Fortnite makers sue organisers of 'absolutely awful' UK event

The makers of Fortnite are suing the organisers of a live event based on the video game after parents branded it ‘absolutely awful’.

Epic Games confirmed it had ‘issued a claim against the organisers’ in London’s High Court after the event took place in Norwich last weekend.

Visitors to the two-day Fortnite Live event at Norfolk showground were forced to queue for hours to enter the site on Saturday.

Once inside, parents said the computer game-themed event was a ‘shambles’, with depressing attractions and a shortage of staff.

Organisers Exciting Events had billed the festival as the ‘ultimate Fortnite Battle Royale’ with ‘crazy competitions, awesome activities… and much more’.

Visitors were charged up to £22 for a ticket and a further £20 each for wristbands to take part in the attractions.

Confirming legal action, a spokesman for Epic Games said: ‘The quality of our player experience is incredibly important to us, whether it’s inside the game or at official public events like last year’s Fortnite Pro-Am.

‘Epic Games was not in any way associated with the event that took place in Norwich.’

Parents took to Facebook to lash out at the event, with many complaining about long queues and the standard of the attractions.

Justine Petersen, 44, from Bradwell, Norfolk, travelled 25 miles to the event with husband Martin and their nine-year-old son Richard, after paying about £40 for tickets.

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She said: ‘Everything had a massive queue. There were thousands of people and only about six things to do…

‘There were children upset everywhere. There was not a single person who seemed to be happy about what they saw. It was horrendous.’

Writing on their Facebook page, the organisers said that ‘so many happy children have enjoyed a great day at Fortnite Live Norwich today’.

They added: ‘However, these happy visitors have been accompanied by a mixed bag of feedback with the queues wearing thin on some visitor’s patience and we sincerely apologise to those visitors who gave feedback regarding the queues.’

Shaun Lord, a director of Exciting Events, said: ‘These proceedings by Epic Games has forced Exciting Events Limited to cease all trading activities immediately and the director of Exciting Events will now seek to limit the losses to third parties as far as possible.’

The company has also removed Fortnite festivals planned for Spalding and Newark from its website.