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The battle between the two tech giants may have ended in court, but whether or not Fortnite on Mobile (iOS) could make a return this year remained a mystery until now.
A few hours ago, Fortnite tweeted out a message on their official Twitter handle stating that they had asked Apple to restore their Fortnite developer account. In compliance with the yet to be passed Korean law, Apple will have to allow Epic payments alongside Apple payments on iOS devices.
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Given that the original issue started due to commission cuts taken by Apple, this tweet provided hope that Fortnite on Mobile (iOS) will soon be playable to at least some players if not all.
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Sadly, it was denied, barely a few hours after Epic Games' request to be reinstated, an Apple spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge:
“As we’ve said all along, we would welcome Epic’s return to the App Store if they agree to play by the same rules as everyone else."
Apple has stated that it is currently under no legal obligation to reinstate Epic Games' developer rights based on the information at hand. Even if the laws were passed, it would make no difference.
Given the circumstances of the situation and the bad blood between the two tech giants, the only question left to be asked is:
When will Fortnite on Mobile (iOS) be back?
This is perhaps one of the hardest questions to answer. On the one hand, Epic Games seems to be winning the battle. But with Apple putting its foot down every step of the way, war attrition is starting to build up.
With over 116 million Fortnite iOS users cut off from the game over a year, frustration has grown within the community. Some believe that Epic Games itself is responsible for the entire fiasco.
With the holiday season around the corner, and with no verdict yet on the Apple versus Epic Games lawsuit, it goes without saying that the developers will keep losing out on revenue from millions of iOS players.
As of now, all iOS players can do is sit with their fingers crossed and hope that the lawsuit yields some positive news in the coming months. However, truth be told, by the looks of things, Fortnite on Mobile (iOS) may not be back for a very long time to come.
This article reflects the opinions of the writer.
