Epic Games founder Tim Sweeney owns a protected North Carolina forest roughly four times the size of Manhattan.

The buying began in 2008 during the housing crash, using software revenue long before the battle royale era.

A $15 million purchase protected 7,000 acres and 130 rare species, including three entirely new types of moths.

Sweeney buys land, holds it, and transfers it to state agencies below market value to fund further conservation.

In 2021, he gave 7,500 acres in the Roan Highlands to a conservancy—the largest private land donation in NC history.

His efforts extend to Hutaff Island, preserving 1,300 acres of crucial nesting habitat for sea turtles and shorebirds.

This isn't random. Ecologists map connected strips of land, allowing wildlife to safely migrate as global temperatures shift.

Unlike many billionaire landowners, Sweeney's 56,000 acres feature no lodges, ranches, or tourism. Just pure, protected forest.

A decade of digital emotes and character skins has quietly financed one of the largest private conservation projects in the East.