What time does Fortnite’s live event ‘The Big Bang’ start?

“The big Bang” is Fortnite's first live event teased to bring about a “new beginning” for the game, according to developer Epic Games.

The event marks the end of Fortnite OG's schedule of rotating maps from Chapter 1, which itself ended with a “black hole” event that introduced a new chapter and a series of major additions.

“The Big Bang” seems to be a nod to this finale, and is rumored to introduce some similar game-changing features – all heralded by a musical performance from Eminem. Here's everything we know and what time the live event starts in your time zone.

Fortnite live event start time: When does 'The Big Bang' event start?

Update (December 2, 2:10 PM ET): “The Big Bang” event is technically happening now (starting at 2 p.m. ET), but for those still in line to get in on the game, don't worry; developer Epic Games is hosting two more shows today to meet demand. The timings of this are unknown, but we recommend that you wait until you have access to the lobby and then hang tight until the performance begins.

Original story: FortniteThe live event “The Big Bang” starts on Saturday December 2 at the following times:

• 11am PST off the west coast of North America
• 2:00 PM EST off the east coast of North America
• 7pm GMT for Great Britain
• 8:00 PM CEST for western mainland Europe
• 4 hours JST in Japan (December 3)

Matchmaking for modes created by Epic – including Battle Royale and Zero Build – will go offline two hours before previous times, paving the way for the live event to take center stage.

You can participate in the event “The Big Bang” itself 30 minutes before it starts — at 1:30 PM EST, or your local equivalent — which we recommend doing if capacity is limited, as has been the case with Fortnite events in the past. In other words, it's best to arrive early to avoid disappointment!

The live event can be accessed from all versions of the game, including streamed versions through services like Xbox Cloud Gaming, if you're away from your console or PC at the time.

What can we expect from Fortnite's 'The Big Bang' event?

Teasers and leaks for “The Big Bang” suggest a hybrid of Fortnite season finale – featuring an interactive experience that concludes the season and begins a new storyline – and Fortnite's concerts, where Eminem is confirmed to perform. As such, those attending the event will receive an exclusive entry loading screen to commemorate the performance:

Image: Epic Games

Furthermore, the details are thin on the ground. Fortnite speakers like ShiinaBR on Twitter / So what else can we expect?

Firstly, the teaser image for the event shows a llama, a creature that… Fortnite indispensable since the debut of the Battle Royale mode. However, this is thought to be related to a crafting mode in collaboration with LEGO teased on social media in the weeks leading up to the event.

It is believed that the microphone and guitar in the teaser image are related to a new 'Festival' mode. These new modes, plus one Rocket Leagueinspired 'Rocket Racing' mode, is proposed to be rolled out in the first week of Chapter 5, which will go live a day or two into the live event. This also matches the cryptic mention of “new rules” in an official teaser:

Exactly how these modes will appear as part of the event is unknown, but with a large number of eyes watching this season finale, this is the perfect place to promote them.

Either way, when the 'Big Bang' ends, you can expect a period of downtime. With these rumors of new modes and possible other features on the way, we won't be playing again until sometime on Sunday or even Monday.

In the meantime, if you want to unlock this season's Battle Pass skins before they disappear for good, we recommend finding gnome locations for some easy bonus XP.