By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
The metaverse and gaming platform Fortnite has released a new video game called Hardstone from Hip Hop artist Don Toliver.
Fortnite, from Epic Games, is among the top metaverse platforms in the world—sort of a Roblox for grownups—which has staged a wide variety of collaborations with musicians, including virtual concerts by major stars like Travis Scott.
Not very coincidentally, Toliver first exploded onto the American hip hop scene after his guest appearance on fellow Houston rapper Travis Scott’s third album Astroworld, with Toliver having released his debut solo mixtape, Donny Womack, a day prior.
Toliver is now in the midst of releasing his fourth album, Hardstone Psycho, and has collaborated with Fortnite to launch a first-of-its-kind music and gaming experience on Fortnite. the game gives fans the ability to actively engage with already released songs, as well as the new album, while immersing themselves in the world that inspired it.
Toliver is the first artist to get his own game on Fortnite, which is likely to spark a new trend in licensing between musicians and metaverse gaming platforms.
A new Hardstone trailer video has been released, which you can watch HERE, showing a biker themed battle royale in an American Southwest desert environment; sort of a mashup of Mad Max and The Wild Ones.
“I’ve been playing Fortnite for years, so this is a huge moment for me to bring my world into the game”, says Don Toliver. “This is a next-level creative moment in my career and it’s crazy that my fans will actually get to experience Psycho Valley and music from my new album this way.”
In Hardstone, players will squad up in teams of 8 and fight for control of Psycho Valley in a heated turf war between two rival biker gangs (Hardstone and Wolves M.C.).
Fortnite fans will recognize the game is a new take of the fan-favorite game mode Hardpoint, in which teams will battle to capture key locations throughout the map, inspired by Toliver’s new album.
Hardstone was produced and overseen by Joseph Khoury (SVP, A&R and Marketing), Jordan Chalmers (VP, Custom Activations & Emerging Technology), and William Breslau (Director, Gaming Strategy & Partnerships) for Atlantic Records, and David Cushman (Sr. Director, Metaverse Development) for Warner Music Group.
“We had a blast working alongside Don on bringing Hardstone to Fortnite,” says Joseph Khoury, SVP of A&R and Marketing. “His love for gaming really came through—it was amazing to watch him be so hands-on in the entire process. Every square inch of this game has his fingerprints on it.”
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Hardstone was created by Metavision, a studio and agency for immersive media platforms, delivering strategy and execution for brands and IP holders in virtual worlds, and 3D Lab, a game design studio focused on working with Fortnite and UEFN.
“At Metavision, we’re focused on finding new ways to engage with audiences and tell stories in immersive media platforms, and it’s been fantastic to work with Don, Atlantic Records, and Warner Music Group who all share this same ethos,” said Ashley Lewis, Managing Director at Metavision. “We believe this project will open the floodgates for how artists can interact with their audiences and engage with them on a deeper level.”
Hardstone is free to play and available starting June 10 in Fortnite. Players can find the game by logging onto Fortnite and searching for “Hardstone” from the main menu.