Fortnite adds ‘The Odyssey’ skins for Odysseus and Agamemnon ahead of Christopher Nolan’s film release in theaters July 17.
Fortnite has slapped its logo on Marvel, Star Wars, and roughly half of pop culture, so a Christopher Nolan art film was probably always coming. This week Epic Games made it official. Matt Damon’s Odysseus and Benny Safdie’s Agamemnon are dropping into the battle royale as playable skins, timed to the July 17 release of The Odyssey.
Epic teased it with a cinematic trailer of a digital, armor-clad Odysseus striding through a hall of giant statues, captioned with a wink about every match being “an epic journey of its own.”
It is a shameless piece of synergy, a film Nolan shot entirely on IMAX to be worshipped on the biggest screen money can rent, now hawking cosmetics in a cartoon shooter, and I mean that as a compliment. If you want these Fortnite Odyssey skins, there are two ways in, one cheap on money and brutal on time, the other the reverse.
The Free Route Runs Through the Odyssey Cup
The free way to bag the Fortnite Odyssey skins is the Odyssey Cup, a competitive event running July 15 and 16 across Battle Royale and Zero Build, with a separate Mobile Cup in Reload for phone players. Finish high enough in your region and the Odysseus outfit is yours for zero V-Bucks, along with his Xiphos pickaxe and Bow of Iphytus back bling.
The catch is real, though. The qualifying bar for the outfit is steep and wildly uneven depending on where you play. Europe is the kindest, letting in the top 1,000, while NA Central tightens to 700. NA West and Brazil each drop to a slim 200, and if you queue in Oceania, Asia, or the Middle East, only the top 100 make the cut. Which means that unless you are properly good at this game, the free Odysseus is a sweat-lord’s trophy.
The consolation prizes, a loading screen and a spray, unlock at far gentler point totals, so casual players can at least walk away with a souvenir.
Everyone Else Can Just Buy Them on July 17
If grinding a tournament is not your idea of fun, both Fortnite Odyssey skins land in the Item Shop on July 17 at 8 PM ET, deliberately synced to the movie’s theatrical bow. Epic has not put a number on the price yet, but collab skins usually run 1,500 V-Bucks, with bundles bolting on the extras.
Odysseus arrives with a helmet alt-style, his bow, and a sword pickaxe, while Agamemnon brings a shield back bling and his own blade. Leakers say Anne Hathaway’s Penelope may follow in a later update, though Epic has not confirmed her.
One detail here made me grin. Agamemnon’s hulking blackened armor is the exact design that sparked the Batsuit debate earlier this year, historical-accuracy nitpicks and all. It was a real point of contention on a $250 million IMAX epic, and now it is a cosmetic you can wear while throwing up a panic wall.
The Fortnite Odyssey skins may end up outliving the discourse that made them famous.
