Could 'Fortnite' Ever Host a Collab With 'Pokémon'? Loose Rumors Have Been Circulating

After more than five years of live servers as of this writing, Fortnite has made surprising crossovers with plenty of popular shows and franchises. Not many games can claim to let players jump around as Deku from My Hero Academia in a squad that includes Batman, Nathan Drake from Uncharted, and Kratos from God of War all teaming up against Marvel's Thanos dancing to "Leave the Door Open" by Silk Sonic, but Fortnite's many collabs makes all of that possible and more.

It stands to reason that as the game's lifespan continues well into the future, even more wild collaborations with other franchises are in store. But how far can the free-to-play battle royale game truly stretch its influence? Given the game's steady popularity over the years, is it possible that the game could even crossover with Nintendo franchises like Pokémon? Here's what we know so far.

Pokémon is a world-renowned video game series in which players can travel across various exotic lands and catch titular species of Pokémon to train and battle. Since the game's debut in 1996, the franchise has become a global phenomenon having been spun off into a long-running anime series and even a full-blown Hollywood live-action film starring Ryan Reynolds.

With Pokémon's wide-reaching success, a collab with one of the most prominent free-to-play games in history seems like a no-brainer. However, there's little evidence to suggest that it'll ever actually materialize.

Nintendo is notoriously protective their IPs, never participating in major crossovers outside of internal Nintendo collabs in the vein of Super Smash Bros. Mario has previously met up with Sonic the Hedgehog and the Rabbids in other games, but those were family-friendly titles.

A game as gun-heavy and violent as Fortnite may not necessarily fit the brand established by properties like Pokémon, which generally calls for kid-friendly stories that use fantasy violence. Many have posited that Nintendo often shies away from placing their IPs in overtly violent situations.

Regardless of its appeal to all ages, children included, Fortnite still features plenty of imagery and implications of violence that Nintendo may not be willing to attach themselves to.

However, that certainly hasn't stopped fans of either franchise from holding out hope. In early January 2023, YouTuber FeraalsVFX posted an impressive-looking fan trailer imagining an announcement for a hypothetical Pokémon collab. While the trailer is simply a fan creation, it has certainly generated buzz about the possibility of a crossover in the future.

One person tweeted, "I would love to see a Pokémon collab in the game. Think it would just about be the biggest collab in Fortnite history."

Another person even suggests that a Fortnite collab with the Pokémon anime would be the perfect way to celebrate Ash's upcoming retirement in the series.

A collab between Fortnite and Pokémon may not be all too likely, but fans of both games are still having fun imagining what it would be like if Pikachu or Lucario were wielding guns or pickaxes.