Kid's Online Halloween Series: Fortnitemares 2025
Our analysis of the Halloween Fornite special event and any risks to young players
Summary
Fortnitemares is a series of Halloween themed events and collaborations on the Fortnite platform
While most of the content is generally suitable and enjoyable for its older audience, there are some risks of exposure to frightening and inappropriate content for younger players
Fortnitemares does make use of adult horror franchises for their well-known recognisable characters and gameplay opportunities
Seasonal events often cause a spike in frauds, scams and hoaxes, especially targeting younger, more vulnerable players
The online multiplayer game Fortnite is one of the gaming industry’s biggest success stories, a platform which in 2025 can boast over 110 million active monthly players. With its exciting, fast-paced gameplay and cartoonish but enjoyable graphics, the game appeals primarily to younger, male audiences. Some statistics indicate that 53% of all Fortnite gamers are aged between 10 and 25, and that a quarter of all children surveyed under the age of 13 are regular players. Different rating systems have labelled Fortnite as a 12-13+ year old game. Despite the lack of blood and gruesome violence, the platform does allow players to communicate with one another, and also to purchase items and avatar upgrades using Fortnite’s virtual currency system, V-Bucks - both areas where young gamers can be vulnerable to bad actors.
This brings us to Fortnitemares, Fortnite’s annual Halloween extravaganza. This has been a cornerstone of the game’s seasonal events since its inception in 2017, transforming the vibrant island into a realm of ghouls, goblins, and ghosts. What began as a modest addition to Save the World mode with pumpkin-themed cosmetics and the Jack O’ Launcher in Battle Royale has evolved into a multi-week spectacle packed with limited-time modes, unvaulted spooky weapons, and map-altering decorations like pumpkin overgrowth and eerie fog.
Each iteration builds on the last, introducing narrative elements such as the ‘Cube Queen’s wrath’ in 2021 or the vampire omens of 2023, ensuring players are drawn into a fresh horror story. This event not only boosts player engagement through exclusive challenges but also cements Fortnite’s reputation for blending pop culture chills with innovative gameplay twists.
Fortnightmares 2025 - What Can We Expect?
The 2025 edition of Fortnitemares, which began on October 9th and runs through Halloween on the 31st, increases the terror with a lineup of collaborations that pay homage to horror icons and unexpected crossovers. Players can don skins (avatar outfits) from Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang, the masked slasher Ghost Face from Scream, Jason Voorhees of Friday the 13th fame, the enigmatic Wednesday Addams, here in her Jenna Ortega iteration, and even pop star Doja Cat reimagined as the thorn-wielding Mother of Thorns.
Gameplay gets an overhaul too: the beloved Freaky Fields POI returns with its corn maze horrors, new bosses like the Mother of Thorns demand strategic takedowns, and healing items such as Scooby Snacks add a whimsical edge to survival and gameplay. Quests encourage exploration of these changes, rewarding participants with XP boosts, emotes, and the free Pyg the Butcher skin upon reaching certain account levels.
Beyond the skins and scares, Fortnitemares 2025 emphasizes community and replayability, with Horde Rush mode making a comeback for wave-based zombie slaying. New weapons like the Wood Stake Shotgun and Witch Broom join returning favorites such as the Pumpkin Launcher, while the island’s landscape pulses with life—ghostly pirates unearthing treasure chests and rivers running red with supernatural hues. As the event draws to a close on November 1, it leaves behind a trove of unobtainable cosmetics, reminding players that Fortnite’s Halloween magic lies not just in the jumpscares, but in the shared thrills of outlasting the undead with friends. Whether you’re a veteran Cube survivor or a newcomer to the nightmare, this year’s Fortnitemares proves Epic Games’ knack for keeping the battle bus spooky and supremely entertaining.
What Do Parents Need To Know?
Fortnitemares 2025 transforms the popular battle royale game into a spooky spectacle that may captivate young players but requires parental awareness to ensure a safe and appropriate experience. Aimed at players aged 13 and up (Fortnite is rated T for Teen by the ESRB), this event introduces horror-inspired elements like zombie-slaying Horde Rush mode, eerie points of interest such as Freaky Fields with its haunted corn maze, and new weapons which add a supernatural twist to the game’s fast-paced combat.
