After nearly four years, Fortnite is making a triumphant return to iOS — but only in certain regions.

The widely popular battle royale game has been caught in the middle of a conflict between Epic Games and Apple, with Epic Games’ CEO Tim Sweeney blasting the tech giant as “devious.”

“Epic has always supported the notion of Apple notarization and malware scanning for apps, but we strongly reject Apple’s twisting this process to undermine competition and continue imposing Apple taxes on transactions they’re not involved in,” Sweeney said in a lengthy post on X.

Apple will begin to allow ‘sideloaded’ apps

To comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, Apple announced in a blog post that it would now allow apps to be ‘sideloaded’ — which means allowing apps to be installed from sources external to the App Store.

Apple has long been resistant to ‘sideloading’ because of the potential security and privacy risks, but now, because of the Digital Markets Act, it looks like the company has no choice but to allow it — much to their chagrin.

In a statement announcing the changes, Phil Schiller, Apple Fellow said: “The changes we’re announcing today comply with the Digital Markets Act’s requirements in the European Union, while helping to protect EU users from the unavoidable increased privacy and security threats this regulation brings. Our priority remains creating the best, most secure possible experience for our users in the EU and around the world.”

These changes have in turn paved the way for Fortnite to return in European regions via the Epic Games Store. Fortnite announced the news via a post on the title’s official X account.

“Remember Fortnite on iOS? How bout we bring that back?” the post reads. The social media post also came with a stark warning to Apple, with the account addressing them directly. “Apple,” the post added, ” the world is watching.”

Featured Image: Photo by William Hook on Unsplash 

Charlotte Colombo

Freelance Journalist

Charlotte Colombo is a freelance journalist with bylines in Metro.co.uk, Radio Times, The Independent, Daily Dot, Glamour, Stylist, and VICE among others. She most recently worked as a Staff Writer for entertainment outlet The Digital Fix for two years and, prior to that, worked with Business Insider and Dexerto on their digital culture desks. She’s also appeared on BBC Radio 5 and The Guardian podcast to share her expertise on technology, influencers, and niche internet subcultures. She holds an MA in Magazine Journalism from City, University of London and has been freelancing for three years. She has a wide range of specialties including technology, digital culture, entertainment, lifestyle, and neurodiversity.’

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