Video games are predominantly seen as entertainment and rarely as a career choice or any source of income.

However, a few months ago this was questioned due to a game that has been in the eSports scene for the past two years – Fortnite.

Epic Games, the developers of Fortnite, hosted a $40 million tournament over the summer. Over the span of 10 weeks, anyone over the age 13 was eligible to compete online to win money while attempting to make it to the finals.

Qualifiers for this tournament began in April when people from all over the world began to compete for a spot in the finals in New York.

All the prize money was not handed out in New York. In fact, anyone who competed and placed in the top 150-200 won money while not having to leave the comfort of their own room.

The top 200 players all made it to the finals held in the prestigious Arthur Ashe Stadium where the U.S. Open (one of the world’s oldest tennis championships) is usually held.

There were three different types of tournaments: the solo, duo, and creative tournament. The winner of each of the three left with $3 million with the duo winners splitting their prize money.

Alongside the finals in New York, there was also a Fortnite fan festival free to anyone who bought a ticket to watch the competition.

As a ticket holder, I attended this fan festival.

The energy and positive vibes surrounded by people from all over the world were mesmerizing.

I participated in dozens of activities based off Fortnite such as: a meet and greet with the characters, a baller obstacle course, and a dance battle.

When entering the festival, everyone was handed a battle pass (an aspect of the game) in which they would compete real challenges to get a reward.

The most captivating aspect was most of the festival was Fortnite themed, including the food. The food stalls at the World Cup were based off restaurants in the game such as Noms and Durr Burgers.

Every single one of the 200 qualifiers for the finals left with a minimum of $50,000. Even the person who placed dead last left won that much money. This was a life-changing tournament.

Sixteen-year-old Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf won first place in the solo tournament and left New York as a millionaire.
Fortnite has provided all different kinds of people with a community and a way to show that video games are becoming more and more accepted in society and becoming an actual source of income.