Professional tennis player Naomi Osaka will be the next celeb to make her way into Fortnite. The former world no. 1 Japanese tennis star is the next skin in the Fortnite Icon Series. She joins Lebron James as the next professional athlete to become playable characters in the battle royale.
Players will be able to get Naomi Osaka outfits as skins for their in-game character. The two outfit options are the Naomi Osaka Outfit and the Dark Priestess Naomi Outfit. Outfits and related accessories will be available for purchase in the item shop on Thursday, March 3 at 7 p.m. ET.
Compete in the Naomi Osaka Cup
To celebrate the release, a Naomi Osaka Cup will take place on March 2. The in-game event will reward the top players in every region with a spray, both skins as well as pickaxes and a back bling from the Osaka set. Details of the tournament’s scoring system are available on the Epic Games blog post.
Osaka, an avid gamer herself, will also be repping the skins early during a planned duo session with Berlin “berleezy” Edmond on his Twitch channel on March 1 at 7 p.m. ET. In addition, a mural showcasing the two Osaka outfits went up in West Hollywood, Los Angeles on Wednesday.
Osaka, who regularly plays Fortnite, was involved in the creation of her skins. Her sister, Mari, helped to create the two outfits. They are inspired by her heritage.
“I’ve been playing Fortnite for a long time — when I saw LeBron had joined the Icon Series, it made me want to join the Fortnite family too,” Osaka said. “It’s really amazing to be able to connect with so many people around the world.”
The Fortnite Icon Series began as a way to bridge the divide between real artists, musicians, film stars and other real world personalities with the game. Ninja became the first icon to have his skins added.
“The ‘Icon Series’ is the ultimate celebration of the most dynamic figures in culture for Fortnite’s audience of millions, and there’s no-one more perfect than Naomi Osaka to join the Series as the first female athlete,” Nate Nanzer, the global VP of partnerships at Epic Games, said. “Just as Fortnite is more than a game, Naomi is so much more than an athlete.”
Published: Feb 28, 2022 05:17 pm