Fortnite gets video chat via integration with Houseparty app

Epic Games gives Fortnite players the ability to video chat with other players in-game. This works via integration with the video chat app Houseparty. Epic took over Houseparty last year. The integration is coming to the PC and the PlayStation 4 and 5.

To use video chat in Fortnite, players must install Houseparty on an iOS or Android device and link an Epic Games account through the app. During gameplay, users are supposed to point their mobile device at their face. Thanks to the integration, the video images can be seen in the game itself. For the time being, there is no Houseparty integration for the Xbox version and the feature only works on the PC, PlayStation 4 and 5.

Only players who are friends in Houseparty can see each other. Players must also be in the same room in the app to see each other. In Fortnite itself there will be an option for parental controls, with which the Houseparty integration can be turned off entirely.

Fortnite had already included technology from Houseparty for some time. The game used the technique of the cross platform support app for the voice chat. In mid-2019, Epic Games took over Houseparty. The video chat app rose sharply in popularity this year due to the corona pandemic.