Source: Fortnite / Epic Games
Thursday (Aug.13), the gaming community was thrown for a loop after Apple decided to boot Fortnite from its App store. Not too soon after, Google followed suit removing the highly-addictive game from its Google Play store. Now the game studio has clapped back at both tech giants.
#FreeFortnite, that’s what Epic Games is screaming after both companies were not feeling the fact the studio decided it was tired of paying the 30% revenue cut both Apple and Google get for in-game purchases. The decision to remove Fornite from the App Store and Google Play Store came immediately after Epic Games announced that players will get a 20% discount when they purchase the game’s in-game currency, V-Bucks, directly from the Epic Games store.
Defending its decision, Google stated:
“The open Android ecosystem lets developers distribute apps through multiple app stores. For game developers who choose to use the Play Store, we have consistent policies that are fair to developers and keep the store safe for users. While Fortnite remains available on Android, we can no longer make it available on Play because it violates our policies. However, we welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions with Epic and bring Fortnite back to Google Play.”
Epic Games rolled its eyes at both Apple and Google and slapped both companies with separate lawsuits, both alleging anti-trust allegations. Epic Games let Apple know its dead serious about this #FreeFortnite movement by dropping a video featuring characters from the gaming mocking the company that Jobs built’s famous 1984 Super Bowl commercial and calling the company out for its monopolistic actions.
At the end of the video, a quote from the company rolls on the screen stating:
“Epic Games has defied the App Store monopoly. In retaliation, Apple is blocking Fortnite from a billion devices. Join the fight to stop 2020 from becoming “1984.”
Let the “store wars” begin. Who are you siding with during this virtual tussle? Let us know in the comment section below.
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Photo: Fortnite / Epic Games
