Fortnite wants to be the new Pokémon with new update
Fortnite is expanding its Sidekicks feature with the upcoming Cuddles and Chaos Collection update launching July 23, aiming to make the pet companions more integral to gameplay in a move reminiscent of Pokémon mechanics.
Sidekicks, which have been part of Fortnite for nearly a year, are small creatures and characters that follow players around during matches and react dynamically to in-game events. Currently functioning mainly as cosmetic additions, they celebrate player victories and express sadness upon defeat. However, their impact has been limited—the creatures are expensive and only visible to the player who owns them, making them purely personal customizations that don’t influence the actual gameplay experience.
The upcoming patch aims to change this dynamic substantially. While Epic Games has remained vague on the specific mechanics, the new update promises to transform Sidekicks from passive visual companions into more active participants in gameplay, similar to how Pokémon function in the Pokémon franchise. This suggests that Sidekicks may gain actual gameplay functionality, potentially affecting combat, abilities, or other in-match mechanics.
The move represents Fortnite’s continued efforts to deepen engagement through cosmetic and gameplay features, positioning the battle royale as more than just a shooter experience. By making Sidekicks more central to gameplay and presumably more visible to other players, Epic Games is expanding the social and competitive aspects of the feature while potentially creating new monetization opportunities for the cosmetic companion system.