Fortnite and the App Store
Epic Games has announced that the new season of Fortnite would not be available for players on iPhones, iPad, or Mac at this time. The news comes from the company’s Facebook page where they posted the news. “The upcoming Fortnite season has been indefinitely blocked on Apple devices, according to a statement from Apple. Apple is blocking Fortnite downloads from being able to run on their devices,” Epic Games states in its Facebook post. The developer made no mention of a specific reason behind the decision, only saying that they are working on other platforms. This post was later deleted by Facebook.
There had been mixed reactions to the news with some people lauding the announcement while others decried it as yet another example of Apple tightening the noose around apps that are not using their proprietary mobile platform. According to reports, the move came about after negotiations between Epic Games and Apple for a new payment system for in-app purchases collapsed. The new payment system would have allowed players to earn credits within the app and use them for in-game purchases without the need to leave the current page. However, talks between the two parties could not break a deal as Apple is holding firm on its policy of not allowing third-party companies to have an influence over the manner in which in-app purchases are made. It was then that Epic decided to drop the project.
The developer is free to make future applications using the Fortnite engine but he cannot currently have access to the iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch since these are not supported platforms on which to publish games. He can, however, continue to develop games for other platforms which are supported by his existing Engine. However, he has to make sure that his in-game user interface does not clash with the look and feel of the game being published through his own application since this could cause negative public relations. Although it may seem that the rules have been relaxed to some extent, this will only affect the quality of future games being made and therefore the profitability of the developer.
A recent update to the Fortnite drivers has also come up against Apple’s policies and guidelines and this time has introduced some restrictions for using the Fortnite networking API in iOS devices running on iOS 6. The restriction introduced states that any updates or downloads for the Fortnite engine must be done through the official ios iTunes store. Apple has not issued any formal warnings or issued formal guidelines in the past few months to developers who may want to use the Fortnite API from other mobile operating systems. They usually issue warnings that the software will only work with their devices and this is applicable to both paid and free downloads.
The developers behind the Fortnite game are not too bothered about this latest set of guidelines issued by Apple. They state that it is not a violation of the licensing agreement as Apple is just trying to protect its user’s rights. For the time being, it can be said that it is an unfortunate step taken by the giant company. However, there is no need to worry about this for now as Apple is also working on furthering its efforts to secure its position as the leading platform for mobile computing. A strong defense is being worked on in order to ensure that all devices that run iOS devices are supported by every Fortnite update and that it will support the next generation of iPhone and iPad devices in the future.
However, this issue has created a rather interesting space for developers of apps based on Fortnite. If they want to ensure that their app will continue to run on the iOS platform even after being banned, they need to find a way to get around the new Fortnite guidelines. This is where the idea of obtaining an iOS app via a proxy comes into play. The developers simply have to find an existing iOS app for Fortnite and use its code as a base for their own in-app portal. From here, they only need to make sure that they copy the code as much as possible and use this copied code to create an iOS app. Since this was already happening in the Fortnite community, there is no reason for them to believe that this new process won’t work as well in the case of an in-app portal as well.
In a recent interview, Hugo Barra, the creator of the popular augmented reality game, spoke about how his company, Fun Labs, will be looking to expand into Europe and Asia-Pacific in the future. He mentioned that one of the challenges that the company faces is keeping its existing brand in mind while also making sure that its new apps are as unique as possible. As it turns out, the company is currently working on a number of unique applications that it hopes to release across the different platforms. As a result, it may be a good idea for app developers to download the current version of the app and continue using it until it becomes obsolete. This would allow them to continue to promote their own brand on the market even after the app has been updated.
The Spotify spokesperson said that there are a number of ways that the company will continue to support its games in the future. Specifically, he mentioned that there are several upcoming free updates that will be released periodically, as well as several major game store events. These events, he continued, will enable players to get a chance to experience everything that the Fortnite game has to offer. While these events will likely become more popular as time goes on, they are one of the best ways for Fortnite players to keep in touch with the game maker.
