Following Apple’s announcement to allow third-party app stores for iOS users in the European Union, Epic Games has confirmed that it will be bringing Fortnite to the iPhone and iPad in Europe later this year.

This will be done through the launch of a new Epic Mobile Game Store. This marks the official return of the game to Apple’s platform after it was removed in August 2020. The reason for the removal was that Epic was offering discounts for payments directly to its own store, rather than through Apple’s App Store and Google Play, which charged a 30 per cent fee. iOS users in Europe previously had to rely on Xbox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now to play Fortnite, but that will soon be a thing of the past.

The return of Fortnite to iOS in Europe is thanks to the EU’s new Digital Markets Act, which comes into force on 7 March. This law allows developers to accept payments and distribute apps outside of the App Store, subject to a new approval process from Apple called “notarisation” to identify malicious apps. Apple is also introducing a new fee structure that should be more favourable for most developers publishing in European markets.

Although the upcoming changes will allow Epic Games to start earning money from iOS users again (at least in Europe), founder and CEO Tim Sweeney criticised Cupertino for “new junk fees for downloads and new Apple fees for payments they don’t process”. Sweeney was also later critical of the details, particularly the conditions for requesting authorisation from Apple. He questioned under what antitrust theory it was acceptable for a monopolist to decide which companies were allowed to compete with it and under what conditions. “Apple is making a mockery of free competition in the market,” Sweeney said in an article on X. This angry reaction comes as no surprise, especially after the US Supreme Court this month rejected Epic’s appeal accusing Apple of violating federal antitrust laws.