Epic Games made good on its recent promise by bringing Fortnite back to the iPhone and iPad in the U.S. after a federal court injunction forced Apple to change App Store rules around payments and commissions. Nearly five years after its removal, the game returns with a major change. Still, Fortnite is only available through the App Store in one region, and there are several reasons it could be removed again.
Payment battle royale
For the first time, players are presented with payment options before purchasing in-game currency known as V-Bucks. When you buy V-Bucks in Fortnite, you now get two choices: the Epic Games Store and Apple’s in-app purchase system. Apple’s version is familiar, fully integrated, and already configured.
The Epic Games Store button opens in the browser instead of staying in the app, but you get a 20 percent Epic Rewards bonus for using it. That makes it the better value if you’re regularly making Epic Games Store purchases, even if the flow isn’t quite as smooth. Prior to the court injunction, presenting this choice would not be allowed, especially with the marketing incentive.
Fortnite had previously been absent from the App Store since 2020 after Epic Games snuck a direct payment option for V-Bucks into the app to intentionally violate Apple’s rules. The move was a calculated protest against Apple’s 30% commission on in-app purchases, and it sparked a years-long antitrust battle between the two companies.
Epic claimed victory after a federal judge ruled that Apple could no longer block developers from linking to or advertising external payment methods. The ruling also prohibited Apple from applying a 27% commission on out-of-app purchases initiated through in-app links.
Fortnite tops the App Store, but its fate remains uncertain
Fortnite didn’t just get approved after the standard app review process. Far from it. Instead, Epic submitted the app a week after Apple’s forced policy change, and then started raising questions in court about Apple dragging its feet. When it looked like Apple executives might have to explain themselves to a judge, the app was suddenly approved. Less than 24 hours later, Fortnite is the top free game in the U.S. App Store.
But this is far from over. Apple is appealing the ruling that forced these App Store changes. Apple also asked for a stay that would let it go back to the old rules while the appeal plays out. If granted, Fortnite’s fate would be right back in limbo.
If Apple is granted the stay or wins the appeal, Epic either walks or forces Apple to boot them again. For Epic, Fortnite being in the App Store is contingent on payment choice. For now, Fortnite’s return is held together entirely by court pressure, and nothing is settled business.
Only in America, and still not on the Mac
Right now, Fortnite is only back in the U.S. App Store. Even in the EU, Epic is using its own store and alternative distribution options made possible by the Digital Markets Act.
Top comment by Blurft
When it looked like Apple executives might have to explain themselves to a judge, the app was suddenly approved.
How much of this behavior do Apple executives believe the company can really get away with? One or two coincidences like this might be explainable as "that's just how the timing worked out," but this is now an obvious pattern of Apple only complying with court orders when pushed to the limit (such as forcing an executive to testify). This just signals that the court must demand that testimony from the start next time, rather than giving Apple the benefit of the doubt.
It's obvious which direction the winds are blowing. Whether you agree with regulators or not, it's clear that we're entering an era of increased regulation on tech companies.
Apple can choose to work with those regulators, and have a hand in crafting regulations such that they might be more favorable towards the company, or Apple can continue to act antagonistically and end up with no input and regulations that will ultimately be less favorable to them.
The perfect example is Judge Gonzalez Rogers giving Apple a chance to set a reasonable fee if they can provide justification for it, only to have the company act petulantly and get slapped with a ruling that gives them 0%.
How do Apple's executives not see the obvious harm that this attitude and behavior are having on their credibility and trustworthiness with courts and regulators? Do they not understand that it will hurt them long-term? Do they not care?
If you’re outside the U.S. or EU, cloud gaming is still your best option for iOS. NVIDIA GeForce Now offers a free tier (with time limits and ads) and paid options that run $10 to $20 USD per month depending on performance level. Xbox Cloud Gaming is another option, and there are others, but none offer the native app experience that comes with App Store distribution.
Even in the U.S., Fortnite players may find that the game is available on the App Store, but it requires more RAM than their hardware has to actually run. Apple’s latest A16 11-inch iPad for $299 (reg. $349) is a safe upgrade option on a budget.
Cloud gaming doesn’t have that limitation. If your device can stream video and handle a controller, you can play Fortnite through services like GeForce Now, regardless of RAM. Native apps have benefits, but only if your hardware can actually run the game.
Separately, Fortnite for Mac has been offline since 2020. That decision was part of Epic’s protest against Apple’s policies. And even though nothing is technically stopping a return today, it hasn’t happened.
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