This Friday, Epic Games revealed the new Sidekicks for Fortnite, and the reaction from the community has been… well, it is not a moment of glory for them. The leak from HYPEX mentioned that these Sidekicks will be sold in the item shop: Flopsticks at 1,500 V-Bucks, Lil’ Raptor at 1,200 V-Bucks, Cuddle Team Jr. at 1,500 V-Bucks, and Doggo Jr. at 1,500 V-Bucks. Players also very soon pointed out the values and sent out their feelings via social media.
First things first, the main problem is that of pricing. The small animals are being sold for even more than some of the full character skins in the game. User enjoyerofluz remarked, “these shouldn’t be at and very close to the price as skins wtf.” And there is no dispute about that. When the demand for whole outfits is sometimes less than what they are asking for a pet just to be with you, one will surely question the pricing a bit. Or a lot.
Although the issue of customization lock-in has come up next. It seems that once you pick up the appearance of your Sidekick, you are not allowed to change again until you buy another one. User Staubfaden commented, “the fact you have to lock in their appearance is just killing all the excitement i had for them…” The expensive Sidekicks are not only that but if you change your mind later you will have to spend more V-Bucks. This is a huge barrier for those persons who are accustomed to changing styles whenever they feel like it.
Not everything is so bad, however. Certain Sidekicks actually make the few unhappy players happy. User markisinsane is fully behind Lil’ Raptor, saying, “I am going to get the Lil raptor and name it clever girl because I love jurassic world.” And Neyo_Dawagon also stated, “I only want lil raptor anyway so I’m glad at least my fav isn’t too as expensive as the rest.” Lil’ Raptor is the one that is getting a bit of love since it is the cheapest of the bunch at 1,200 V-Bucks. Also, it was a clever move on the part of Epic Games to have one character slightly less expensive, maybe to measure the reaction of players.
What was I saying? Oh right, the missing Sidekicks. Many players want to know what happened to Spike and Bonsey. User Z3RO_98 stated, “why is spike and bonsey not dropping as well. I’m not going to buy ANY of these I’m just confused why they left out 2.” And AlyssaLowky317 also seems to be like, “I hope we are still getting spike 😭.” Thus, Epic has certainly caused some players to be in a state of uncertainty by not giving them all the Sidekicks they might have expected. Perhaps they want to preserve them for a later update to keep the hype up.
Then came the whole confusion of Fortnite Crew that HYPEX had to clarify earlier. He wrote on Twitter, “THERE WON’T BE SIDEKICKS IN CREW PACKS.” He made it clear that only the Sidekicks from the Battle Pass are included, not these shop ones. Thus, if you expected that your Crew subscription would bring you the Sidekicks, think again. These little ones will have to be paid for separately.
And the community is already calling for greater variety. User leastfj just said, “they should make a cat,” and Joseftrba9 agreed, adding, “I’m waiting for cat sidekicks also I need them :/ they should be next (probably in the next update hopefully).” So, there is quite a demand for feline friends, and if Epic wants to convert some of the currently undecided players into fans, it would be wise to heed their call.
But let’s not kid ourselves, the general sentiment is quite critical. User keyes53ljh was very straightforward: “Yeah not for 1,200-1,500 V-bucks. Absolutely not. These cost literally more than some skins in the game. And then you have to pay again to change them?! Nah, keep your stupid sidekicks Epic; this is pathetic.” Ouch! That is very harsh feedback. RA1DXYZ just said, “Pass, pass, pass, pass. Overpriced like shoes.” So yes, a considerable part of the player base is dissatisfied with the pricing strategy.
It is quite fascinating to notice that Epic is testing new cosmetic items. Sidekicks are practically the new pets with the advantage of more customization possibilities—or at least that was the plan. Nevertheless, the high cost and the irrevocable customization seem to drive players away. PlayStation and Xbox players are also weighing in on the debate.
