Developed since 2017, Fornite was created by the Epic Games company and released as different software packages that present different game modes. It has become widely popular throughout the world.
This afternoon, Apple made the drastic decision to withdraw the most popular game from the network, Fornite, for failing to comply with its store regulations. The company Epic Games would have made direct charges on the platform, skipping the fees that Apple charges for each transaction in the applications that are downloaded through its store. The same happened with Google Play so the virtual giant did not hesitate to follow in the footsteps of the apple.
In an interview with The Verge, Apple confirmed the news. «Today, Epic Games has taken the unfortunate step of violating the App Store rules that apply equally to every developer and designer, to keep the store safe for our users. As a result, their Fortnite app has been removed from the store. Epic activated a feature in the application that has not been reviewed or approved by Apple, and they have done so with the intention of violating the guidance on payments within applications that apply to each developer who sells goods or services», said the executives of the company.
Legal instances
Although the crisis has taken the path of lawsuits, the result for Apple may not be the same as for Google. Epic Games has already filed a lawsuit against Apple, in which they accuse it of alleged monopolistic practices due to the way applications are distributed in the App Store. However, with Android, the picture is different, since developers have the option of launching their own application store. The latter, in fact, was the alternative that Epic Games followed to avoid Google’s 30% commission.
In the game
Many users wonder what will happen to their games of the game, whether it will continue or not. To this Apple has indicated that users of the iOS version will be able to continue playing until update 13.40. That means they won’t be able to access new content or new battle passes until the app is listed again on the App Store.
They mock
Given the situation, Epic Games has made a video with the popular game in which it mocks Apple by comparing it to Big Brother from George Orwell’s 1984 novel, which suggests that they might have been prepared to respond to the platform. However, they did not have an answer or were prepared for Google who also removed it from the Play Store.