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‘Typical Gamer’ Andre Rebelo’s JOGO Acquires ‘Fortnite’ Studio RHQ Creative as Part of Pro Division Launch (EXCLUSIVE)
A year out from launch, star “Fortnite” player Andre “Typical Gamer” Rebelo’s gaming company, JOGO, has made its first acquisition, which also marks one of the biggest studio acquisitions within Epic Games’ Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) ecosystem. JOGO has acquired Quinn Gannon’s “Fortnite” map maker RHQ Creative, including full ownership of RHQ’s existing map catalog (including six competitive maps), three new staffers, and along with a roster of more than a dozen contributing contractors. As part of the acquisition, JOGO will launch a pro division that focuses on skill-building and competitive training maps for aspiring pro players. The pro efforts will be led by RHQ Creative founder Gannon, who will become JOGO’s head of competitive. Popular on Variety Related Stories Financial terms were not disclosed, but according to a source familiar with the acquisition, the deal is valued at more than $500,000, with potential for payouts to top $1 million on meeting ambitious performance goals. The announcement of JOGO’s acquisition of RHQ Creative comes ahead of Rebelo’s entrance into the Fortnite Championship Series’ Pro-Am Saturday, where he will debut the newly acquired maps, inviting fans to train with him as Typical Gamer while he teases the studio’s next chapter. “Welcoming Quinn and the RHQ team onboard is a huge win,” Rebelo said. “Not just because he’s a veteran map builder and pro competitor, but because he understands what it takes to design for a different kind of player. This deal opens up a whole new lane for JOGO, and it’s just the beginning. We’re in a strong position to keep growing, keep investing, and keep building experiences that meet players wherever they are. Whether you’re logging on for the first time or grinding for the next FNCS, JOGO will be there for all of it.” Founded by Gannon, better known to gamers by his tag “RichHomieQuinn,” RHQ Creative has earned a cult following for its competitive training maps with more than 20 million map visits and 200 million hours of playtime. “With JOGO, I’m able to really put out the best product of what I want to create by having their backing and their support when it comes to, not only being able to get it published as fast as possible, but also at the highest quality,” Gannon said. “I feel like I’m able to really elevate the practice that I’m able to produce with JOGO.” As it approaches its one year anniversary, JOGO has doubled its staff (20-person team), catalog of “Fortnite” maps (12 maps) and number of plays across those maps (more than 400 million). According to Fortnite.gg estimates, JOGO has earned $10 million in revenue since launching last May. “We are well positioned to explore these kind of opportunities where we can acquire another studio and and grow aggressively,” JOGO COO Chad Mustard said. “And we’re really excited about the upcoming year; we have some big events happening within our maps, collaborations with big brands and artists and things like that. It’s a growing space that is still really exciting. And we’re really excited that just today, Epic submitted ‘Fortnite’ back to the App Store — and that is a huge, huge opportunity, especially for the UEFN space, because that’s a casual player base that will come in and want to play different kinds of maps. So we’re really excited about the potential of ‘Fortnite’ to grow its user base through mobile now, where we haven’t had that for four years. So it’s a very exciting space to be in, and we’re positioned currently, both financially and with staffing, to really capitalize on that.” The deal was brokered by Night Media senior vice president Nick Brotman. “It’s inspiring to see Fortnite creators investing not only in themselves but in the Fortnite ecosystem as a whole,” “Fortnite” maker Epic Games executive vice president Saxs Persson said. “UEFN has grown rapidly, and so have creators, who continue to chart their success by building experiences that resonate with players of all types and interests.”
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