Fortnite‘s Sidekicks, the small pets and characters who follow you around in battle, have been around for nearly a year now. So far, the cutesy animals are mostly cosmetic additions that don’t affect gameplay. Based on a new trailer, Fortnite‘s about to put those digital companions to use, Pokémon-style.
As fans know, Sidekicks are creatures that dynamically react to the environment during play. They can cheer when the player makes a kill, or look sad when their owner bites the bullet. It’s a cool idea, but a limited one. Not only are Sidekicks expensive, but other players can’t even see players’ virtual Fidos during matches.
With the Cuddles and Chaos Collection update, that’s going to change. Epic Games is a bit vague on specifics, and only notes that the July 23 patch will introduce a bundle of “creature-based games where sidekicks take center stage.” In the trailer featuring Maya Higa, the conservationist and Twitch streamer appears to challenge another player to a pet-based battle.
Epic Games doesn’t have to be explicit here. The publisher could have shown the Sidekicks running around with characters like Jonesy, but it didn’t. Instead, the CGI footage is reminiscent of the Pokémon Go trailers that are rife with human trainers. Notably, recent in-game surveys have been asking players if they’ve spent any time in Palworld, another monster-collecting game that’s topping the Steam sales chart.
In June, Epic Games started allowing Unreal Editor for Fortnite developers to use Sidekicks as scriptable NPCs. The update encouraged players to build experiences like “monster battlers, cozy farming games, creature-collection RPGs, companion adventures, and more.” Islands with those features also go live on July 23, so presumably all of these things are orchestrated to show off the same thing.
The big question is, will anyone care? The creature designs certainly can’t compete with Pikachu. Fortnite has seen a surge in players over the last few months thanks to its collectible sprites that also seem to be inspired by Pokémon. If the Creatures update is a series of islands or modes, however, the chances of long-term success seem low. Historically, Epic Games has had trouble maintaining interest outside of Battle Royale. The most successful island of late is Steal the Brainrot, a copy of an already popular Roblox game.