A lot more AI characters are coming to Fortnite

AI Darth Vader was a huge hit in Fortnite, and now Epic plans to let creators make AI-powered NPCs for their own in-game experiences. But a senior Epic exec says that creators should expect a "learning curve" when using them - something Epic had to figure out on its own. The AI Vader that Epic […]

Jun 4, 2025 - 15:00

A lot more AI characters are coming to Fortnite

AI Darth Vader was a huge hit in Fortnite, and now Epic plans to let creators make AI-powered NPCs for their own in-game experiences. But a senior Epic exec says that creators should expect a "learning curve" when using them - something Epic had to figure out on its own.

The AI Vader that Epic made lets users talk to the character using their voice and hear an AI-generated version of James Earl Jones's Vader voice talk back. It was the "culmination of a very intense effort for a character everybody understands," Saxs Persson, Epic's EVP of the Fortnite ecosystem, tells The Verge.

But Epic couldn't just set an AI chatbot loose - "a lot" went into defining how Vader reacted and dialing in the voice. The work was worth it, though; in-game, Vader's voice sounds just like the movies, and when he's on your team, he's a menacing, aggressive force. Persson says that Vader was ultimately "integrated into gameplay in a way that every player could understand" and he hopes creators are able to make similar things.

Vader's rollout wasn't perfect; a popular streamer, Loserfruit, was able to get Vader to swear, which Epic fixed shortly after it happened. Persson says that it was a "learning …

Read the full story at The Verge.