Fortnite players say there’s “no excuse” not to have lightsaber pickaxes after TMNT leak
Epic Games/LucasFilmFortnite players are frustrated with Epic Games for not releasing lightsaber pickaxes after seeing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles leak.
Fortnite has been known for its notorious collaborations with big brands and celebrities like The Weeknd, Naruto, and Star Wars. The most recent addition to this list has been the TMNT collaboration, which was initially released in December 2023.
Now that the TMNT collaboration is expanding with two new skin additions and an event pass, fans are questioning why the Star Wars skin line was deprived of lightsabers.
Fortnite has released multiple Star Wars-themed cosmetics, such as Darth Vader and Darth Maul. However, each cosmetic was specifically given different designs for the pickaxe that were not lightsabers. So why could Fortnite collaborate with other brands to get character-specific pickaxes but not for Star Wars?
Epic GamesFortnite players blame Disney for no lightsabers
In a thread on Reddit and Twitter/X, fans discussed why Epic Games could not bring lightsabers to Fortnite. Both discussions were made after it was revealed that each character in the TMNT would be getting their own pickaxe and mythic weapon.
“It’s not Fortnite,” said one Redditor. “It’s the people lending them their IPs. If TMNT allows them to use the mythics as pickaxes/vice versa, that’s because TMNT specifically allowed it in whatever contract they signed with Epic Games when they decided to do the Collab. This stands true for Star Wars as well, but the issue is Disney, who owns the IP, is extremely strict about their properties and how others handle them.”
Commenters on Twitter had a similar sentiment, blaming Disney and Lucasfilms for why key cosmetics were left out of the Star Wars collaboration. Unlike Disney, TMNT has allowed Fortnite to add aspects of the series to the map, add an event pass, and approve LEGO versions of these skins.
It’s unclear if Fortnite will collaborate with Disney again on another project surrounding Star Wars. This means, for now, players will have to focus on the upcoming TMNT event.