them in the long run. Things that wouldn't be considered appropriate will become the norm.

While the collaboration was indeed entertaining, the fact that Epic Games collaborated with the artist is not a good legacy to inherit. In short, collaborating with certain individuals does make the game look unsafe for children and not friendly in any way.

Although this is not true in any given form as Epic filters content, it's hard to argue with parents who have to worry about what their child is seeing and hearing in Fortnite. On that note, there's another problem in-game that is unlikely to go away anytime soon.

Another issue that blights the community and children in general is the poor role models that create content on YouTube. While there are creators that go above and beyond to create something that is helpful and provides entertainment, some tend to clickbait their young audience for views and engagement.

While it can be argued that they aren't part of the game, they are still part of the greater ecosystem. Despite Epic not being responsible for them, they do influence a lot of things, some of which tend to be negative or misleading in nature. These, at times, have real-world repercussions.That being said, content creators are not the only issue.

To an extent, the community itself is rather toxic at times. Certain individuals tend to paint a bad picture of what Fortnite is and how it should be perceived. However, unlike clickbait creators, Epic Games does address these issues, and at times bans them from the game or takes away their SAC code.

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Open comms. in Fortnite is a growing concern

Keeping aside the controversies that come along with certain personalities and clickbait content creators, open comms. is another major concern in Fortnite. While a player can get banned for cursing and swearing in the chat box, there are almost no repercussions on comms.

With expletives being tossed around in various languages, there's no escaping the toxicity. To make matters worse, most of these players are well below the age of 18. To add insult to injury, children are also exposed to this behavior and foul language.Thankfully, the proximity chat feature wasn't added in.

That being said, it would still be wrong to say that Fortnite is not PG-13 or child friendly. With developers improving safety measures as time goes by, things have improved over the years. Great care is taken to craft an experience that can be enjoyed by children worldwide.

While a few issues do slip through the cracks, these anomalies are addressed and rectified swiftly. Truth be told, Fortnite is one of the most kid-friendly battle royale games out there by far. Although a few issues do persist, they are far and few between.