Apple has denied Fortnite’s return to iPhone in the US.
Fortnite maker Epic Games announced the news this morning and said the move by Apple would mean its game was now offline worldwide on iOS devices.
The evergreen battle royale had been back on iPhone in the European Union via the mobile version of the Epic Games Store available in the EU. But this version, too, has now gone dark.
“Apple has blocked our Fortnite submission so we cannot release to the US App Store or to the Epic Games Store for iOS in the European Union,” Epic Games said in a statement on social media. “Now, sadly, Fortnite on iOS will be offline worldwide until Apple unblocks it.”
Yesterday, Epic Games was forced to pull and then resubmit its application to have Fortnite return on iPhone to ensure it included this week’s update for the game – which ended up being delayed until this morning.
According to Epic boss Tim Sweeney, Apple had sat on the submission of Fortnite for days, despite the submission process typically being swift, and had not returned the company’s calls.
Epic Games and Apple have of course been locked into a long-running feud after the former added in-game purchase options that circumvented Apple’s typical store – a move which got Fortnite booted from both the App Store and Google Play on Android.
But a dramatic legal ruling earlier this month saw a US judge rule that Apple had been wrongly dragging its heels and obfuscating its previously-mandated need to offer a fair payment alternative – something that seemed to pave the way for Fortnite’s return.
Last night, Sweeney spent several hours on social media mocking Apple’s lengthy submission process – noting that Fortnite knock-offs were available on the App Store (including one titled “Fort Battle Royale Epic Shoot”), then remarking that the aforementioned game had suddenly been removed following his earlier post.
“Apple’s App Review team should be free to review all submitted apps promptly and accept or reject according to the plain language of their guidelines,” Sweeney later wrote. “App Review shouldn’t be weaponised by senior management as a tool to delay or obstruct competition, due process, or free speech.”
Eurogamer has contacted Apple for more.