Highlights

  • Eminem's Fortnite concert was underwhelming, leaving fans disappointed with the short performance.
  • Adding Eminem's hits to Fortnite Festival could add variety and make up for the lackluster show.
  • Epic could smooth things over with players by adding a new Eminem skin and addressing technical issues.

When Epic Games announced that rapper Eminem would headline a Fortnite concert in late 2023, fans of both the game and the prolific artist were filled with excitement. But when the highly anticipated Big Bang event finally arrived on December 2nd, many walked away feeling underwhelmed by the surprisingly short performance. While it’s too late now for Epic to take a second shot at giving Eminem fans the Fortnite concert experience they had been hoping for, bringing some songs from his extensive back catalog to Fortnite Festival could help make things right.

With gamers already able to play and purchase songs from an ever-growing catalog of music to use in the rhythm-focused Fortnite Festival mode, it's somewhat surprising that Eminem isn't already included on the roster. Despite headlining Fortnite's recent concert, the acclaimed artist doesn't have a single track included in the mode. Adding some hits from Eminem's extensive backlog would not only introduce a bit more variety to Fortnite Festival, but could also go a long way towards making up for his underwhelming in-game performance.

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Fortnite’s Concert Series Set a High Bar That Eminem Couldn’t Quite Clear

Ever since debuting its unique blend of Battle Royale and big-name musical acts with Marshmello’s in-game show in 2019, Fortnite’s concerts have become a favorite feature of many fans. With artists from across the musical landscape taking center stage during its live events, Fortnite gives gamers a chance to catch a show at one of the most unexpectedly entertaining concert venues in recent years. But despite offering artists the ability to put on the sort of performance that would never be possible in real life, Eminem's recent outing shows that not all Fortnite concerts are created equal.

While Fortnite's first concert was a somewhat low-key affair, with Marshmello only spinning a roughly 10-minute set in-game, the ambitious Travis Scott concert that followed showed the potential of these events to offer gamers and music fans something entirely new. After setting such a high bar, though, some subsequent shows have failed to reach that same level of spectacle. This is why when Eminem’s appearance in Fortnite provided players with little more than an interactive commercial for the game’s next season accompanied by only two songs, many fans left the event feeling underwhelmed.

Bringing Eminem to Fortnite Festival Would Be a Welcome Move by Epic

One way Epic could make up for Eminem’s somewhat sorry showing during the Big Bang event would be to bring some of his biggest hits to Fortnite Festival. Although their decidedly adult subject matter would make many of Eminem’s songs a tough fit for the generally family-friendly Fortnite, there are plenty of titles from the rapper’s decades-long career that could slot into the Harmonix-developed mode without having to censor half the song.

Epic shouldn’t stop with simply adding some of Eminem’s songs, though. Some of the frustration surrounding the show resulted from technical problems and hours-long queues that left many players locked out of the limited-time event and unable to obtain the exclusive Marshall Magma skin that was being given away. Adding a new Eminem skin as an unlockable to the free tier of Fortnite’s Festival Pass, possibly timed to coincide with the release of his new album, would be a nice way of making things right with players still feeling burned from the Big Bang event.

Although Fortnite's Big Bang event failed to live up to the standard set by previous shows in the eyes of many players, Epic can still smooth things over with Eminem fans. Adding some of Eminem’s biggest hits to Fortnite Festival along with a new skin for Fortnite players to unlock would be the perfect way for Epic to apologize for its musical misstep. And while it wouldn’t entirely make up for the rapper’s underwhelming Fortnite debut, it could help both Eminem and Epic get back in gamers’ good graces.