As we’ve discovered long ago, it’s hard to meet someone who hasn’t watched at least one Fortnite stream. To say that Fortnite streams are popular is a severe understatement, but even we didn’t realize how many people were actually watching, particularly on Fridays, until now.
Fortnite Fridays, a term coined by YouTuber KeemStar, is an invite-only tournament where the game’s top players end up in a squad of four, only to be split into pairs. The pair then goes hunting, scoring points for each elimination they get. Whichever pair has the most eliminations by the end of the match wins the round. What’s more, Epic Games have even sweetened the deal by hosting $20,000 tournaments.
Well, viewership has apparently been through the roof. Recently KeemStar has revealed the number of viewers that famous Fortnite streamers, including Ninja, have earned.
#FridayFortnite week 4 pulled in at least 8.8 million unique viewers.
On @Twitch@Ninja pulled 1.9M @TSM_Myth pulled 1.1M
&
On @YouTubeGaming@NickEh30 pulled 1.3M @TypicalGamer pulled 840K(Keep in mind viewers can be counted twice if they watch multiple streams.) pic.twitter.com/34C301PvA8
— KEEM
8.8 million unique viewers is most certainly something to brag about. To put it into perspective, Forbes has compared Fortnite’s streaming viewership to that of the latest season of AMC’s, The Walking Dead. The Walking Dead only got above 8 million viewers in 6 out of 16 episodes last season, with the rest of the episodes falling below the 7 million mark.
Comparing it to The Walking Dead may seem strange to some, especially as The Walking Dead airs on a Sunday night whereas Fortnite Fridays are just before the weekend, but it is an excellent example to show just how big Fortnite has become from such small beginnings.
Though it may also be because The Walking Dead has lost quality over the years. It all depends on who you ask.