Fortnite may be making a comeback. Epic Games plans to relaunch the popular battle royale game on iPhones in the EU, but not through Apple’s App Store.
This alternative approach has been applied after a long-standing feud between Epic and Apple. Epic got banned from the App Store for violating Apple’s rules, which restrict how developers handle in-app purchases.
The tide turned for Epic with the introduction of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which has fined Apple $38B. What DMA does is it requires Apple (and other major tech leaders) to loosen its grip and allow third-party app stores on iPhones.
Epic is said to be building its own app store for iPhones in the EU. This store would host Fortnite, allowing players to download and play the game once again.
BUT
First, there’s a hurdle to jump. Apple requires apps on these alternative stores to undergo a security and privacy check, a process Epic has previously criticized.
The situation becomes more complex with the Core Technology Fee (CTF). This fee is a royalty paid to Apple by developers using alternative app stores. Even though there’s an exemption for the first million downloads of free apps, Epic would likely need to pay this fee for both the Epic Games Store app and each Fortnite download through it.
This fee is another point of contention between app store owners and Apple, and the EU is currently investigating its validity. It’s so bad that Apple has revealed that less than 0.1% of developers have signed up for the new payment system.
Despite the challenges, this situation marks a bigshift in the mobile gaming scene. I remember moving to iPhone back in 2020, or was it 2021? Either way, during one of the COVID years, I got this sudden urge to play Fortnite on my iPhone, only to find out it’s not available on Fortnite and was delisted only a week ago; talk about bad timing.