Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • Big Preview
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Buying Guides
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • Big Preview
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Buying Guides
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Video
    • View Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
Trending
  • Best gaming gadgets
  • New Games 2026
  • Arc Raiders
  • Summer Game Fest 2026 schedule
  • Submit your clips. Win prizes
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
  1. Games
  2. Battle Royale Games
  3. Fortnite

Fortnite co-creator says the game's $26 billion+ success is "humbling" - especially since people "said we were crazy" at the start

News
By Ali Jones Contributions from Emily Murray published 29 April 2024

"We were just making stuff up"

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Peely from Fortnite with Xs for eyes
(Image credit: Epic Games)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Subscribe to our newsletter

Fortnite co-creator says the game's multi-billion dollar success story, is a "staggering," "humbling" achievement - not least since critics "said we were crazy" at the start of the battle royale project.

In an interview with GamesRadar+ recently at the Sands: International Film Festival in St Andrews, Scotland, former Epic Games CCO Donald Mustard said that his time with the game is "such a humbling experience the more I reflect on it - and even the whole time, it was an amazingly humbling experience to see that something that I've been able to work on with, not just with a bunch of people, a lot of the core team who made Fortnite were people I had been working with for years even decades."

"We have something we collectively built together and in our heads thought ‘what if we did that thing, wouldn’t it be cool’. and to see that resonate and resonate and resonate with hundreds of millions of people is staggering. And then to be able to experiment in the way that we did."

Latest Videos From
You may like
  • A screenshot of Fortnite's Jonesy looking serious. Fortnite faces backlash over V-Bucks price increase, but Epic lead argues it helps devs keep "building stuff you love"
  • Fortnite character Jonesy looks shocked in the story trailer for Season X. Fortnite dev says "we cannot even fully understand what kind of impacts this will have" amid mass layoffs at Epic Games
  • Fortnite Chapter 7 "Fortnite's cultural moment is starting to fade," games analyst says amid mass layoffs

Mustard speaks very positively about his team, but Fortnite's success speaks for itself. Fortnite is understood to have made more than $20 billion in revenue since its launch in 2017, with the vast, vast majority of that coming from its battle royale. In spite of all that success, however, the game's creator admits that "at the time [...] we were just making stuff up. Even the way that we structured the pacing of a battle royale match in our world, it was largely designs to give you most of your time where you were handing out with your friends and not engaging in combat."

"The fact that it kind of worked on the scale it did is astounding and wonderful. I will cherish it forever. I have had so many unique experiences with my own family and my own friends, my own kids, playing Fortnite but then being able to talk with so many people  that have been able to be entertained by it. It’ll be a cherished thing for the rest of my life. And I can't believe I got to experience it."

Fortnite never got Metroid series hero Samus, because Nintendo would only let her into the battle royale if she was a Switch-exclusive character.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming PS5 Xbox Series X Nintendo Switch Platforms PlayStation Xbox Nintendo
Ali Jones
Ali Jones
Social Links Navigation
Managing Editor, News

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for news, shaping the news strategy across the team. I started my journalistic career while getting my degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick, where I also worked as Games Editor on the student newspaper, The Boar. Since then, I've run the news sections at PCGamesN and Kotaku UK, and also regularly contributed to PC Gamer. As you might be able to tell, PC is my platform of choice, so you can regularly find me playing League of Legends or Steam's latest indie hit.

With contributions from
  • Emily MurrayWriter
Read more
A screenshot of Fortnite's Jonesy looking serious.
Battle Royale Games Fortnite faces backlash over V-Bucks price increase, but Epic lead argues it helps devs keep "building stuff you love"
 
 
Fortnite character Jonesy looks shocked in the story trailer for Season X.
Battle Royale Games Fortnite dev says "we cannot even fully understand what kind of impacts this will have" amid mass layoffs at Epic Games
 
 
Fortnite Chapter 7
Fortnite "Fortnite's cultural moment is starting to fade," games analyst says amid mass layoffs
 
 
Fortnite
Fortnite Epic Games lays off "over 1,000" people, CEO blames "the downturn in Fortnite engagement"
 
 
Black and white shot of stunned Fortnite character
Fortnite Epic Games needs Fortnite players to "help pay the bills" as the multi-billion-dollar company raises V-Bucks prices
 
 
Epic Games Star Wars toolkit image of Droid Tycoon with Jonesy selling a droid
Fortnite I don't think anyone is prepared for the amount of Star Wars that's about to hit Fortnite
 
 
Latest in Fortnite
Peter Griffin from Family Guy in Fortnite
Fortnite Fortnite's most embarrassing cause of death has been removed, but Epic Games has managed to balance it shockingly well
 
 
Fortnite x Overwatch collab
Fortnite When does the Fortnite x Overwatch collab start, and what's included?
 
 
Epic Games Star Wars toolkit image of Droid Tycoon with Jonesy selling a droid
Fortnite I don't think anyone is prepared for the amount of Star Wars that's about to hit Fortnite
 
 
Fortnite
Fortnite Fortnite's low-priority bug reports are regularly wiped, which Epic Games CEO says is "normal"
 
 
Fortnite Chapter 7
Fortnite "Fortnite's cultural moment is starting to fade," games analyst says amid mass layoffs
 
 
Fortnite Season 2 Chapter 7
Fortnite Fortnite Rivalries and the Showdown leaderboard explained
 
 
Latest in News
Subnautica 2
Survival Games Now that Subnautica 2 is out, Valve's Deadlock is on top of Steam's most wishlisted chart
 
 
GTA 6 Cal Hampton in a pool on a pink flamingo float
Grand Theft Auto GTA 6 price listed as $115 via retailer amid pre-order rumors, fans pray it's a "placeholder"
 
 
Subnautica 2 character smiles at alien artifact
Survival Games Subnautica 2 has already sold 1 million copies and it's been out for literally one hour
 
 
Elden Ring soldier drawing sword
RPGs "FromSoftware is making steady progress" amid push "to develop IP in games" and film, says owner
 
 
Outbound
Open World Games Devs of one of Steam's most-wishlisted games respond after asking fans to change negative reviews
 
 
Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined launch trailer screenshot shows a boy wearing a green hat, looking at a blue, floating object.
Dragon Quest Dragon Quest lead doesn't think the JRPG series "must always feature turn-based combat"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Hand holding Retro Fighters Hunter with OG Xbox Crystal Edition and Sony Trinitron TV in backdrop with Oddword: Munch's Odyssee main menu on screen.
    1
    The Retro Fighters Hunter is a fierce wireless OG Xbox controller, but I'm torn on whether its too much like Microsoft's modern gamepad
  2. 2
    Devs behind one of Steam’s most-wishlisted games respond after asking players to change negative reviews and kicking up a stink online
  3. 3
    Subnautica 2 has already sold 1 million copies and it's been out for literally one hour
  4. 4
    Dragon Quest lead doesn't think the JRPG series "must always feature turn-based combat," which makes me wonder if Dragon Quest 12 could follow in Final Fantasy's footsteps
  5. 5
    After 1 hour, Subnautica 2 Steam player peak is 9x bigger than the original game and gaining on Slay the Spire 2 for biggest launch of 2026

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...