Why Apple (iOS) Fortnite ban is all but useless as of today

Back in August 2020, Apple banned Fortnite on iOS devices. Players could no longer play the battle royale game on their Macbooks or iMacs. Even the mobile version of the game was removed from the Apple Store on iPhones and iPads.

Almost two years down the line, the ban on Epic's Battle Royale game is almost useless. Even after the courts heavily favored Apple in the anti-trust suit, Epic Games emerged as the real winner in the trial.

Even though players still cannot natively access Fortnite Mobile on iOS devices, they can still play the game through an alternate method. Thanks to cloud gaming services like GeForce Now, xCloud, etc., players no longer have to worry about Apple's ban on Epic Games' battle royale title.

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How to play Fortnite on Apple (iOS) in 2022

Following the ban, iOS players were desperate to find a way to play the battle royale game on their Apple devices. Unfortunately, the only way possible was if players hadn't uninstalled the game after the ban or if they had added it to their App Store. Sadly, there weren't many players who could access the game.

For many months, the only hope players had was for Epic Games to win the court trial against Apple. When that failed to happen, players thought that they would never be able to play the Battle Royale game on their iOS devices ever again. Thankfully, with the help of cloud technology, that is no longer needed.

Players can now play Fortnite Mobile on Apple (iOS) devices using apps like GeForce Now and xCloud. Since these cloud gaming platforms emulate a Windows platform connected to a cloud server, Apple doesn't recognize it as players playing thebattle royale game. Clearly, with this technology, the ban is all but useless as of today.

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Will Fortnite ever return to Apple's App Store?

It is hard to say at this point if Apple will allow Epic Games to list its apps on the App Store again. Even after largely winning the anti-trust suit, Apple has decided to file an appeal against some parts of the judgment. Unless a final verdict on those is given out, Epic Games has no option but to wait.

Even if Apple agrees to allow Epic Games to list its battle royale game on the App Store, the studio will not do so because it will have to pay a very high commission on micro-transactions. Fortunately, even if a deal between the two parties is not reached, players still have the option to play the game using cloud services.