Fortnite has reached The End – changing video game storytelling for good

Season 10 of Fortnite climaxed in apocalyptic fashion - sucking gamers into a black hole. Whatever the future brings, it has transformed video-game storytelling

On Sunday evening, more than 6 million people gathered online via streaming services such as Twitch and YouTube to watch the end of the world. Not our world, thankfully, but the world of Fortnite, which was sucked into a black hole, taking the whole game and all player characters with it. If you try to load Fortnite today, you'll be presented with a blank screen. When developer Epic Games called the finale of Fortnite Season 10 "The End", it wasn't kidding.

OK, before confused parents start celebrating, let's be clear: Fortnite will be back, it's just that Epic has closed out the first chapter of the game, which has amassed 250 million players since the launch of its Battle Royale mode in September 2017. And amid all the hype, hysteria and controversy that has surrounded the gigantically successful title over the past two years, one aspect has been overlooked outside its fanbase: this has been one of the most innovative story experiments of the decade.