Fortnite is once again playable on iOS devices. But that’s not because Apple relented and allowed Epic Games to list it on the App Store. It’s because Nvidia’s GeForce Now program has made the game playable via its browser-based cloud streaming technology.
It’s an interesting alliance of developers who have reason to bristle at Apple’s App Store curation choices. Epic Games infamously lost its legal attempt to crack open the App Store for all developers (it’s appealing), and Nvidia found itself unable to list a GeForce Now app because it violated Apple’s rule about game stores within its own store (Roblox continues to skirt that line by offering “experiences”).
There is still some platform fuzziness affiliated with this move. Players setting up GeForce Now accounts to continue their mobile Fortnite adventures should expect to play against mouse-and-keyboard PC players, not other players using mobile touch controls.
Apple’s decision to not allow cloud streaming apps on the App Store has also impacted Microsoft and Google with their Xbox Cloud Streaming and Stadia platforms. What would it take for Apple to allow these developers to launch formal apps for their games on its store? Only time will tell.