In a surprising turn, Fortnite has skipped its annual Rainbow Royale event for 2025, marking the first time in four years that the game has not celebrated the LGBTQIA+ community during Pride. Historically, this small-scale event, which began in 2021, featured free rainbow-themed items in the in-game shop, such as emotes like ‘Take a ‘Bow’ and ‘The Dip’.
The celebration reached its peak in 2022 with a special Pride-themed battle bus, unique quests that unlocked cosmetic rewards like weapon wraps and pickaxes, and even a skin for DC’s transgender superhero, Dreamer, available in the item shop. While never a massive in-game overhaul, Rainbow Royale consistently offered dedicated content, typically appearing for about a week in both June and September, primarily as a shop section.
However, 2025 has seen a complete absence of Rainbow Royale content. As of October, none of the customary free Pride items have appeared in the shop. Even the Mazy skin, a paid cosmetic usually featured during the event, made only a single, isolated appearance in the shop this year.
Epic Games has remained silent regarding this change, declining multiple requests for comment. This silence has fueled speculation, with many wondering if the decision to omit the Pride celebration is influenced by external political pressures or a desire to avoid perceived ‘controversy.’ The current climate, marked by a new administration’s attempts to curtail diversity and inclusion efforts in the United States, has seen various corporations, particularly in the gaming sector, adopt more regressive stances.
A notable example from earlier this year was the long-running MMO RuneScape, which also canceled its Pride event. Jagex CEO Jon Bellamy publicly stated that Pride had become ‘controversial in a way it didn’t used to be,’ acknowledging a growing ‘risk’ he felt responsible for mitigating. He further noted that ‘Games and studios are being cancelled because of content that is perceived to be ‘woke’ or representative. The pendulum is swinging back in a way we didn’t expect.’ These remarks were met with considerable disappointment from RuneScape’s LGBTQIA+ community.
Without an official statement from Epic, it’s difficult not to draw parallels between Fortnite’s skipped Rainbow Royale and similar actions by other game developers, suggesting a potential strategy to navigate sensitive cultural and political landscapes.