Tencent-Backed Epic Games Brings Fortnite Back On The iPhone, This Time With An Entire App Store After Its 4-Year-Long Battle With Apple

Tencent-backed Epic Games has brought back the popular game Fortnite on the iPhone, along with an entire app store, which is now available for download in the European Union and Android devices globally. This comes after a four-year-long legal battle with Apple Inc. AAPL, marking a win for the game studio, with EU’s Digital Markets Act forcing Apple’s hand.

What Happened: Epic Games announced on Friday the plans to allow all developers to launch their games and apps through the Epic Games Store in the future. The games will also be available on independent mobile stores, including AltStore PAL.

Amid the launch, Epic Games criticized Apple Inc. AAPL and Google by Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG for the “lengthy” installation process on iOS and Android, which includes multiple steps, confusing device settings, and scare screens. Epic Games also noted that Apple is still blocking iOS users outside of Europe from accessing Fortnite and the Epic Games Store for iOS.

“We are continuing to fight in courts and work with regulators around the globe to eliminate the anticompetitive terms that Apple and Google impose on developers and consumers, so we can build a better store for everyone,” the note read.

Apart from Fortnite, the Epic Games Store also has popular games like Rocket League Sideswipe, and the new “Fall Guys” for mobile.

Epic Games is partnering with third-party mobile app stores to bring their games to any marketplace. They have started by launching their games on AltStore PAL for iOS users in the European Union and have plans to bring their games to Aptoide's iOS store in the EU and ONE Store on Android.

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"The fight is far from over, but this is tangible progress for developers and consumers who can begin to benefit from competition and choice," said Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder of Epic Games.

Why It Matters: This development follows a series of disputes between Epic Games and Apple. In July, Epic Games accused Apple of obstructing its efforts to establish a games store on iPhones and iPads in Europe. Apple had twice denied Epic Games’ submission to launch the Epic Games Store, citing similarities in the design of certain buttons and labels to those used by the App Store.

However, Apple later approved the marketplace app of Epic Games for iPhones and iPads in Europe. This move came amid a continuing conflict between the two tech giants.

Furthermore, Epic Games’ move to Android devices also had its challenges. Google detailed the potential costs and implications of allowing third-party app stores such as the Epic Games Store to operate within the Google Play Store. The integration would require 12 to 18 months and between $60 million to $137 million for building and maintaining the necessary technical infrastructure.

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Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Pooja Rajkumari