Gaijin Acquires Popular Fortnite Map “The Pit” in Multi-Million-Dollar Deal

Fortnite Map “The Pit” sold to Gaijin Entertainment (Image Credit: Epic Games/Geerzy)

Gaijin Entertainment—the publisher best known for War Thunder—has officially acquired The Pit, a massively popular Fortnite user-created map, for a multi-million-dollar sum.

The announcement was made on July 23 via a press release. While Gaijin didn’t disclose the exact purchase amount, the company confirmed that the deal was worth several million dollars, marking one of the first instances where a major game publisher has invested such a substantial sum into a Fortnite Creative map.

The Pit was created by Fortnite developer Gavin Gear, also known as Geerzy. Speaking on the acquisition, Gear said he was “thrilled to see [The Pit] enter a new phase under Gaijin Entertainment.” He praised the company’s experience in online games and called them "the perfect team to take The Pit to the next level."

As part of the acquisition, Gaijin has also formed a new development studio called EndoWorlds, which will now manage and evolve The Pit. The transition from Gear to EndoWorlds will happen gradually over two months, after which the new team will take full operational control.

Gaijin’s CEO Anton Yudintsev commented, “The acquisition of The Pit marks a new chapter for us. We are committed to supporting innovative gaming experiences, and UGC on platforms such as Fortnite is a new, exciting opportunity for us.”

But why would a large publisher drop millions on a Fortnite map? The answer lies in Epic Games’ engagement payout system, which rewards creators based on player engagement. Fortnite maps like the viral Only Up clone reportedly made millions within just a few weeks. This economic model has opened up new possibilities for developers and now, clearly, for traditional publishers too.

With this move, Gaijin is stepping beyond its reputation for free-to-play titles and doubling down on new revenue models like UGC. In fact, the publisher has an ambitious 2025 lined up, with titles like Aces of Thunder (a VR flight action game), Active Matter (a sci-fi extraction shooter), and Cubic Odyssey (an open-world indie adventure) also on the way.