Fortnite Adds New Toy Story 5 Experience to Coincide With Disney+ Release
It’s a big day for fans of Woody, Buzz, Jesse, and the rest of Pixar’s beloved play things as Toy Story 5 drops on Disney+. But the summer blockbuster isn’t content to simply take over the streaming platform, as an all-new experience tied to the record-breaking film has also landed in Fortnite. That’s right, the free-to-play shooter – which has blossomed into a full-on gaming platform over the last few years – is hosting a limited event, dubbed Toy Story 5: The Great Rescue. Timed to celebrate the movie’s highly-anticipated arrival on Disney+, the activation is available now through October 5th.
The latest project to spawn from Disney and Fortnite’s creative collaboration, the two-week event introduces a brand new island based on Bonnie’s room. The persistent space has been crafted to reflect a toy’s perspective, so everything, from its furniture and knickknacks to closets and books, are supersized. For players, this means being unleashed in a sprawling new explorable space that’s still contained within a child’s bedroom.
More than just a Pixar-inspired place to swing your pickaxe around, though, the environment sets the stage for an original, gameplay-driven Toy Story tale. After a Fortnite rift opens in the room, scattering Bonnie’s favorite toys across several creator-crafted islands, players are tasked with getting the gang back together.
More specifically, they must track down Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Rex, Hamm, and Forky, all of whom can be recovered when the player completes challenges specific to each character. Collecting Bullseye’s horseshoes, for example, will help you rescue Jesse, while bringing Buzz back to Bonnie’s room will require beating rivals in acrobatic challenges and securing batteries.
Beyond the character-recovering main objective, the event also includes secret spaces within Bonnie’s room. Seeking these out will open imaginary realms – such as an ancient temple, castle, and spaceship – ripe for exploration.
Of course, Toy Story 5: The Great Rescue is far from the first time Disney and Fortnite have teamed up. Beginning in 2018, a number of Marvel and Star Wars character skins started becoming available, but fans had to wait a bit longer for Disney and Pixar favorites to turn up in the item shop. Following Disney’s $1.5 billion investment in Epic Games in 2024, the two companies have collaborated to create unique experiences that blur the lines between movies, gaming, theme parks, and more.
In the fall of 2024, character skins from both Disney and Pixar properties – including The Incredibles, Hercules, Big Hero 6, and, yes, Toy Story – began leaping from the Battle Bus. Favorite Disney villains, as well as familiar faces from the Avatar and Kingdom Hearts franchises, have also been let loose on the island.
But it’s Star Wars stalwarts who’ve so far benefited the most from the ambitious collaboration, as dedicated games, Galactic Siege, Escape Vader, and Droid Tycoon, are now permanent parts of the Fortnite platform. The biggest reflection of the partnership’s potential, however, is the clever crossover between Disney World’s and Disneyland’s Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run ride and a new Star Wars-inspired adventure within the game. To get the most from this cross-platform experience, players must link their Disney and Epic accounts, as well as ride the attraction and play the game.
While Toy Story 5: The Great Rescue isn’t aiming quite that high, its release alongside the film’s launch on Disney+ bodes well for future such events, activations, and other experiences that imaginatively mix mediums. With Disney parks’ future packed with new attractions and land openings, the potential for more cool crossover projects is as promising as a handful of pixie dust.