Fortnite Festival is getting local co-op, rekindling memories of Rock Band

Fortnite Festival, the concert-themed rhythm-action portion of Epic Games’ free-to-play jack-of-all-trades juggernaut, is getting local co-op support next month – conjuring nostalgic memories of countless evenings spent twanging away in Rock Band with pals.

Not coincidentally, of course, Fortnite Festival is the work of Rock Band developer Harmonix (which Epic Games acquired back in 2021) and is extremely reminiscent of the studio’s beloved earlier titles, right down to its support for guitar-shaped plastic peripherals.

And Epic has now revealed that, from Tuesday 14th January, Fortnite Festival will get a little closer to capturing the social spirit of those heady Rock Band days, by letting multiple players jam away in the comfort of the same room – but only on Xbox and PlayStation. The company hasn’t shared much in the way of specifics just yet, but judging by the excessively elaborate, Snoop Dogg-starring trailer it’s released to announce the new feature, it’ll support local co-op for up to four players, as well as the simultaneous use of two plastic guitars.

This marks the first major new feature for Fortnite Festival this year, and follows Epic’s confirmation last December that it would continue to support its rhythm game through “2025 and beyond”. It made those assurances after revealing it would no longer be releasing themed updates for Fortnite’s Rocket Racing, which has struggled to maintain player numbers since being introduced alongside Fornite Festival and Lego Fortnite in 2023.

The arrival of Fortnite Festival’s local co-op support on 14th January coincides with the end of the mode’s current Snoop Dogg-themed season and the start of the next, which will likely see Vocaloid popstar Hatsune Miku step in as the latest featured artist.