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Fortnite Dancing: How A Game Became The New Dance Craze

Who knew that a video game could be the source of today’s hottest dance moves? - by Rhys McKay
  • 03 Dec 2019
Fortnite Dancing: How A Game Became The New Dance Craze

It doesn’t matter whether you love it, hate it, or don’t care enough to think about it – you can’t deny that Fortnite is one of the most culturally-significant games today. So, in honour of the recently-concluded Fortnite Champion Series, we’ve compiled a list of the best dance moves from the popular video game. Check it out below!

RELATED: Are your kids addicted to Fortnite? Here’s what to do

What Is Fortnite?

Fortnite is a video game released in 2017 by developer-publisher Epic Games. It has three game modes: a player-versus-environment mode called Fortnite: Save the World, a player-versus-player mode called Fortnite Battle Royale, and a sandbox mode called Fortnite Creative. Fortnite is available on PC, Mac, PS4, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS.

After the release of Fortnite Battle Royale, the game shot up in popularity. Over 125 million players downloaded the game in less than a year. Fortnite was also a critical success, winning several video game awards and getting nominated for dozens more, including “Best Ongoing Game”, “Best Multiplayer Game”, and “Ultimate Game of the Year”.

fortnite View Profile
1.3m likes - View Post on Instagram
Tomorrow. ⛏️ #FortnitePlayground

Celebrities, Pop Culture, And Fortnite Dance Moves

Even people who have never played the game are familiar with Fortnite because it’s become a cultural icon. Famous Hollywood stars, international-level athletes, social media personalities, and even politicians have jumped in on the Fortnite trend, copying the ‘dance moves’ within the game. Unless you don’t check Instagram or Facebook, you’ve probably seen a video or GIF of someone doing a Fortnite dance.

Fortnite dances done by celebrities

But what IS Fortnite dancing, and where did it come from? Well, Fortnite incorporates dance into the game through ‘emotes’, which are unique move sets/gestures that you can make your character do on the battlefield. Most, but not all of these emotes are dance moves copied from famous dances, iconic movies, or online videos.

Emotes (like other ‘cosmetic’ in-game items such as skins) are bought using real-world currency. They don’t impact gameplay, but sometimes the developer will release ‘challenges’ that involve using emotes. This was most recently seen during last year’s ‘Fortnitemares’ challenge where players were tasked to dance next to ‘gargoyles’ scattered across different locations on the game map. In exchange for completing the challenge, players were rewarded with in-game items.

FORTNITE DANCE CHALLENGE! - (In Real Life)

All Fortnite Dances

Floss Dance

Created by: Russell Horning a.k.a. The Backpack Kid

Flossing is perhaps the most famous dance move from Fortnite. Katy Perry featured ‘The Backpack Kid’, the dance move’s viral video creator, on her Saturday Night Live guest performance.

FORTNITE FLOSS DANCE EMOTE (1 HOUR)

Best Mates

Created by: Marlon Webb

Best Mates- Fortnite Emote

Dance Moves/Default

Created by: Turk (from Scrubs)

The default Fortnite emote comes from a scene in Scrubs, where Turk makes up a dance on the fly.

1 Hour of the Fortnite Default Dance

The Robot

Popularised by: Michael Jackson

Isolation and popping are a subset of dance that’s been around for decades, but it was none other than King of Pop Michael Jackson himself who brought this move into the mainstream.

Fortnite The Robot 1 Hour

Fresh Dance

Created by: Carlton (from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air)

Fortnite copied this dance from Fresh Prince star Alfonso Ribeiro, who is suing the company for copyright infringement over the move.

Fortnite "Fresh" Emote 5 minutes

Flapper

Popularised by: Irving C. Miller’s Liza

This move set is similar to the Charleston, a famous 1920s dance.

Flapper - Fortnite Battle Royale (Emote)

Electro Shuffle

Created by: Gabby David

Dance YouTuber Gabby David created the Electro Shuffle. To avoid another lawsuit, Fortnite settled with David to keep using her choreography.

Electro Shuffle - Fortnite Battle Royale

Dab

Created by: The Migos

Dabbing is one of the internet culture’s biggest contributions to the world of dance, and it even made its way into Fortnite’s emote options!

FORTNITE INFINITE DAB EMOTE (1 HOUR)

Groove Jam

Created by: Napoleon (from Napoleon Dynamite)

Fans of Napoleon Dynamite will recognise this iconic dance.

FORTNITE GROOVE JAM DANCE 1 HOUR | FORTNITE 1 HOUR MUSIC

Disco Fever

Popularised by: Tony (from Saturday Night Fever)

Epic Games honoured John Travolta’s disco classic by creating an emote based on his dance moves in Saturday Night Fever.

Fortnite Disco Fever Emote 1 Hour

The Worm

Created by: Kane Hendrie

Fortnite included a lot of popular breakdancing moves, such as the Worm.

Fortnite Dance Emote The Worm

Orange Justice

Created by: Orange Shirt Kid

In 2018, Fortnite held a ‘create-your-own emote’ BoogieDown competition. Orange Shirt Kid’s video entry didn’t win, but fans petitioned the developer until the viral dance move was finally included.

NEW ORANGE JUSTICE EMOTE DANCE -SEASON 4 BATTLE PASS - FORTNITE BATTLE ROYALE

Ride The Pony

Created by: Psy

Korean pop star Psy broke out into the mainstream with his music video for “Gangnam Style”, where this now-famous dance is from.

FORTNITE - RIDE THE PONY 1 HOUR ALL PARTS! (Battle Royale)

Floss, Dab, Shuffle, Groove

A lot of people who don’t play the game find Fortnite dancing annoying, but at the end of the day, it’s all harmless fun. So if you suddenly feel the need to floss or dab, don’t let anyone stop you. Emote away!

RELATED: Bored Of Poker? Try These 10 Adult-Themed Card Games

Rhys McKay

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