Attendees play in the Epic Games Inc. Fortnite: Battle Royale Celebrity Pro Am on the sidelines of the E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, California, U.S., in Los Angeles, California, U.S., on Tuesday, June 12, 2018. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg 
That number -- almost equal to the population of Brazil -- represents a 60 percent increase from the 125 million registered users that the game’s creator, Epic Games Inc., released in June. And it’s five times the count the company gave in January.
Released in its popular battle-royale mode in September of last year, Fortnite pits 100 players against one another for survival on a shrinking island. The game is free to play and available on multiple devices, from mobile phones to traditional video-game consoles, with Epic making money by charging players for decorative items like costumes and props.
Those purchases add up. In October, Epic raised $1.25 billion from an investor group that included KKR & Co., Vulcan Capital and Kleiner Perkins in a deal that valued the closely held company at $15 billion. DM