Daijiworld Media Network - New York (SHP)

New York, Jul 29: A British teenager won a million pounds after he came in second at the Fortnite World Cup. The duo of Jaden Ashman, from Essex, will split 2.25 million US dollars with his Dutch partner, Dave Jong after they secured a second place in the tournament.

It was a three-day event where the teen, competed under the name Wolfiez. Over 100 finalists took part in various competitions for a chance to win USD 3 million (GBP 2.4 million). More than 30 countries were expected to be represented at the finals, which featured a duo competition for pairs and a 'creative' tournament where teams of four aim to complete different in-game trials.

The online battle royale game is gaining mass popularity since its launch two years ago, more than 250 million people have played the game.

Jaden stated that his mother was skeptical about the tournament and that she was never in favour of him choosing games over his homework. He expressed a feeling of elation at the victory, as now his mother would be proud of it. Jaden’s mother in a comment claimed to have been annoyed with his video game addiction where he played games for over 8 hours, causing her to at one time even thrash her son’s Xbox and headset.

When asked what Jaden would do with his prize money, his mother stated that her son was not into worldly pleasures and said, “Jaden would just keep playing video games and ordering takeaways from Uber, Jaden would be in his element.”

For some time now, Fortnite has been criticized for its impact on teenagers. Lawmakers of the countries are conducting probe into games where kids are enticed with in-app purchases (IAP). The IAP’s helped the company in monetization and end up serving as a gateway to gambling for children.