Could the Fortnite reign be coming to an end?
As a parent seeing the headline, you may be thanking your lucky stars
that the Fortnite battles in your home may be coming to an end…. Sorry, not
quite.
At the moment Fortnite does still seem to be as popular as ever. But in
the world of gaming and social
media – you’re never Top Dog for too
long. There’s always something new waiting in the wings.
Enter Apex Legends…
So what is Apex Legends?
Well in short it’s another Fortnite Battle Royale style game – ( I feel
your pain).
The game has been gaining popularity rapidly with over 25 million
downloads in its first week. Released at
the start of February, it’s available on PlayStation, Xbox & PC, just like
Fortnite. And it’s free to download.
What’s the difference between
Fortnite and Apex Legends?
One of the main difference in the games is that Apex Legends is a squad-based game – with a group of players so the focus is on teamwork and cooperation. Fortnite does include team-based modes but the popular option is a single player battling it out against 100 other players. When it comes to Apex Legends players have the option to select from one of 8 ‘legends’, each with their own unique abilities and play styles. The last team standing wins.
How much does it cost?
As with Fortnite, the game is free to download – however with Fortnite
on the Xbox or PlayStation Plus you may need your chosen platform’s paid
subscription to participate and, like Fortnite, it will include the dreaded ‘in
game purchases’.
Similar to Fortnite there will be new seasons of the game being released
on a regular basis, with each season running for approximately 3 months. The first
season is expected to roll out in March.
On Fortnite the currency is VBucks. With Apex Legends, it’s ‘Apex Coins’ which are a premium in-game currency which can be used to purchase Apex Packs, items in the Rotating Shop, and new Legends. Similar to Fortnite, gamers will also be able to purchase a Battle Pass There’s no indication of what this may cost at the moment. It’ll probably be similar to or perhaps slightly cheaper to that of Fortnite’s Battle Pass.
So here are some handy Gamer Parents Tips
When it comes to Fortnite, Apex Legends or any other gaming craze in the future, these 5 Tips can help keep a balance:
- Set Boundaries and an Agreement – I talk about this a lot in my Online Safety workshops for Parents. Agree with your child the number of games they can play in a day. Let’s use Fortnite for an example most Fortnite Game sessions last between 10 and 20 minutes. Agree to 3-4 games per day which equates to around an hour, hour and a half. Though keep in mind that the better the player gets at the game – the longer the games can last. And give them plenty of notice before time is up as they’ll lose track!
- Use Parental Controls – These tools help. Many parental control solutions allow for time limits to be set on games or block the game. There are parental controls on the game, so set them up, become familiar with how they work and what they’re used for.
- Monitor the Voice Chat Function. Keep an ear open. This has been used by players to bully or verbally abuse other players. If abusive language, swearing or talking to ‘Strange People’ is going on disable this function by clicking on Settings in the main page (cog icon), Audio and turn Voice Chat to OFF.
- Set limits. No playing alone in the bedroom or at night after bedtime.
- Have regular conversations. About violence and the difference between fantasy and reality such as copying and imitating battles and violence in offline life play.
>> Read the full article at waynedenner.com
Wayne Denner is a speaker, author and expert on Online Reputation and Wellbeing. Wayne helps young people protect and improve their digital presence. Visit waynedenner.com for more information.
