Fortnitemares 2026 Starts Today With FNaF and Horror Icons

Fortnitemares 2026 begins today, October 1, bringing Fortnite’s annual Halloween takeover back with one of its biggest horror lineups yet.

Epic Games has lined up collaborations with Five Nights at Freddy’s, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Slender Man, Beetlejuice, The Purge and several other franchises. The update also brings back seasonal weapons, Halloween items and the popular Horde Rush mode.

The exact moment servers return can vary depending on maintenance, but the new content is expected to become playable Thursday morning in the United States.

When Does Fortnitemares 2026 Go Live?

Fortnitemares launches with Fortnite’s October 1 update.

Epic has not guaranteed an exact end time for downtime. Based on the expected maintenance window, players should expect the event to become available sometime during the early morning hours in the U.S., potentially by around 9 a.m. ET / 6 a.m. PT.

As always with major Fortnite updates, maintenance can end earlier or run longer than expected.

Once servers return, Fortnitemares content should immediately begin appearing in the game.

Five Nights at Freddy’s Comes to the Fortnite Island

Five Nights at Freddy’s is arguably the headline crossover this year.

The collaboration goes beyond Item Shop cosmetics. Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza is coming to the Battle Royale island as a themed location.

Players will be able to visit the restaurant and encounter elements inspired by the horror franchise’s famous animatronics.

That gives the FNaF collaboration considerably more presence than a standard Fortnite skin release.

Freddy Krueger and Slender Man Join the Event

Five Nights at Freddy’s is only part of the horror lineup.

Confirmed Fortnitemares collaborations include:

Five Nights at Freddy’s
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Slender Man
Beetlejuice
The Purge
Obsession
Black Clover
Child’s Play
End of Abyss

Freddy Krueger is one of the most recognizable horror characters Fortnite has added, while Slender Man brings one of internet horror’s most famous creations into Epic’s game.

Additional collaborations could still appear later in October.

Horde Rush Returns

The popular Horde Rush limited-time mode is returning as part of Fortnitemares.

Teams fight through waves of monsters while moving between combat areas before eventually facing stronger enemies.

The mode has become one of the recurring gameplay components of Fortnite’s Halloween events and offers a PvE-focused alternative to traditional Battle Royale.

Pumpkin Launchers and Witch Brooms Are Back

Several familiar Fortnitemares items also return.

The Pumpkin Launcher and Witch Broom are expected back alongside seasonal candy and other Halloween equipment.

Additional leaked or datamined content points toward more unusual items, including a rideable pumpkin rocket and special Override-related loot options.

Not every datamined feature is guaranteed to appear in the final update, so some details may change once the event is fully live.

Fortnitemares 2026 is expected to run throughout October, with cosmetics and collaborations rolling out gradually rather than all appearing on day one.

With FNaF, Freddy Krueger, Slender Man and several returning gameplay features, this year’s event is shaping up to be one of Fortnite’s largest Halloween updates so far.