Well here’s an odd partnership we didn’t expect: LEGO and Epic Games have announced a long-term arrangement that will focus on the metaverse and making it suitable and safe for kids.

The two companies released a statement about this partnership here, but it’s rather light on the details about what exactly this team up will entail.

The pair have, however, listed three principles that will “ensure the digital spaces they develop deliver engaging play opportunities safely”, which are:

• Protect children’s right to play by making safety and wellbeing a priority.
• Safeguard children’s privacy by putting their best interests first.
• Empower children and adults with tools that give them control over their digital experience.

The statement also explains some endeavours that both companies have undertaken in the past when it comes to child safety.

For Epic Games it highlights the acquisition of the company SuperAwesome in 2020 which specialises in making the internet safer for kids. On LEGO’s side its Digital Child Safety Policy from 2016, made with UNICEF, is brought up along with a app for kids that is fully moderated. That app isn’t mentioned by name but it’s likely LEGO Life: kid-safe community.

It seems we will just have to wait and see what this announcement means as the metaverse is still such a loose concept that doesn’t really exist yet in any centralised capacity.

“Kids enjoy playing in digital and physical worlds and move seamlessly between the two. We believe there is huge potential for them to develop life-long skills such as creativity, collaboration and communication through digital experiences. But we have a responsibility to make them safe, inspiring and beneficial for all. Just as we’ve protected children’s rights to safe physical play for generations, we are committed to doing the same for digital play. We look forward to working with Epic Games to shape this exciting and playful future,” writes Niels B Christiansen, CEO of The LEGO Group.

On the back of all of this many people have been speculating that it could mean LEGO sets based off of Epic Games properties, with Fortnite being the most requested. We highly doubt this could happen given LEGO firm stance of violence, especially that involving the realistic guns in the game.

We could, however, see something like Rocket League or Fall Guys being turned into a LEGO theme, as both franchises are owned by Epic Games.