In an unprecedented collaboration, Epic Games has partnered with a very well-known brand, the German sportswear giant Adidas, for a sneaker-themed virtual opportunity that is going to attract a lot of attention. Dubbed the ‘Wings & Flames’, these stunning sneakers are now up for grabs in the Fortnite Item Shop for the players who want to show off in sneakers which by the way, are as good as strutting down the runway or maybe just taking a quick jump off a cliff. The announcement was made through the company’s usual social media channels with the support of the widely used #EpicPartner tag plus a link for the sneaker purchase. But as it has been the case in the past, the reaction of the gamers’ community around Fortnite is a phenomenon.
A new Adidas collaboration cosmetic item called ‘Wings & Flames’ shoes has been released in the Fortnite Item Shop and Fortnite has also partnered with Adidas for their release. They are part of a promotional partnership and can be purchased using V-Bucks at the game’s item shop. Player reactions online are divided with some expressing excitement for the new style while others are critiquing the design or questioning the value.
That cleared Let’s dive into the chaotic yet colorful confusion that the gamers’ opinions actually represent. Because, dude, it is savage.
The tweet only says to get the product. On the contrary, the conversation on the tweet reveals the real picture. First, the immediate hype liked crew influencing the very near-term future has user ‘mizukiLFC’ saying: “They are so good too! Omggg but low vbucks.” That is Fortnite’s never-ending agony, right? The shoes scream beauty, but your digital bank account is crying. Then comes ‘Defaulting12’ who is seemingly shouting to the void, “THE BEST SKIN IN ALL OF FORTNITE WOW!!” which, I mean, is kinda a hot take. A super enthusiastic one actually.
Scrolling just a bit brings the hype to another direction. The transformation is huge. With the question ‘Who tf buys shoes?’ the player ‘Beomseokk19’ comes with a asking for denial of video gaming question. No arguments there. They are not going to help you to run faster. Only aesthetics will be nice, and ‘MadVincent666’ is just LOLing in the meantime, posting a crying-laughing emoji and saying “Ppl really paying moneyz for this junk? Lul.” The doubt is loud and for sure the skepticism is real.
Some places among fans the new shoes are completely subject to mockery. ‘TomatoMan45’ did not minch words: “Probably the worst adidas shoes I have ever seen.” Ouchy. However, ‘K_The_0ne’ has given an artistic criticism: “Why did not they make it so that they are really on fire, that would be way cooler.” Good point. Animated fire? That’s an instant sell to a lot of people. Lost chance probably.
Sometimes, the reply section on Fortnite tweets is full of chaos and sorts of funny comments. Someone asks if that is Michael Jordan’s 1s. Another person, ‘Cyb4rAnG3LDaily’, is asking the important questions: “Who is hotter Kim Kardashian or Sydney Sweeney?” and later “Is Kim Kardashian the hottest fornite character?” Because of course, this is the place that we say we end up. The thread gets back into debates over gold skins, mentioning BushCampDad being in the shop, and people asking for George H.W. Bush and Kai’s sword become common. Just another day in the Twitterverse surrounding Fortnite.
However, there are more players with practical thinking. ‘lazarus_wolf’ is offering style advice, claiming that the gold winged shoes are appropriate for any gold skin, particularly with all the crew pass gold styles this year. And ‘ezeokorien’ was posing the real question related to the name: “Wings and flames?? 👀 Are these meant to run fast… or take off?” To be honest, considering the way some players build, maybe they DO need to have takeoff capabilities.
The interaction that has probably been the most hilarious one must be the briefest one. ‘travis6284’ just states, “They got hoes in fortnite now,” which is a very weird way to view an Adidas collaboration but hey, art is subjective. And ‘walmart_en’ expressed the feeling of the meta very well with “fortnite turning sneakers into flex pieces somehow feels like an odd inevitability.” It is indeed the case. From Travis Scott to Balenciaga and now these winged Adidas, Fortnite has not only become a game but also a digital fashion hub. A very exclusive and very, very expensive one!
So what’s the final word? As always, there is none. Some gamers love them, others hate them. The game is also available on PlayStation and Xbox.
