When will Ariana Grande be in Fortnite? Rift Tour times explained, skins, how to log on – and what else is new

The latest of Fortnite’s ambitious Live Events is almost here, with this weekend seeing the popular battle royale game playing host to one of the biggest pop stars on the planet.

‘Thank U, Next’ singer Ariana Grande will be virtually imported into the game to perform a series of concerts over the next few days, an event the game's creators are calling, “The Rift Tour”.

“Take a musical journey into magical new realities where Fortnite and Ariana Grande collide,” say developers Epic Games on their website. “Dive into the Rift Tour.”

Here is everything you need to know about it.

When are the concerts?

During Fortnite’s popular Live Events, servers can often become so full of people trying to log on to experience the spectacle that not everybody manages to get in.

To alleviate some of the pressure on the game behind the scenes – and to ensure as many people as possible can enjoy the Rift Tour – there will be five shows in total spread out across a period of three days.

The times of the shows are as follows (all times in BST):

Friday 6 August – 11pm

Saturday 7 August – 7pm

Sunday 8 August – 5am

Sunday 8 August – 3pm

Sunday 8 August – 11pm

It’s clear that the 7 August show is the one that will likely be most geared towards UK fans, but you will be able to log into any of the shows from anywhere around the world.

So if you find yourself up at 5am in the wee hours of Sunday morning, you’ll be able to watch the sunrise backed by Grande herself.

For more information on each of the performances, head to RiftTour.com for more details on the Rift Tour schedule.

You can also use the in-game Rift Tour tab, which allows you and your friends to schedule the showtimes you plan to attend, as well as keep up-to-speed on the latest Rift Tour Quests.

How do I log in?

Ahead of the Rift Tour’s first show on 6 August, players wishing to experience one of the in-game concerts will need to make sure they’ve downloaded the game’s latest v17.30 update.

These updates can take a while to download, depending on the speed of your internet connection, so allow yourself plenty of time before the show to do this.

Epic Games recommend that players log in to the shows they wish to attend at least 60 minutes before the start time.

30 minutes before each show, the Rift Tour Playlist will go live, and the developers say the Rift Tour kicks off with “Fortnite-themed experiences”, which will pair popular tracks with moments based on elements from the game.

Epic notes that although they do aim to accommodate as many people as possible at each of the shows, capacities for each event may still be reached.

If this is the case, you may have to reshuffle your plans and attend one of the other shows.

What else is new?

The live Ariana Grande concerts aren’t the only thing the Rift Tour has to offer.

To celebrate the pop star’s arrival to the game, an Ariana Grande skin will be made available in the Item Shop, along with a “Piggy Smallz” Back Bling, a “Lil’ Floaticorn” Emote, the “Sweetener Sailshards” Glider, and the “7 Rings Smasher” Pickaxe, which comes with a Gem Striker Variant.

Other in-game goodies like skins have been added to the game, ensuring you’ll be able to dress up your character to look their very best before the big show!

Players also still have time to unlock rewards for the first wave of Rift Tour Quests until 8 August, and everyone who attends the Rift Tour will receive the Cuddly Cloudcruiser commemorative Umbrella.

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