On Nov. 12, Fortnite announced that the “OG” version of their game is staying permanently after the video game company was set to return to its newer version of the game on Dec. 6. 

Epic Games, the video game company, released “Fortnite Battle Royal” in 2017. The game has made leaps and bounds since its release. According to AFKGaming.com, they have partnered with movie franchises, like “Star Wars” and “John Wick,” with celebrities such as Bruno Mars, Patrick Mahomes and some Fortnite gamers were given their own “Icon Skins” like Ninja, Mr. Beast, Lazarbeam and others. 

OG Fortnite first was featured last November as a limited time event. However, due to heavy popularity from players, Fortnite brought the game mode back. 

According to expodingtopics.com, when Fortnite first released, one million people played the game. By the end of 2017, 30 million people were playing. Now in 2024, the game has more than 650 million active gamers. 

However, despite the development, the game got away from its roots. Bringing the original aspects of Fortnite back was the step almost all fans needed. In an article written by Oli Welsh for the website polygon.com, 44.7 million players played “OG Fortnite” on its release on Nov. 4, and wracked up 102 million hours of playing time. 

The “OG” gamemode has only been back for a little over a week, but the numbers show there will be almost 120 million people playing by a month after the release. 

When Fortnite brought back the “OG” version last year, it made me as someone who likes to play the game, stay on longer and want to play more. It took me back to when I was in middle school playing with my friends. 

The game now also includes almost all of the original weapons and different versions of the original maps, really encapsulating what made the original version of the game mode bright to players in 2017. 

Despite the company remaining popular with the continuous updates and partnerships, the video game restoring itself back to its “OG” form will continue to make the game even more popular.