After a nearly five-year hiatus, Fortnite is back on the App Store for iPhone and iPad users in the United States. Epic Games announced the return of the battle royale gaming app this afternoon, and you can head to the App Store now to download it.
Fortnite is also back in the Epic Games Store and AltStore in the European Union.
Fortnite is back
Apple kicked Fortnite off the App Store in August 2020 after Epic Games added a backdoor payment method to the game to circumvent Apple’s In-App Purchase system. Epic’s US Apple Developer account was also banned at this time. A multi-year legal battle then ensued between the two companies, with an initial ruling announced in September 2021. Both Epic and Apple appealed that ruling.
The latest big development in the Epic and Apple legal case came earlier this month when Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers issued an injunction barring Apple from charging commission or otherwise interfering with developers’ ability to direct customers to payment methods outside of the App Store.
On May 9, Epic Games announced that it had submitted Fortnite to the App Store in the United States using its Epic Games Sweden account. The version of Fortnite submitted used both Apple’s In-App Purchase system as well as an external payment option through the Epic Games Store
One week later, Epic claimed that Apple had “blocked” its Fortnite submission worldwide, including its availability in alternative app marketplaces in the European Union. Apple, however, said it did not take action to block Fortnite’s availability in the European Union. Instead, it asked Epic Games to resubmit the EU update without including the US storefront.
Up until this point, however, Apple had not indicated whether it would reinstate the app to the App Store. Instead, in a letter to Epic Games, Apple said it would “not take action on the Fortnite app submission” until the court decided on its request for a pause of the initial injunction. Apple is also formally appealing that decision.
Epic Games then sent a letter to Judge Gonzalez Rogers calling on the court to require that Apple “promptly accept any compliant Epic app, including Fortnite, for distribution on the U.S. storefront of the App Store.”
The situation took another turn yesterday when Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said the Apple official “personally responsible for ensuring compliance” would have to appear in court if Epic and Apple failed to resolve the matter. That person would need to be “fully prepared to answer any questions on the topic” during a hearing on May 27.
One day later, Apple has seemingly relented and Fortnite is once again available on the App Store. Apple has not commented.
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