NEED TO KNOW
- FTC issues $126 million in refunds after Fortnite players, mostly kids, unknowingly bought banana suits and digital dances.
- Epic Games fined $245 million for using “dark patterns” to trick users into accidental purchases.
- Parents claim their children learned valuable life lessons like “don’t click random buttons” and “money isn’t pretend.”
Press ‘X’ to Pay Real Money
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Trade Commission has announced it’s sending $126 million in refunds to Fortnite players, many of them children, who unknowingly spent real money on questionable in-game purchases like 17 banana skins, a saxophone emote, and one suspiciously glittery fish costume.
Epic Games, developer of Fortnite and apparent pioneer in behavioral economics for minors, was fined $245 million for deceptive practices. The company allegedly used “dark patterns,” a design technique that makes buying things easier than breathing, especially for 9-year-olds with twitchy fingers and access to mom’s credit card.
Microtransactions, Mega Regret
The FTC claims some players incurred charges just by brushing their controller while waking the console from sleep. Others were locked out of their accounts after disputing charges, effectively losing every sweaty skin, dance move, and limited-time cape they’d ever acquired.
“One minute he was previewing a dance, the next minute he owned it,” said a parent from Des Moines. “He doesn’t even know how to dance in real life.”
Claims Still Open, But Not Forever
Consumers who haven’t yet filed can still do so at www.ftc.gov/fortnite through July 9, 2025. The FTC has confirmed payments will go out via checks or PayPal, assuming your child hasn’t already linked it to buy another digital Viking axe.
Epic Games responded with a statement saying they’ve “implemented changes,” which is corporate for “we got caught and now we pretend to be sorry.”
Quote of the Moment
My kid spent $80 on a purple ninja outfit and now I have to learn what a V-Buck is
Every confused parent in America
