Welcome to Spotlight Advanced.
I’m Adam Navis.
And I’m Liz Waid.
Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting.
It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
One hundred people arrive together on the island.
They look for supplies, resources, safe places to hide, and weapons.
Each person will use whatever they find to kill anyone and everyone they can.
Some people will build shelters to protect themselves.
Some people will hide to stay safe.
But they cannot do that for long.
The island becomes smaller and smaller with each minute.
This pushes everyone together.
More and more people are killed until only one person remains.
That person is the winner!
You may recognize this situation from a popular video game called Fortnite.
Over 40 million people play this game every day.
It is so popular that it is even influencing culture.
But why?
Today’s Spotlight is on Fortnite.
Fortnite was released in 2017 by Epic Games.
But by January 2019, over 45 million people were playing it each month.
It is a third person shooter game.
The game player controls the action of an avatar.
The avatar is the figure in the game that represents the player.
The basic version is free for anyone to play.
And people can play it on many different gaming systems.
Currently, there are three different versions of the game that people can play.
The first version is called Fortnite: Save the World.
In this game, players work together to achieve goals.
They try to survive after a terrible accident on earth.
The second version of Fortnite is called Fortnite Battle Royale.
In this game, 100 players all arrive on an island.
They can work together or play alone.
All players fight each other until only one person or team is left.
The third version of Fortnite is called Fortnite Creative.
In this version, players build anything they want.
If they build something especially great, Epic Games may even use it in one of the other
versions of Fortnite.
The basic game in all three versions is the same.
But Fortnite also changes often.
These changes are called “seasons” of the game.
Each season lasts about ten weeks.
This makes the world of Fortnite more complex and interesting.
Each season has a theme or story and challenges players can do.
Many people also enjoy how Fortnite looks.
The avatars, or characters, do not look like real people.
They look like cartoons - drawn pictures from a book for young people.
They can wear funny clothes or hats.
They can perform funny dances and moves.
And they do not bleed.
When someone dies they just disappear.
Many parents permit this kind of game because it seems safe for children.
These are just a few reasons the game is popular around the world.
And some people are playing Fortnite a lot.
Lendedu is a website that looks at how people spend money.
They asked their readers how much they played Fortnite each week.
Thirty-eight percent of people who answered played over 11 hours each week.
Sixty-eight percent of players had spent money in the game.
Many people also said that they had missed school or work because they were playing Fortnite.
Why would people miss work or school to play a game?
Why would they spend real money in an imaginary world?
One reason is that it can feel like a community.
While playing Fortnite, players can talk to each other over the internet.
Nick Paumgarten is a writer for The New Yorker.
He thinks Fortnite is popular because it is a different kind of game.
He writes,
“There is something new around Fortnite.
It is a kind of mass social gathering.
It is open to more kinds of people than other games.
It seems to be free of the hate toward women and different races that is part of many other
games.
It more open to new players.”
Fortnite is also shaping life and culture outside the game.
People play Fortnite, but they also watch other people play the game online.
People even pay money to watch the most popular players.
These people can make a lot of money.
Another way Fortnite is shaping culture is through dance.
When someone plays Fortnite they can make their character dance.
This often happens when they shoot another player.
But people have started to do these dances in real life.
Probably the most popular of these dances is “Flossing”.
Fortnite made this dance very popular.
Even professional athletes will do it after making a goal.
There is another way the world and Fortnite are mixing.
Many children play Fortnite.
Sometimes being good at Fortnite can make you popular at school or online.
But being bad at Fortnite can lead to people bullying you.
So some parents pay people to teach their kids how to improve.
They think it is just like paying someone to help their child with school or sports.
Some parents even hope their kids will be able to make money or get college scholarships.
But for many people, there is one thing worse than being bad at Fortnite: not playing Fortnite.
A lot happens in the world of Fortnite.
Not playing it can make people feel like they are missing out on important events.
Since the game is always changing, it can be difficult to take a break.
There is a fear of missing something important.
But not everyone likes Fortnite.
Experienced gamers do not always like the game.
Teachers say it takes too much time from schoolwork.
Some parents believe it is too violent.
And some studies show that violent video games can make players more violent in real life.
And yet, these claims have been made about video games in the past.
They have also been made about films, television, music, and sport.
Emer Handly writes for The Irish Times.
He wrote about finding a balance when understanding Fortnite.
“Experts are still debating Fortnite’s effects.
It may come down to the individual child.
Balance is key.
Your child may start to be angry or violent after playing Fortnite.
You should stop him or her from playing it.
Then seek help.
For most children, however, playing video games is something they can enjoy without
any negative effects.”
Do you play Fortnite?
What have you heard about this game?
Tell us what you think.
You can leave a comment on our website.
Or email us at radio@radioenglish.net.
You can also comment on Facebook at Facebook.com/spotlightradio.
The writer of this program was Adam Navis.
The producer was Michio Ozaki.
The voices you heard were from the United States and the United Kingdom.
All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight.
You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net.
This program is called, ‘Fortnite: Simply Survive’.
Visit our website to download our free official app for Android and Apple devices.
We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program.
Goodbye.