Fortnite’s Star Wars Games: A Missed Opportunity for Epic and Disney

Last week, I found myself at a fancy studio lot in Los Angeles, excited to check out the latest Fortnite content. But let’s be honest—”playing Fortnite” has evolved beyond a simple phrase. The battle royale is practically a platform in itself, packed with diverse games both from Epic and community creators. What caught my attention this time were a series of Star Wars-themed games developed in Unreal Engine for Fortnite (UEFN) by studios that specialize in creating Fortnite experiences. Commissioned by Epic in collaboration with Disney, these games were meant to showcase the potential of the new Star Wars UEFN toolkit, which includes authentic assets and sounds from the films, all while promoting the upcoming Mandalorian movie. However, the day turned out to be quite underwhelming.

Alongside fellow press members and content creators, I spent hours testing out three new games: Galactic Siege, Droid Tycoon, and Escape Vader. Sadly, they felt more like a retro return to the poorly made movie tie-in games of the past—those low-budget efforts that existed primarily to promote big-budget films. After a slow decline in the late 2000s, these types of games have seemingly made a comeback in Fortnite, where studios are tasked with reskinning popular game formats for whoever pays the bill. Today, that bill is footed by Disney, and it’s hard not to feel a bit of buyer’s remorse here.

Let’s kick things off with Galactic Siege. This game takes a nod from classic Star Wars: Battlefront, pitting Rebels against the Empire in a battle reminiscent of Hoth. Players can choose from a few classes, respawn on teammates, and cash in points to play as iconic characters like Rey or Vader. Developer Jogo Games clearly took inspiration from the beloved Pandemic Studios, even adding a persistent progression system where players can customize their lightsabers and Jedi heroes. While that’s a neat concept, I couldn’t help but cringe at the unbalanced upgrades giving significant boosts to speed and damage—a big no-no for maintaining competitive integrity.

What I didn’t enjoy about Galactic Siege stemmed from the obvious Fortnite quirks. The gunplay felt underwhelming, the battlefield was cluttered with incompetent bots, and the interface was bogged down by Fortnite’s signature UI elements that felt out of place. I witnessed bots spawning as generic Fortnite characters before suddenly transforming into stormtroopers, showcasing the limitations of UEFN despite the wealth of resources provided by Epic and Disney. Honestly, it left me yearning for a good old session of Battlefront.

Next up was Droid Tycoon. If you’ve ever peeked at what kids are playing on Roblox, you’ll recognize this idle game format. You click to earn money while managing droids in a factory setup. While it was the most stable game I tried that day, it left me feeling a bit foolish for wasting my time. The gameplay involved mindlessly clicking to collect money and assigning droids to various tasks, but it seemed more like a chore than fun. Why would anyone want to manage droids in a factory when it could be a simple idle game running in the background?

Finally, we have Escape Vader, which was by far the least engaging. This co-op horror game has four players navigating the wreckage of the Death Star while trying to avoid an AI-controlled Darth Vader. The tension should have been palpable, but Vader moves so slowly that avoiding him became trivial. It felt more like a janky, low-budget Steam horror title than a polished experience from two major studios. Our group managed to escape him on our first attempt, and the idea of repeating the experience left us feeling apathetic.

While I might not be the target audience for Fortnite’s offerings, these new Star Wars integrations lack the charm of the game tie-ins I grew up with. Sure, many of those games were not great, but they at least had some production value, voice acting, and unique interfaces. The studios behind Fortnite’s new content seem more focused on marketing than actual game development, prioritizing engagement over quality. As a result, we are left with a series of uninspired and shallow games.

As Fortnite’s Star Wars event unfolds throughout May, it’s clear that these titles miss the mark. They may garner some initial buzz, but will they stand the test of time? Only time will tell.