KINGDOM HEARTS is Fortnite's collab of the moment

Override is a season built on guest stars, but the one dominating lobbies right now is KINGDOM HEARTS. Epic announced it on September 17, the day update v42.20 went live, and it reaches into almost every part of the game: the loot pool, the Override Consoles, the sky over the Island and the Item Shop.

What it changes in a match

The centrepiece is the Kingdom Key, a melee weapon that chains combos and can call down an electric bolt on opponents. It comes with Sea Salt Ice Cream, a consumable that gives you and nearby teammates a burst of health and shields. A heart-shaped moon now hangs over the Island, and two themed Overrides spawn beneath it:

• Recovery (Squad and Match-Wide): eliminations with any weapon drop healing orbs.
• Level Up (Squad): spawns a Mythic Kingdom Key for every member of your squad, right where they stand.

Epic also ran KINGDOM HEARTS Power Hours on Saturday, September 19, when every player dropped in holding the Key and an ice cream, and a KINGDOM HEARTS Cup offered the Sora outfit to top regional finishers.

What it costs in the Shop

Epic says Sora, Riku, Kairi and Roxas each come with their own Back Bling, Pickaxe and LEGO Fortnite style. In the Shop data we pulled on September 23 from fortnite-api.com, the set was due to stay until October 1:

• Sora with the Keyblade Pickaxe and Back Bling and the Keyblade Flourish emote: 1,800 V-Bucks.
• Riku, Kairi or Roxas with their matching Keyblade items: 1,600 V-Bucks each.
• The full KINGDOM HEARTS Bundle, with all four outfits, the Shadow Steppers kicks, a loading screen, the Arpeggio instrument and two Jam Tracks by Yoko Shimomura: 4,500 V-Bucks.
• The Gummi Ship vehicle: 2,000 V-Bucks.

Epic sets prices and exit dates and can change them at any rotation, so treat these numbers as a snapshot rather than a promise. Today's Item Shop has the current prices.

PAC-MAN is sharing the stage

PAC-MAN has been part of Override since launch through themed islands on the map, and its second wave landed the same week. According to Bandai Namco's press release, Mecha Ghost mini-bosses based on the original pixel designs now roam the Island and drop high-tier Mythic loot, and a Sprite based on Blinky makes you briefly harder to see after you take damage. Both are scheduled to stay until October 31. The PAC-MAN Sidekick, an invincible animated buddy that runs beside you, is in the Shop from September 19 to 25, and the six-item PAC-MAN Bundle was listed at 2,200 V-Bucks.

Who else is in the queue

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners reached the loot pool with Rebecca's Guns in v42.20, and a Cyberpunk Shop section with Lucy, Johnny Silverhand, V and Adam Smasher was up this week. Next, Beebom reports that Epic has teased Persona 5's Phantom Thieves, with Joker, Panther and a Morgana Sidekick expected at the September 25 Shop reset. Epic's launch post also lists Spyro the Dragon, in his legacy look, and 99 Nights in the Forest among the season's Shop partners.

Our take

If you only care about gameplay, the Kingdom Key is the part of this collab that changes how a match plays, and you don't need to spend anything to use it. The cosmetics are for fans. If you want all four heroes, the bundle works out far cheaper than buying the sets one by one.