Live-service games are such a mess even Fortnite is struggling

For years, major game publishers and developers have been chasing a particular north star: Fortnite. With its internet-shaking live events and copious celebrity cameos, Epic's battle royale shooter became the epitome of what a live-service game could be, one that reached a level of cultural ubiquity that few other entertainment products could match while also raking in all kinds of money. And much of the games industry followed suit in an attempt to get a Fortnite-like cash cow of their own.

The results were disastrous.