Over the last six years,Fortnitehas managed to do what so few can’t, and remain one of the most popular video games on the market. Though its live-service approach is still a tad controversial, there’s no denying that it works, withFortnite’s free-to-play modelenticing hordes of new players every year while its paid cosmetics and Battle Pass continue to rake in the big V-Bucks. And withFortniteremaining one of the most popular video games currently out, it’s only natural that other big IPs have started to associate themselves with theFortnitebrand.
For the last few years now,Fortnitehas gradually become the gaming hub of all things pop-culture.Star Wars, Marvel, DC,Halo,God of War,The Walking Dead,Resident Evil, and many, many more have all crossed over withFortnitemultiple times over the last few years, andFortnite’s collaborations don’t look like they’ll be stopping anytime soon. But whileFortnitehas had countless crossovers, that doesn’t mean that each one makes complete sense, and the latestTransformerscollaboration might leave some fans scratching their heads a little.
RELATED:The Unwritten Rules of Fortnite Explained
Fortnite’s Battle Bus Transformer Reveal Is a Strange One
Fortnite’s most recent, and currently ongoing collaboration is with Hasbro’sTransformersfranchise, specifically tying in with the most recent movie,Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. For the most part, thisFortnitexTransformerscrossoverhas been pretty great so far, with a new themed mythic weapon in the powerful Cybertron Cannon, some uniqueTransformers-themed quests that reward dedicated players with emotes and sprays, and an Optimus Prime skin as the Battle Pass' highest reward this Season. On top of that, players could also spend their V-Bucks to get an Optimus Primal skin, as well as some other cosmetic items based on the recent movie.
But despite thislatestFortniteSeasoncoming to a close in just over a month’s time, Epic Games seems to be far from done with theTransformerslicense. In October, Epic Games is releasing a wholeTransformerscosmetic pack forFortnite, arriving both physically in stores and digitally viaFortnite’s shop. This pack brings three newTransformersskins to the game, including the fan-favorite Bumblebee, and the Decepticon leader Megatron, both based on their classicTransformersGen 1 designs. But the third skin in the bundle throws a bit of a curveball at fans.
Rather than being based on a pre-existingTransformerscharacter like Starscream or Jazz,Fortnite’s upcomingTransformerscosmetic pack includes aTransformersversion of the game’s iconic blue and yellow Battle Bus. On paper, this is an extremely fun idea.Transformersis all about fun reveals of something that fans have seen the whole time, but actually turns out to be a robot in disguise, and this Battle Bus skin achieves that. It also helps that the skin itself looks pretty great, retaining the iconic color scheme from the game along with some details that are core to the bus like its yellow tubing and bus decals.
But theFortnitexTransformersBattle Bus skin fails to live up to its premise in one big way: it’s not a real Transformer. According toFortnite’s official website, the Battle Bus is not considered an officialTransformerscharacter, and that seems like a real missed opportunity. Epic Games is a company that’s usually switched on when it comes to marketing and crossover timings, but in this instance, it seems to have dropped the ball a little.
While the skin itself is great, Epic Games could have gone out of its way to market the crossover by getting Hasbro to produce someofficialTransformerstoysbased on the design, getting even more eyes on the crossover. But even aside from that, just including the Battle Bus as an official Transformer would have gone a long way in making the crossover feel more important and relevant to fans of both franchises.
Fortniteis available on Mobile, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Call of Duty: Warzone Can Avoid Another Controversy By Borrowing a Fortnite Approach
