Fortnite is coming to the EU-only alternative iOS app store AltStore, Epic has said. But at the same time, it is pulling its flagship game from the Galaxy Store in protest at Samsung’s side-loading policy.
In a blog published today, Epic also re-iterated that the Epic Games Store is coming to Android worldwide and iOS in the EU “soon”. As it stated back in March, its store fee is 12%, consistent with its existing PC storefront – but significantly below Apple and Google’s 30%.
The arrival of Fortnite will boost AltStore significantly – it’ll be the only legitimate way to play Fortnite natively on iOS since the game was removed from the App Store in 2020. AltStore is arguably the most notable alternative store to arrive on iOS in the EU to date, after the Digital Markets Act came into effect back in March.
It is developed by indie creator Riley Testut, who has also published Delta, one of the first game emulators Apple approved for sale on the App Store. As we reported back in April, it quickly topped the App Store charts at release, but nonetheless operates in slightly grey legal area.
Epic has chosen AltStore to distribute its flagship game because it says it is one of the app stores that it believes gives “all developers a great deal.”
Samsung’s Galaxy Store does not, however. Epic said it is pulling Fortnite from the store “in protest of Samsung’s anticompetitive decision to block side-loading by default on Samsung Android devices and as a result of public revelations in the US Epic v Google lawsuit of ongoing Google proposals to Samsung to restrain competition in the market for Android app distribution.”
Explaining its latest mobile game store strategy a little further, Epic continued:
“We’ve long been advocating for the rights of stores to exist and compete fairly on iOS and Android, and progress is spreading across the globe, in the form of Europe’s DMA, similar laws in the UK and Japan, regulatory investigations around the world, and victory in the Epic v Google litigation in the US.”
“As operators of the Epic Games Store, we’ll take advantage of this opportunity to bring all developers a great deal on our store. And as game developers ourselves, we want to do everything we can to support other stores that strive to bring all developers their own great deals.”
