Fortnite’s 'This Is The End' event halted play for 40 hours, as the end-of-the-world scene closed Chapter One of the game. With six million people watching, the cryptic storytelling created hype around the game's narrative over an extended period of time and helped to build a band of loyal fans.

Fortniteis increasingly becoming not just a platform for gaming, but an effective medium for brands and businesses to share messages with young people. On Remembrance Day, the Royal Canadian Legion used the game to educate younger audiences and get them engaged with military history.

Boasting over 45 million players and the Twitch record for most live viewers on a stream, third-person shooterFortnite Battle Royalehas taken the gaming world by storm. But given that it uses a free-to-play model, how is it avoiding the controversy that often surrounds in-game microtransactions?

Once perceived as an anti-social pursuit, gaming now offers people a way to connect with peers around the world through streaming, forums, and social media. How do these diverse communities go beyond gameplay to support individuals in their search for escapism and creative expression?