The role parents play in reining in the Fortnite phenomenon

REGULAR rules around screen time can go out the window during school holidays but is it OK for kids to push the boundaries when it comes to playing Fortnite? Rebecca Baker considers the good and bad of this extraordinarily popular game.

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“SERIOUSLY, enough already. For crying out loud, can you PLEASE get off that, NOW? Have you NOT seen what a beautiful day it is outside?”

I am pretty sure I’m not the only parent to have uttered these or similar words through gritted teeth over the past few days.

Chances are good, if you are a mum or dad of boys aged from nine to 19, you’ll know exactly what is causing my holiday angst and turning me from a usually mild-mannered mother into a battle axe from hell.

Yep, you guessed it, I’m talking about the multi-platform game that’s been described as “a mass online brawl where 100 players leap out of a flying bus on to a small island and then fight each other until only one is left”.

In our house at least, the regular rules around screen time have gone out the window in the absence of the routine of school and sporting commitments.

It’s allowed my boys to push the boundaries on the insanely popular game with the annoyingly misspelt name which has its own currency, V-bucks.

Released just over a year ago, Fortnite Battle Royalehas amassed more than 125 million fans globally, according to its publisher, Epic Games.

Incredibly, type in the words “how many people” into your internet search engine and you’ll be prompted “play Fortnite” before you even finish your question.

Head-shakingly absurd but true.

Gaming has come along way from the days of Nintendo’s Game & watch in the 1980s.

Personally, I just don’t get it but then back in the 1980s when my siblings were into playing Donkey Kong on the old Nintendo Game & Watch, I was the odd-man-out nerd of the family who couldn’t see the point in it and had absolutely no interest in the little handheld device.

But kids, mainly boys, are loving Fortnite – new features, crazy costumes and dance moves are cleverly added each week, so there is always a reason to come back and play.

My boys tell me of friends who have spent 400 hours in the game over several months, and in excess of $1000 on V-bucks, which are used to unlock the in-game cosmetics.

While I don’t like this addictive aspect of the game or the violence that it is built on, it’s not all bad.

For example, friends can hook up remotely to form squads, allowing them to talk and play together while in their respective homes.

When I quizzed my 13-year-old what he liked most about playing, he said, it was “being able to socialise with my mates” – we’ve a strict policy on who the kids can play with.

And living in a small house, I’ll often overhear the conversations the kids are having which extend beyond the game to things such as weekend sport, school assignments – and the trouble my own cherub is causing in music.

The online game Fortnite has amassed more than 125 million fans across the globe, inspiring displays such as this at the Electronic Expo in the US. Picture: Frederic J. Brown/ AFP

eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant says Fortnite should be treated in the same way as any other app or game which allows users to interact with others.

“It’s important for parents to know the apps and games their children are using and find out what they like about them and how they’re using them,” she advises.

“Make sure they play games or use their devices in common areas of the home and set time limits, which can be adjusted as they get older.

“Fortnite is played in 20-minute increments, so parents may like to negotiate that way — for example, one game after your homework is finished.”

She says restricting settings to allow for “friends only” or disabling voice chat at the start of each game can be good options.

“Most importantly, stay engaged with your child’s online lives and ensure they know you will be there to help them if something goes wrong,” she says.

The point is, at the end of the day, it is my role as a parent to put perimeters around its use and, as with everything in life, it is about finding the right balance.

As Adelaide child psychologist Kirrilie Smout points out: “It is not the job of any child to know about these issues or to be wary of technology – this is our job as adults.”

So, on reflection, I reckon there are better ways to deal with Fortnite overload than ranting like a crazy lady.