100 Thieves debuts Bank Heist custom Fortnite Map

Esports and lifestyle organization 100 Thieves announced the launch of its first game project, Bank Heist. The project was developed in-house using Epic Games’ Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN). Players can try the map starting July 11 at 11am PT.

Bank Heist rewards coordination, tactics and reflexes, fitting the organization’s esports roots and branding. The title pits two teams of three players against each other and features asymmetric gameplay. One team is tasked with infiltrating a fortified bank while the other team must defend and thwart their efforts.

“Bank Heist is the result of the evolution of 100 Thieves and the evolution of modern game development overall,” said Pete Hawley, chief product officer and head of game development at 100 Thieves. “Thanks to the new UEFN platform, our small but talented development team was able to work with our creators to build an innovative take on the competitive multiplayer extraction genre within Fortnite in just a few weeks. We’re excited to launch this game, support this platform and continue to innovate on how great games are developed.”

Bank Heist incorporated feedback from the org’s talent including CEO Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag, Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter, and Jack “CouRage” Dunlop. Bank Heist will feature both Valkyrae and CouRage front and center in its promotional campaign and include their fan-favorite personas as narrators.

100 Thieves will continue to support Bank Heist with content updates and introduce new UEFN maps in the future.

UEFN and creator-driven development

100 Thieves is the latest example of creator-driven game development and publishing. In fact, CouRage is also contributing to another high-profile creator UEFN map project — Project V. Moreover, it’s another example of esports organization’s diversifying operations amid the esports winter.

Epic Games’ UEFN tool kit has made game development more accessible to a number of creators. By including the maps within Fortnite, Epic is lowering the hurdles for both technical requirements and distribution. Additionally, the user-developed maps keep Fortnite fresh for players without using Epic’s own development resources.

“The days of needing hundreds of developers and spending $100 million on development of a new game are over,” said John Robinson, president and COO of 100 Thieves. “Epic Games has given non-traditional game developers like 100 Thieves an amazing toolset to build something fun in weeks, not years. Building with UEFN was an easy and welcome decision, given our love for Fortnite and experience using Unreal Engine.”

Bank Heist is 100 Thieves’ first game project launch. In May, the organization announced a triple-A shooter dubbed Project X, built using Unreal Engine 5. Development for Project X will continue separately.