'Fortnite' returns to iPhone on Xbox Cloud Gaming with no subscription required

AppleInsider

A touch-friendly version of "Fortnite" returns to the iPhone thanks to an Epic Games and Xbox Cloud Gaming partnership.

Play 'Fortnite' on your iPhone using Xbox Cloud Gaming

The mobile version of "Fortnite" hasn't been available on iOS or iPadOS since Apple kicked the app from the App Store in August 2020. Dedicated fans had workarounds to play the PC version of the game through services like GeForce Now, but a touch optimized version had remained elusive until now.

Xbox has partnered with Epic Games to bring the new touch-friendly version of "Fortnite" to browsers for free. That means anyone on iOS, iPadOS, Android, or even Windows PC can navigate to the Xbox Cloud Gaming website and play without a subscription.

This is a surprising move by Epic Games, considering the company had previously announced it didn't intend on working with Xbox since it saw the cloud gaming service as a competitor. Now, this partnership offers the first mobile-first version of the game for iPhone since it was kicked off of the platform.

It isn't clear why Epic Games changed its mind, but it may be due to the extended delays with launching the touch-friendly version on GeForce Now. While the PC version could be streamed from GeForce Now, it was reliant on the awkward control adaptions made for playing PC games on a phone.

In January 2022, Nvidia announced that a mobile-friendly version of "Fortnite" would enter beta testing on the platform. The beta test is still active in May with no signs of an impending launch.

The touch-friendly version is optimized for playing on mobile, but players can still connect a controller like the DualSense from Sony or the Backbone One built specifically for iPhone.

The new Xbox Cloud Gaming version of "Fortnite" may be the easiest to access and most mobile optimized version of the game available to players so far. All you need is an Xbox account to log in.

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Cesar Battistini Maziero

Backstabbing. Sad Microsoft, just sad.

leavingthebigg

I wonder what the revenue share is between Epic and Microsoft?

Also, Epic SHOULD realize Microsoft IS a competitor not a partner. Microsoft is using Epic to learn how to optimize its own games for Xbox Cloud. As soon as Microsoft feels comfortable with streaming its own games Epic will be pushed aside. Anyone remember how Microsoft created and promoted Play for Sure? 

genovelle

So, it can be done in a browser. Apple is cool with that. It means they are not using Apple APIs, servers, or support channels to bring this game to Apple users. Sounds like easy win x4 

hucom2000

This may be a stupid question, but I actually don’t see it: how do they make anywhere close the money the iOS App made if it’s free?

crowley

Cesar Battistini Maziero said:

Backstabbing. Sad Microsoft, just sad.

It's gaming in a browser, something Microsoft have been working on for ages; I doubt Microsoft even considered the Apple-Epic tiff, and this doesn't impact it at all.

crowley

hucom2000 said:

This may be a stupid question, but I actually don’t see it: how do they make anywhere close the money the iOS App made if it’s free?

The Fortnite app on iOS was always free too, they make money on in app purchases.

Not totally clear what Microsoft are getting out of it.  I guess they value the publicity enough.

danvm

genovelle said:

So, it can be done in a browser. Apple is cool with that. It means they are not using Apple APIs, servers, or support channels to bring this game to Apple users. Sounds like easy win x4 

I'm not sure how is an easy win when Apple is getting nothing from a service that has 25M subscribers.  

mpantone

hucom2000 said:

This may be a stupid question, but I actually don’t see it: how do they make anywhere close the money the iOS App made if it’s free?

Cosmetics.

A lot of today's games have this revenue model. Free-to-play but cosmetics cost extra. Selecting a character with standard armor costs nothing, if you want pink armor and fuzzy pink cat ears on your helmet, you pay. Valorant is one such title for PC that has this business model.

I don't recall ever paying for Fortnite (the base game) when it ran natively on iOS/iPadOS.

mpantone

crowley said:

hucom2000 said:

This may be a stupid question, but I actually don’t see it: how do they make anywhere close the money the iOS App made if it’s free?

The Fortnite app on iOS was always free too, they make money on in app purchases.

Not totally clear what Microsoft are getting out of it.  I guess they value the publicity enough.

The most likely scenario would be some sort of (confidential) revenue sharing agreement between Microsoft and Epic Games (in-game purchases).

Also if Fortnite is magnet content to get people to try Xbox Cloud Gaming, new users might look around and say "hey, this service has a bunch of other games that I'd pay to play." A lot of these subscription game services bring in new games monthly.

Xbox tends to cycle in titles for several months before moving them out. That gives subscribers a chance to become more acquainted with a highly rated game but also persuade them to spend time trying to finish the game before it disappears.

dav

danvm said:

I'm not sure how is an easy win when Apple is getting nothing from a service that has 25M subscribers.  

Those 25M subscribers will stay in the Apple ecosystem?

harrykatsaros

Burying the lead here… Doesn’t XBOX charge the exact same 30% cut that Apple does? This is not going to play well for Epic in any ongoing/future litigation.