After a series of leaks, Epic Games has confirmed that Marshal Mathers III will be returning to Fortnite for its finale event, called The Big Bang, performing as Eminem for a live event in the hit game. What's more, Epic plans to begin selling three skins of Eminem's various looks, called Rap Boy, Slim Shady, and Marshall Never More starting on November 29.
If you're thinking about the possibility that this means gamers will be reenacting Eminem's hit "Real Slim Shady" music video, you're not alone. Epic is inviting players to "Watch Eminem... as Eminem" after all.
Eminem's appearance in the Fortnite universe comes at a time when the game is reaching new heights of popularity following a free return-to-roots style update on November 3. That update, which Epic calls Fortnite OG, brought back the map used in 2018, as well as popular costumes like Omegarok and Peely, the banana. The move has been a hit with players, who pushed up player counts to 44.7 million in its first day, playing a combined 102 million hours.
Part of what's helped Fortnite OG really take off has been the nostalgia of the older game, with fan-favorite drop spots like Tilted Towers, Risky Reels, and Greasy Grove. The unvaulted items for the season include the ever-popular Shopping Cart and All Terrain Kart, plus a handful of weapons like the Boogie Bomb.
“It has been the best balance of aspects from Fortnite’s early seasons while also keeping some of the newer elements,” Whitney Singleton, a popular content creator who goes by KeepUpRadio and calls herself the Queen of Fortnite, tells Inverse in an email. “Fortnite’s approach to bringing icons to the game, and putting on live events, is what makes it the battle royale game that will stand the test of time.”
Though it might seem surprising people would feel nostalgic for something from just four years ago, it's a trend that many entertainment companies have been tapping into. Notably, Blizzard saw a surge of players when it released World of Warcraft Classic, which recreated the experience of playing the nearly two decade-old game back in the beginning. And Nintendo earned acclaim for Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the $59.99 game that came out for the Switch on October 20 that brought the series back to its 2D side-scrolling roots.
The company spent each week in November bringing back fan favorites from throughout the game's history. On November 9, Epic brought back the Double Barrel Shotgun and Quadcrasher. On November 16, updates included the Pirate Cannon and Quad Launcher. And on November 23, the company brought back items like the Jetpack.
