Today Epic Games is celebrating the return of Fortnite on Apple’s iOS, at least in one region, the European Union.
Following the enactment of the Digital Markets Act, Apple has been forced to let Epic Games publish its Epic Games Store on iOS, and with it, those who live in the EU, can download and play the ultra-popular battle royale game and aspiring metaverse Fortnite.
Of course, Apple doesn’t appear to be happy about this defeat and has done practically everything in its power to place obstacles in the path of Fortnite’s return, including suspending Epic’s developer account only to be forced to reinstate it almost immediately after the European watchdogs gave it a very disapproving stare.
It has been roughly four years after the removal of Fortnite from the App Store, but if you are in the European Union, you can finally join the game again, albeit you can’t download it from the App Store itself.
You have to follow the procedure below, and download (courtesy of Epic’s own post)
- You must pass Apple’s region check for European Union customers. (This is a check from Apple to verify you live where you live.)
- Your device must be on iOS 17.6 or higher.
- You must be using the Safari browser.
- On your iPhone, download the Epic Games Store using the big blue “Get it on iPhone” button on fortnite.com/download!
- If you meet all the requirements, press “Continue”!
- You’ll see a pop-up saying your device isn’t set up to allow marketplaces by “Epic Games.” What to do? Don’t close your browser — simply head over to Settings and do the following:
- Near the top of the Settings, tap the banner that says “Allow Marketplace From Epic Games.”
- Choose “Allow.”
- Re-open the browser and return to the window you were on. Press “Install,” then on the next screen, tap “Install App Marketplace.” Tap “Continue” on the confirmation pop-up.
- Now that you have the Epic Games Store on your device, select the Fortnite app and tap “Install.”
- Lastly, play Fortnite for free and have fun!
That’s certainly quite a lot of red tape, but you need to go through it only once, at least until you buy your next iPhone. Do keep in mind that this doesn’t yet work on iPadOS. Epic says it’s working on it.
Incidentally, if you play on the Fortnite mobile app, you can unlock the Katalina skin (portrayed below) and more by completing a few XP-based quests as follows until November.
- Earn 25,000 XP to unlock the Tactical Kat Wrap.
- Earn 50,000 XP to unlock the Kat Claws Pickaxe.
- Earn 75,000 XP to unlock the Katalina’s Kit Bag Back Bling.
- Earn 100,000 XP to unlock the Katalina Outfit.
Do keep in mind that you can partake on Android as well, for those of us who would rather cut our own arm before giving Apple any money or simply live outside of the European Union.
If you happen to travel outside of the European Union, you can continue to play and update the app for 30 days before Apple gleefully blocks you from doing so.
If you’re not in the European Union at all, you’re completely blocked from installing the app. Epic says it’s working with regulators around the world to force the floodgates open as it did in Europe, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Incidentally, Epic Games has just launched a brand new season for Fortnite, focusing on Marvel’s popular villain, Doctor Doom.
The developer is also fighting another legal battle against Google, now with the support of the FTC.