24 Hour Fort Challenge

Submission 17,502

About

The 24 Hour Fort Challenge, also known as the 24 Hour Overnight Challenge is a social game in which participants enter a store and hide until after closing, where they attempt to remain for as long as possible before the store reopens or they are caught.

Origin

The earliest example of the 24 Fort Challenge challenge was posted by YouTuber ^[1] MoreJStu. On August 11th, 2016, they uploaded a video entitled "24 HOUR TOILET PAPER FORT!" In the video (shown below), the YouTubers hid in forts built made from products inside of a Walmart and stayed there overnight. Within a year an a half, the video has received more than 21 million views.

Spread

Two days later, on August 13th, YouTuber^[4] YoBoy PIZZA posted another version of the challenge, staying hidden in a Walmart for 24 hours. the video (shown below, left) received more than 2.1 million views in a year and a half.

Later that month, on August 24th, YouTuber^[2] Bakuna Fatata posted a video entitled "TWO IDIOTS AT NIGHT IN IKEA."The video (shown below, right) features two men spending the night in Ikea without the knowledge of the staff. This video set a precedent within the trend that a fort, like seen in the MoreJStu video, was not required to participate. Within a year and a half, the video has received more than 2.6 million views.

The video attracted significant attention later that year, as Ikea spokesperson acknowledged the challenge as a trend in their stores. After two 14-year-old girls attempted to participate in Sweden, Ikea said, "Due to the girls' young age, we have chosen not to make a police report. Instead, we have spoken with their parents … to resolve the situation." They later told the BBC, We appreciate that people are interested in Ikea and want to create fun experiences, however the safety and security of our co-workers and customers is our highest priority and that's why we do not allow sleepovers in our stores."^[3]

On February 8th, 2018, The Telegraph reported that an 11-year-old boy had been reported missing on February 6th. he was found the following day after spending the night in an Ikea in Sheffield, England. The boy's fahter, Abid Mirza, said his son was participating in a "stay in Ikea overnight and not get caught challenge."^[5]

Several media outlets covered the boy's disappearance and participation in the challenge, including Mashable,^[6] The Guardian,^[7] The AV Club^[8] and more.