Fortnite is no stranger to video game crossovers, but a new crossover tease turned out to be a false alarm.
During Chapter 2 Season 5, Fortnite crossed over with the likes of Halo, God of War, and Street Fighter. One of the headlining characters of Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 6 is also Lara Croft from Tomb Raider. In May, it seemed like a collaboration with Bendy and the Ink Machine was imminent, but that turned out to not be the case.
A series of Fleischer cartoon-inspired images starring Meowscles made fans speculate that the game was officially crossing over with the popular indie horror game. It appears to have been a false alarm after a trailer revealing the outfit featured in those tweets. Still, we’ll break down the whole Fortnite x Bendy and the Ink Machine crossover situation if you want a better idea of what’s going on.
What are the Fortnite Toona Trouble teasers?
Epic Games first teased a cartoon-inspired skin on May 5 with a tweet: “It looks like curiosity sure got the best of this cat,” it says. “What kind of trouble is our pal Meowscles getting into now? To be continued...” The art was somewhat reminiscent of Bendy and the Ink Machine, so speculation about a crossover started.
The Twitter account followed it up with another tweet on May 6 that reads, “It looks like Meowscles went and got himself all toon’d up!” with art that showcases a new outfit for the cat character. Mewoscles’ face specifically made was very reminiscent of the titular character in Bendy and the Ink Machine, but this tweet makes no mention of the crossover and made it clear that just a new outfit for the Fortnite mainstay is on the way.
“How ... familiar,” Bendy and the Ink Machine creator @theMeatly tweeted. “Nope, we didn't ‘invent ink’ or ‘rubberhose’ but pretty sure that scary ink turning people into cartoon versions sounds pretty #BENDY to me. As always, I wish @FortniteGame and their players nothing but luck and happiness.”
This comment from Bendy and the Ink Machine’s creator basically deconfirms the crossover but points out the clear inspiration. This was confirmed to be a standalone outfit when Moewscles In: Toona Trouble YouTube short was released and the skin was added to Fortnite.
The outfit is simply called “Toon Meowscles” and while it’s quite reminiscent of Bendy and the Ink Machine, there’s no official connection. You can check out the trailer introducing the new costume below:
What is Bendy and the Ink Machine?
If you’re wondering why people thought Fortnite was crossing over with Bendy and the Ink Machine, learning more about the latter will make the connection more apparent.
Bendy and the Ink Machine is an episodic first-person survival horror game. It went viral shortly after the release of its first episode in 2017 as it got a lot of attention from YouTubers and Twitch streamers. Like Five Nights at Freddy’s, it’s fun to watch other people get freaked out by the game’s jump scares and frightening imagery.
Bendy and the Ink Machine likely stood out more than some other similar indie games thanks to its unique aesthetic and setting based on classic cartoons by Max Fleischer. The game even follows a retired animator as he investigates the studio of Joey Drew, an obvious parody of Walt Disney.
The game’s world is also dense with lore, which makes it popular with channels like The Game Theorists. The game, which was developed by Kindly Beast, is available on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. Its popularity makes it an obvious choice for a Fortnite crossover, though it appears Epic Games stopped at inspiration and did not get permission to officially reference the game.
