Google kicked Fortnite off its Play Store on Thursday following the unparalleled theatrics of its removal from Apple’s app store earlier today.
As a recap, publisher Epic Games recently began offering players the option to purchase Fortnite’s in-game currency, V Bucks, directly from Epic in both the game’s iOS and Android versions — a clear violation of the app stores’ policies, which require Apple and Google to get a percentage of these in-game sales on mobile.
And the fallout has been some compelling entertainment in these quarantine times: Apple swiftly kicked Fortnite from its store, then Epic struck back with a lawsuit and arranged an in-game event to screen a video satirizing Apple’s iconic 1984 commercial to mobilize its fanbase against the company, throwing in a #FreeFortnite hashtag to boot.
[referenced id=”1240775″ url=”https://gizmodo.com.au/2020/08/fortnite-may-have-just-laid-the-perfect-antitrust-trap-for-apple-and-they-fell-for-it-update-epic-games-is-suing-apple/” thumb=”https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/14/f2fqufvbwmczhztfursb-300×169.png” title=”Epic Games is Suing Apple After Removing Fortnite from the App Store” excerpt=”Everyone is mad about Apple’s App Store guidelines right now, especially when it comes to cloud gaming services. Microsoft isn’t bringing Project xCloud to iOS. Google’s Stadia app can’t let iPhone users actually play games. Facebook also had to axe the ability to play games for its Facebook Gaming iOS…”]
Just like Apple, Google takes a 30% cut of a game’s revenue as a toll for being featured on its Play Store. The app store’s rules plainly outline this stipulation to developers:
“Developers offering products within a game downloaded on Google Play or providing access to game content must use Google Play In-app Billing as the method of payment.”
However, Fortnite remains available on Android, since Google’s app store isn’t the same monolith as Apple’s. While the game’s now impossible to install on iOS devices thanks to its Apple store ban, it can still be downloaded through the Epic Games app on Android or via Samsung’s Galaxy Store on Samsung devices — both methods that Epic actively promotes by offering a heavily discounted rate for V-bucks.
In an emailed statement to Gizmodo, Google emphasised that Android’s open ecosystem allows for multiple stores that developers can choose from to house their apps.
“While Fortnite remains available on Android, we can no longer make it available on Play because it violates our policies. However, we welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions with Epic and bring Fortnite back to Google Play,” a Google spokesperson said.
With Google’s response to point to, Epic appears to be making a clear case for Apple to follow suit and open up its walled garden, especially given the mounting pressure from angry Fortnite fans that it’s helped fuel. But if today’s histrionics are any indication, any path to a dedicated Epic Games iOS app store is going to be a bitterly fought and absolutely wild ride.