Epic Games has made a ton of money since launching Fortnite Battle Royale and now the developer is looking to put it towards something that'll surely grow the popularity of the game - official competitive play. For the 2018-2019 season, the first year of competitive play, Epic has pledged to provide $100,000,000 towards prize pools for Fornite competitions. The money will support eSports tournament prize pools, but we don't yet have specifics.
"We’re getting behind competitive play in a big way, but our approach will be different - we plan to be more inclusive, and focused on the joy of playing and watching the game," the developer said.
While other competitive games have flourished as eSports, developers and publishers tend to establish pro leagues filled with the best of the best. Fortnite, as a battle royale game, is naturally competitive and gamers have flocked towards YouTube and Twitch to both watch and share their own gameplay. Although there are players who are certainly far and away better than your average (cough, Ninja, cough), it's exciting that Epic is looking to support all types of Fortnite fans with this venture.