Skins featuring horror icons like Ghost Face from Scream and Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th may appeal to kids but could be unsettling due to their creepy or violent imagery. Parents should note that while the game’s cartoonish style mitigates some intensity, the darker themes and jump-scare potential in modes like Demon Rush—where players face off against powerful NPC bosses—might overwhelm younger or more sensitive children.
To manage this, Epic Games offers robust parental controls, accessible via the Epic Games account settings, allowing parents to limit playtime, disable voice and text chat to prevent exposure to inappropriate language, and monitor friend interactions to maintain a safe online environment. An event like Fortnitemares might be a good opportunity to play together with a younger child, providing some reassurance and to help keep gaming a social family and friends event, rather than an isolating experience.
Beyond gameplay, Fortnitemares 2025 emphasizes in-game purchases, which can be a significant concern for parents. The event tempts players with exclusive cosmetics, such as emotes, avatar additions (back blings), and skins (earned through completing quests), but many items require V-Bucks, Fortnite’s in-game currency, with premium skins costing $10-$25 in real money. These microtransactions can add up quickly, especially for children eager to collect limited-time Halloween rewards, so parents should set spending limits through the Epic Games Store or console settings to avoid unexpected charges.
Additionally, the event’s quests, which reward XP and cosmetics, encourage prolonged play sessions, potentially impacting sleep or homework schedules. Parents can use Fortnite’s built-in time limit features to cap daily play and promote balance. For younger players, discussing the fictional nature of the horror elements and checking in about their comfort with the spooky content can help ease any fears. By leveraging these tools and maintaining open communication, parents can ensure Fortnitemares 2025 remains a fun, age-appropriate adventure while safeguarding against excessive spending or exposure to mature themes.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that since Fortnite Experiences was launched in 2023, the platform has seen a large increase in user-generated ‘experiences’ or games, which parallels the platform Roblox. Many of these user created games look much darker and more mature than the typical feel of a Fortnite game, and parents may want to discuss with their children the differences between ‘official’ and ‘user-generated’ content. Sometimes content thumbnails look more frightening than the actual gameplay, and sometimes more innocent looking games can contain more mature content.
Scams & Frauds
Seasonal events like Fortnitemares always amplify Fortnite’s general scam risks, which have plagued the game for years and could intensify with the hype around limited-time cosmetics and V-Bucks rewards. Common tactics include phishing emails or Discord messages pretending to be from Epic Games, promising “free Fortnitemares skins” (e.g., the exclusive Wednesday Addams, or Ghostface mythic) in exchange for login credentials—leading to account theft and real-money losses. Fake websites mimicking the Item Shop offer discounted bundles like the Scooby-Doo set for absurdly low prices, often bundled with malware. Third-party sellers on sites like eBay or Discord servers push “V-Bucks generators” or account trades for event quests, which violate Epic’s terms and frequently result in bans or stolen payment info. During past Fortnitemares, similar schemes spiked around unvaulted weapons like the Pumpkin Launcher, and with 2025’s stacked horror collabs, scammers might leverage the buzz to target eager players.
What parents can do:
Use the platform parental controls to ensure younger children are safe and older children do not overspend.
Talk with older children who may have access to the wider internet about online scams, phishing tactics, fake offers and third-party links
Use Fortnitemares and similar events as opportunities to talk about account security, how to use strong passwords and two-factor authentication, and how to verify claims and offers by looking at official announcements
Final Thoughts
To stay safe during Fortnitemares 2025:
Make use of official channels: purchase V-Bucks and skins only through the in-game Item Shop or Epic Games Store, never click unsolicited links, and enable two-factor authentication on your Epic account.
Use Fortnite’s parental controls for kids to block chats and spending, and report suspicious activity via Epic’s support site. If something feels off—like a “quest reward” DM asking for verification—it’s likely a trap. By playing smart, you can enjoy the spooky fun, from Freaky Fields’ corn maze horrors to Wood Stake Shotgun takedowns, without falling victim to digital ghouls.
If new scam reports surface as the event wraps on November 1, Epic typically issues warnings—keep an eye on their official X account for updates.
Most children really enjoy Fortnite, and Fortnitemares is no exception. The platform puts in a lot of effort to make the event appealing and fun, and with a few precautions most younger players can take part in it. Ultimately though, only parents can decide what level of fright a child can manage, and we hope this information can help you make that decision more easily.