Fortnite has gone offline for an update – and might never come back to the iPhone.
The game was taken offline on Friday morning to prepare for server maintenance and to roll out the latest updates to the game, which brings a host of new Star Wars-themed content.
The game should be back online soon on most of the platforms it can be played on, including PlayStation, Xbox and PC.
But it might not come back to the iPhone. Developer Epic Games said that an ongoing fallout with Apple over its App Store rules means that the game will stay offline on that device.
Fortnite’s status on Apple’s platforms has been controversial for years. In 2020, Epic broke rules requiring games to use Apple’s payment systems for games on the iPhone, and was removed from the App Store as a result.
The two companies have been publicly fighting in the years since. Last year, Epic returned Fortnite to iPhones in the European Union, after legislation that required Apple to allow users there to access apps through alternative app stores.
Fortnite also looked like it could return to the US App Store soon, after a recent ruling in a lawsuit between the two. That led Epic to resubmit the game in recent days.
But now Epic says that Apple has not accepted that resubmission. As such, the game will be taken offline across the world.
“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. Now, sadly, Fortnite on iOS will be offline worldwide until Apple unblocks it.”
Apple is yet to publicly comment on Epic’s claims, or the status of Fortnite in the US or other app stores.
The new Fortnite update had been scheduled for Thursday, but was delayed by a day. Epic said that it had been postponed to allow for any late updates from Apple about the game’s status on the iPhone.
Epic and Apple’s disagreement relates to Apple’s requirement that apps on the iPhone must use its own payment processing, from which Apple takes a 30 per cent cut. Epic has long argued that developers including itself should be able to use its own payment systems and keep more of the money for itself, which Apple has suggested would be unsafe.
