Epic Games has launched a new conversational AI feature in Fortnite… featuring Darth Vader.
Darth Vader Conversational AI in Fortnite
With Star Wars being the main focus of the latest season of Fortnite, Epic Games has added Darth Vader once again as a boss in Battle Royale, replacing Darth Vader Samurai — but this time, with a unique update.
Now, when players recruit him, they will be able to speak with Lord Vader by pressing the special Darth Vader button that appears. Players can ask all sorts of questions related to the Force, the Galactic Empire, or get his advice on battle strategy. He is not allowed to use romantic language, talk about killing younglings, or swear — although he was initially able to swear but Fortnite quickly pushed through a patch to correct this.
The voice AI used for Vader is, in fact, James Earl Jones, who signed over AI rights for his performance before he died in 2024.
James Earl felt that the voice of Darth Vader was inseparable from the story of Star Wars, and he always wanted fans of all ages to continue to experience it. We hope that this collaboration with Fortnite will allow both longtime fans of Darth Vader and newer generations to share in the enjoyment of this iconic character.
The family of James Earl Jones
The AI model being used for this new feature is Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash model for dialogue and ElevenLabs’ Flash v2.5 model for audio.
Players under 13 or their country’s age of digital consent, whichever is higher, will need permission to talk with Darth Vader. These players will see an in-game prompt to get parental permission. If a player has a Cabined Account, their parent/guardian will need to complete their account setup before giving permission to talk with Darth Vader.
Disney and Epic Games announced a partnership last year to create a Disney universe in Fortnite that remains in the works. The universe may connect to Disney Parks.
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