Have you found yourself trying to figure out what exactly Fortnite is? Maybe you're wondering what V-Bucks are, or maybe you're trying to figure out how to enable parental controls. Fortnite's never been a simple game but now that it's a platform that hosts a plethora of different experiences, figuring out what's suitable for your child and trying to make sense of everything it has to offer can be quite difficult for parents.

Fortnite is a bit of an anomaly in the gaming world given that it's actually a platform that's home to multiple games instead of 1 single experience.

Like Roblox, players can use Fortnite to build their own maps and games that they can share with other players.

While Battle Royale is still the most popular Fortnite game and what most people think of when Fortnite comes up in conversation, there are a bunch of other popular games available including LEGO Fortnite, a creative building game where players can create almost anything using LEGO virtual bricks, and Rocket Racing, which is basically football with cars.

This is where Fortnite gets complicated as each of these games comes with their own rating and content warnings, for example Battle Royal is rated a PEGI 12 while LEGO Fortnite is rated PEGI 7.

With this guide, we'll break down the ins and outs of Fortnite for parents including how to keep your child safe using parental controls as well as the best way to check on a specific game's content and PEGI rating.

We'll also walk you through how it all works and all the reasons why you should set up an account and give the game a go.

Fortnite is a blank canvass with so many ways for players to express themselves making it great fun no matter your age.

If you're after some advice about Minecraft, we've also got a similar parent's guide to Minecraft, which breaks down everything you need to know about the best-selling video game of all time. We've also got a parents guide to Roblox for you to check out.

What age is Fortnite for?

Like we said in the introduction, Fortnite is a platform made up of hundreds of different games. There are a select few games like Battle Royale and LEGO Fortnite that are made by Fortnite's creator Epic Games, in addition to a plethora of user generated games. Crucially, each of these games comes with their own PEGI rating and content warnings.

For reference, PEGI is the European ratings board for the video game industry. They assign a game a rating of 3+ 7+, 12+, 16+ or 18+ depending on the content.

The vast majority of games available on the Fortnite platform will be rated between 3+ and 12+ including Battle Royal (12+), LEGO Fortnite (7+) and Rocket Racing (3+) but it is always worth checking a game's rating before your child plays it.

On the page for a given game, Fortnite will include the rating which you're able to click on in order to find out more information.

Fortnite Rocket Racing page

The screenshot above shows the basic structure of a game's page (this may differ depending on the platform you're using). You can see the rating clearly displayed next to the title, making it clear what content is safe for your child.

You can also use Fortnite's extensive parental controls to restrict access to games above certain ratings to ensure that your child is safe while playing. A parental control pin will be required to access games that are above your child's age rating.

Is Fortnite safe for kids?

Put simply, the answer is yes. Epic Games have created a suite of fantastic parental control options that allow you to restrict content as well as manage how your child interacts while they play online.

Of course, as with any game that has a social component, there is always a risk while playing online. That's why familiarising yourself with the Fortnite parental controls is essential to ensure that your child is safe while they play.

The core Epic Games experiences within Fortnite — Battle Royal, LEGO Fortnite Rocket Racing and Festival — are all suitable for children with a maximum age rating of 12+.

The violence in game is cartoonish and limited in detail so the game isn't particularly intense, especially when compared with other shooting games.

One thing to consider is Fortnite's in-game currency, V-Bucks. Instead of using normal currency, players purchase V-Bucks which they can then use in-game to buy cosmetic items like skins, upgrades, emotes and more. While Fortnite is free-to-play, you'll quickly become aware of V-Bucks as they are central to the Fortnite experience.

Fortnite Item Shop

The item shop, which updates daily, is full of cool outfits (known as 'skins' in Fortnite language) including some partnered content with brands like Star Wars, Marvel and more. V-Bucks are bought in bundles ranging form £6.99 for 1,000 V-Bucks to £69.99 for 13,500 V-Bucks. You can also purchase vouchers for different amounts of V-Bucks, which make for great gifts for the Fortnite fan in your life.

You can also use gift cards for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and Xbox to purchase V-Bucks through the various different online stores on each platform.

Is Fortnite a cross-platform game?

Yes, Fortnite is available to play across platform meaning players on the Nintendo Switch can play online with their friends on the PS5.

It is worth noting that, due to an ongoing conflict between the two companies, Fortnite is only available to play on iOS (iPad/iPhone) and Mac via cloud gaming services like Xbox Cloud Gaming and GeForce Now.

What are Fortnite Live Events and how do they work?

One of the coolest aspects of Fortnite are their live events. Live events are essentially huge gameplay events that take place at a specific time within the game. These tend to revolve around storylines or partnerships in the current season of the game (Fortnite updates content and storylines regularly using what they call 'seasons' which tell a specific storyline and include new cosmetic items over the course of a specific time period).

For example, an upcoming season, titled Galactic Battle, kicks off on Friday 2nd May 2025 with a huge in-game live event called Death Star Sabotage expected to begin on Saturday 7th June 2025 acting as a finale to the season.

They're pretty simple, Fortnite will let you know when the event will be held and then players from all around the world can login and attend together.

Fortnite also holds regular live concert events by huge artists like Sabrina Carpenter to trailer reveals for upcoming films.

What to consider when your child plays Fortnite

Fortnite is a big, complicated and fun game with a lot of options and moving parts. The main thing to consider is the parental control settings to ensure your child only has access to content that is suitable to them and to ensure that they can't buy V-Bucks in game without your permission.

You should also consider the ways in which your child connects with the game online. You can control the ways they communicate online using the Fortnite parental controls, allowing you to ensure that they're staying safe while they play.

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What are PEGI ratings?

Similarly to movies and TV, video games have age ratings to help parents understand what is suitable for your child. In Europe, the PEGI system is gives each game submitted a rating depending on a range of content descriptors.

The ratings they use are similar to those used by the BBFC when rating movies and TV.

  • PEGI 3: suitable for children ages 3 and under

  • PEGI 7: suitable for children ages 7 and under

  • PEGI 12: suitable for children ages 12 and under

  • PEGI 16: suitable for those ages 16 and under

  • PEGI 18: suitable for those ages 18 and under

Pic credit: Product websites

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Authors

Matthew Trask
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