Nike Teases Web3 Collab with Fortnite via 'Airphoria' NFT Sneaker Hunt
A short teaser video released by Nike last Friday has caused a lot of chatter on Twitter, with many speculating that the sportswear giant is bringing its .SWOOSH NFTs into Fortnite.
Here's all about the Nike x Fortnite venture
Just when we thought it would be a quiet week, Nike teased an "ultimate Sneakerhunt" in Fortnite, stirring much chatter in the Web3 space.
The promotional video, released last Friday, features the Fortnite and Nike Air Max logos before revealing the name of the sneaker hunt – Airphoria – and concludes with Nike's Web3 platform logo, .SWOOSH, right next to Epic's Unreal Engine logo. This has sparked a lot of buzz and excitement on NFT Twitter, with many wondering if the sportswear giant is bringing its .SWOOSH NFTs into Fortnite.
Of course, there aren't many details yet, as Nike and Fortnite remain tight-lipped about the upcoming event. Based on the trailer, the sneaker hunt will begin on June 20th, implying that .SWOOSH would be linked to Fortnite and perhaps the larger Unreal Engine ecosystem. Fans also speculated that Nike might have built an NFT-based game using Fortnite Creative 2.0, which allows users to create virtual game maps with Fortnite assets.
"I remember that Fortnite recently launched Fortnite Creative 2.0, which has a strong self-built map mode similar to creating games on ROBLOX. I guess Nike may have used this mode to create a game. Two years ago, Nike also created a game on ROBLOX, but it was not combined with NFT[s] at that time," wrote Twitter user Boris / Clone X #1034.
While it has not been confirmed that NFTs will be included in Airphoria, .SWOOSH's involvement and Epic's open stance toward NFTs suggest that this is on the cards.
Developed by Epic Games, Fortnite is an absolute sensation among online gamers. It boasts around 30 million daily active users based on third-party data from Active Player. If Fortnite were to support Nike's NFT platform, as the teaser trailer suggests, it could be the first step in a major overhaul for Epic's famous shooter.
Earlier this month, Nike and .SWOOSH announced a partnership with EA Sports, the company behind the widely popular FIFA franchise, to take a deeper dive into Web3 gaming.
