Fortnite is blocked on iOS worldwide following latest Apple delay
By Marco Wutz
Fortnite is unavailable on iOS devices worldwide, as Apple has neglected to review the latest version of the title submitted by Epic Games.
“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,” the company stated via Fortnite’s social media accounts.
Epic Games announced its intention to bring Fortnite back to iOS in the United States last week following its triumph over Apple in a drawn-out legal battle concerning the so-called Apple Tax.
The popular battle royale game was set to return this week, but Epic had to delay the move due to Apple repeatedly ghosting its app submission.
Now even players in the European Union can’t access the game, since Epic can’t release an unreviewed app on iOS systems even through its own store.
Meanwhile, several Fortnite knock-offs – some no more than predatory ad software – are freely available on the App Store after successfully having been approved by Apple.
Epic Games’ Tim Sweeney stated that “Apple’s App Review team should be free to review all submitted apps promptly and accept or reject according to the plain language of their guidelines. App Review shouldn’t be weaponized by senior management as a tool to delay or obstruct competition, due process, or free speech.”
He’s also been responding to a post by Apple’s Tim Cook – one celebrating Apple’s accessibility, ironically enough – with “Hi Tim. How about if you let our mutual customers access Fortnite? Just a thought.”
Apple has been silent about the back-and-forth throughout all of this and continued to roll out its fearmongering campaign about third-party stores and payment systems, including displaying red warning signs on any apps using non-Apple payment solutions.
Though unavailable on iOS, Fortnite v35.10 is out on all other platforms now.
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