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- BTS X Fortnite
BTS, as one of the most popular K-pop groups, did a collaboration with the game Fortnite. The event was held in the form of an online live concert with their new song “Dynamite”, where all players could head into the party royale to dance with the BTS members digitally. This gave the fans a unique opportunity to attend the concert without any fee required. “Dynamite,” BTS’s first English single, has been viewed for more than 1.6 billion times on YouTube, became their first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 2020.
On the other hand, Fortnite released two BTS dancing emotes for players to move their characters with the music. This event is a great example to show that games like Fortnite could make something new for players when combined with K-pop culture. “BTS is not only incredibly popular worldwide, but their talent, creativity, and forward-thinking attitude made them a perfect match. We’re honored to host their premiere.”, said Nate Nanzer, Head of Global Partnerships at Epic Games.
- BLACKPINK X PUBG Mobile
BLACKPINK also released the announcement to collaborate with PUBG mobile in July 2022. Like BTS, BLACKPINK also held an in-game virtual concert in the game platform where players could participate with a free digital ticket. A few BLACKPINK themed costumes and decorations were also available to the players. On the other hand, BLACKPINK released a new collaborative single “Ready for Love” later on. The characters and the background in the MV are presented by 3D modeling technique. Building up the atmosphere that you were actually playing alongside BLACKPINK in the game.
Comparative Analysis
Only 2 specific examples were raised in this section. While other collaborative events on games like Cookie Run X BTS were also a good strategy to combine the K-pop with the game. However, both of the games mentioned received a loss of online gamer volume in the month of the releasing of these collaborative events. This may suggest that K-pop may not always attract new players to the game efficiently. Partly because of the lack of characters in these games, which left K-pop with less space to be combined with. Thus, unlikely to influence the players with distinctive personalities. However, with the increasing popularity of K-pop around the world, more collaboration between the two communities will emerge. We may be able to see a unique intertextuality between games and K-pop in the future.
Fortnite
Fortnite
BTS Event Happened on 25 September 2020
PUBG Mobile
PUBG Mobile
Blackpink Event Happened between August and September 2021
Sources
Sources
Bowenbank, Starr. “BTS’ Collaboration With ‘Cookie Run: Kingdom’ Is Here”. Billboard Music News. 13 Oct. 2020. https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/bts-cookie-run-kingdom-collaboration-live-1235155710/
Fortnite Team. “LIGHT IT UP LIKE DYNAMITE: BTS ARRIVES IN FORTNITE PARTY ROYALE!”. Epic Game News. 21 Sep. 2020. https://www.epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US/news/light-it-up-like-dynamite-bts-arrives-in-fortnite-party-royale
Mamo, Heran. “BTS Set to Blow Up Fortnite With Brand New ‘Dynamite’ Music Video”. Billboard Music News. 21 Sep. 2020. https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/bts-fortnite-brand-new-dynamite-music-video-9453108/#
PUBG Team. “BLACKPINK IN YOUR BATTLEGROUNDS: SQUAD UP WITH BLACKPINK”. PUBG Official Announcement. 4 Aug. 2021. https://asia.battlegrounds.pubg.com/en/2021/08/04/pubg-x-blackpink/
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