Looks like Fortnite China is shutting down

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It'll wrap up in November.

Fortnite China
(Image credit: Epic Games)

The limited run of Fortnite in China is ending in November, according to the official Chinese site. Epic's smash hit is a very different game in China, and premium currency is unlocked by playing rather than with real money. 

It's not clear how successful Fortnite was in China, but it's over now: Nobody will be able to register and download the game after November 1st, and the servers will shut down. Fortnite's availability was billed as a test, and is referenced as such in the shutdown announcement. 

There's rampant speculation on social media that the shutdown has something to do with China's crackdown on online games. Fortnite's audience is overwhelmingly younger, and China really doesn't want young people playing online games, going so far as to use facial recognition to stop them.

Jonathan Bolding
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Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he's not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.