Royal Caribbean International has partnered with Epic Games, the creators of the massively popular online video game Fortnite, to allow cruisers to explore a digital version of Icon of the Seas ahead of the ship’s launch.
The move appears intended to introduce Icon of the Seas to a younger cruising demographic and penetrate the lucrative Gen Z and Alpha markets, which will be the major source market for the ship during her service life in the coming decades.
Icon of the Seas is Royal Caribbean’s largest cruise ship to date, surpassing the Oasis class by tens of thousands of gross tons. It will feature eight distinct neighbourhoods and many of the most popular amenities and attractions found aboard the Oasis and Quantum class ships in the fleet.
In the Hide ‘n Seek game on Fortnite, players can explore two of the ship’s upcoming areas, the Hideaway and Thrill Island, home to the largest waterpark at sea, Category 6, and Crown’s Edge, a thrilling skywalk and ropes course towering 154 feet above the ocean.
The Hideaway Pool is the world’s first suspended infinity pool at sea, while the Flowrider which is also found here is a long-standing signature attraction aboard the larger Royal Caribbean ships.
The Icon of the Seas map is available on Fortnite across desktops, game consoles, smartphones, and tablets. Once in the game, enter the Icon of the Seas in-game island code, 2569-9622-8657.
“Royal Caribbean International is bringing the world’s best family vacation to one of the world’s most played video games, Fortnite, Royal Caribbean: Hide ’N’ Sea,” the cruise line said in a statement.
“Built using Fortnite Creative, the newest addition to the metaverse is the first, one-of-a-kind adventure players can experience on Icon of the Seas ahead of its debut in January 2024,” it added. “Players can hide or seek and collect coins in Thrill Island and The Hideaway, two of eight revolutionary neighborhoods.”
Royal Caribbean International has said that the company aims to market Icon of the Seas to families, which will be the primary market for the vessel. The Hideaway and Thrill Island in particular have been custom designed for younger passengers, making Fortnite a great platform on which to promote the vessel.
The game has around 80 million players worldwide, more than 60% of whom are below the age of 24 years.
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