Girlfriends, parents, and teachers in North Allegheny and across the country might be wondering why they are being left on read, not coming down for dinner, or not not paying attention in class. In large part, the reason is the video game known as Fortnite, which in the short span of nine months has overtaken the video game world.

Fortnite is a free, online, cross-platform video game available on the Xbox One, PS4, PC, and iOS, which pits 100 players in a battle royale faceoff where the last survivor wins the game. There are three modes: solo, 2-player duos, or 4-player teams. Typically, games last up to 20 minutes if you win but may last a mere a minute if you are unfortunate enough to die first.

However, if your luck runs short, it’s easy to find a new game where you’re back on the battle bus and parachuting down to island within a matter of minutes. Compared to other games in the genre with a hyper-realistic, quasi military style, such as H1Z1, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, and the original predecessor to the Battle Royale game style, Arma 3, Fortnite has a unique, cartoony aesthetic that appeals to the most casual gamer while having gameplay that satisfies the most hardcore of gamers.

“It’s super-entertaining to play with friends as well, because in a team, you’re tested on the strength of your own teamwork against that of others,” Christian Gianetti said.00

Due to the enticing social aspect of the game, Fortnite has been blowing up across the internet with a massive reach. Perhaps the most striking example is that of Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, a streamer on the streaming platform Twitch. In the short span of a few months, Blevins has become the most subscribed to streamer, with over 200,000 active subscriptions and 5.5 million followers on Twitch. This has not only allowed Blevins to earn about $500,000 a month just by playing video games, but it has also attracted the attention of real-life celebrities. Blevins has played Fortnite with Drake, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Travis Scott, and more attracting up to 628,000 concurrent viewers.

The combination of a fun, free, social, creative game compounds for the ultimate casual gaming experience that encompasses a vast majority of teenage boys both in NASH and across the country.  “Fortnite is the first game since MW2 that has brought the online community together in a competitive and cooperative environment,” Isaac Ciocca said.

Next time you see an NBA star make a clutch 3-pointer and do a funny dance, a booth of four all playing a game on their phones instead of eating at lunch, or wondering how a conversation between football jocks or intellectuals sounds the same, you might need to download Fortnite for free on your platform of choice and boot up a quick match and you’ll more than likely understand.