Epic’s Tim Sweeney Plans Disney-Fortnite Metaverse Built with Unreal Engine
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has some seriously ambitious plans for the future of Unreal Engine, and it involves building a massive metaverse that blends Disney, Fortnite, and Unreal Engine into one giant virtual playground. It’s a bold move, and while the word “metaverse” has become a bit overused (with some high-profile flops along the way), Sweeney is convinced that Epic Games can actually pull it off.
In a recent interview with The Verge, Sweeney explained his vision for creating a “persistent universe” in partnership with Disney. But don’t worry, this isn’t just some lazy Fortnite reskin. Instead, Sweeney’s dream is to combine Unreal Engine’s technical power with the creativity of Fortnite’s player-driven content, using tools like the Unreal Editor for Fortnite. “The real power will come when we bring these two worlds together,” Sweeney said, although he admits this ambitious project could take several years to complete.
It isn’t just dropping Disney characters into Fortnite for fun either. While the idea of Disney princesses battling it out in Tilted Towers sounds like a blast, Sweeney’s goals are much bigger. He’s envisions a fully interoperable universe where games, assets, and characters can move seamlessly across different platforms. Developers could use Unreal Engine to create a game and launch it on any platform, even within Fortnite’s world. Plus, Disney will get its own dedicated “ecosystem” within this metaverse that works perfectly with Epic’s ever-popular battle royale.
Making dreams this big happen obviously costs a lot of money. Sweeney admitted that Epic was spending $1 billion more than it was making before they laid off 16% of their workforce in 2023. Despite that financial hiccup, Epic’s long-term plans are still very much alive and kicking. Disney also pitched in $1.5 billion to help make the dream a reality.
While the whole metaverse idea has seen some ups and downs (looking at you, Facebook’s Metaverse), Sweeney’s vision might have real potential. With Unreal Engine 5 already being used in everything from video games to movies, and developers like CD Projekt Red and Halo’s 343 Industries adopting the engine in favor of their own, Epic has the power and resources to make this happen.
Sweeney’s ultimate goal is to make Unreal Engine 6 a tool that will give developers more avenues to share their creations and even integrate their work into Fortnite or other Unreal games. Think of it like Roblox or Minecraft—just way, way bigger. The big question is: will this Disney-Fortnite metaverse become a reality or will it get stuck in development limbo like other ambitious projects?
