Image: Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren is hopping on the battle bus. The brand is the latest fashion house to partner with Fortnite — and as part of the deal, the company’s iconic horse logo has been redesigned with a cartoon llama.
There are two sides to the announcement. First, there’s the digital part, with two Lauren-designed in-game outfits that’ll be available in the Fortnite item shop starting on November 5th. You can check them out below:
Image: Ralph Lauren
There’s also a physical component with a capsule collection of IRL clothes that will be available starting on November 2nd. This will include hats, hoodies, and — of course — polo shirts. The company also says it’s working on a physical version of the boot the in-game characters are wearing, which will be available to purchase at some point in the future. Here’s how the company explains it:
In a first for Ralph Lauren, the collection was concepted as a digital-first capsule, creatively influenced by a gaming design aesthetic. The digital outfits showcase Ralph Lauren’s signature artistry and craftsmanship, rendered in high fidelity with incredibly rich detail, while the physical capsule collection translates the outfits into the real world. Underlining this interplay between digital and physical, the boot will come to life as a replica of the digital version shown in the Fortnite outfits, and will be available in the coming months.
As for the logo, Ralph Lauren says that this is the first time it has been redesigned like this, which it says is “a testament to the company’s belief in the power of the metaverse.”
The Fortnite / Ralph Lauren crossover is more elaborate than most, but this kind of mashup between fashion and gaming has become increasingly prominent of late. Fortnite previously featured in-game gear from the likes of Balenciaga and Moncler; Gucci has a presence in Roblox; there are Louis Vuitton skins in League of Legends; and most recently, Minecraft and Burberry revealed a partnership so that you can dress just like your blocky avatar.