Availability of the Fortnite mobile on the Google Play Store
Developed by Epic Games, Fortnite has been a sensational battle royale game ever since it reached the market in 2017. Being able to play on-the-go made the mobile version especially appealing to its players. However, one will notice that Fortnite Mobile is noticeably not in the Google Play Store, which begs one question: **Why is Fortnite Mobile not available in the Google Play Store?
For the rest of the blog, we'll go into detail about why that decision was made and what it means for Android users-let alone the gaming industry as a whole.
Epic Games vs. Google Play Store: The Battle of App Stores
The reason Fortnite Mobile is not in the Google Play Store is because Epic Games and Google did not agree on the terms and conditions used in the distribution of apps. To be more concrete, it's about the revenue-sharing model imposed by Google.
1. Google's Revenue Cut
Google generally takes a 30% cut regarding applications made through their store for all in-app purchases and sales. This has been quite standard for a couple of years now, both in the Apple App Store and within Google Play. However, Epic Games took a view that such a percentage did not make much sense and was not in the interest of the application developers.
Epic Games loves to buck the trend of popular opinion in gaming business practices, so finally in August of 2020, they did. Following up with the heavy fees coming from Google, Epic Games controversially bypassed the Google Play Store altogether and distributed Fortnite Mobile through their own channels.
2. Epic Games Direct Distribution
So, instead of taking Fortnite Mobile through the Google Play Store, Epic opted to distribute the game itself, directly through its website, thereby sidestepping giving Google a 30% cut from Fortnite's in-app purchases. In other words, by not going through the Play Store, Epic Games can keep more of the revenues flowing from the game.
Players who want to download the Fortnite game to their Android devices will need to do so manually from the official Epic Games website. In many ways, this may prove to be more cumbersome than simply downloading an app from the Play Store, but for many Fortnite enthusiasts, it's well worth going the extra mile to avoid Google's cut.
3. Legal Battle Between Epic Games and Google
This also developed a legal issue between the company and Google due to the fact that Epic Games wanted to bypass the Play Store. Due to the 30% commission taken from the developers, Epic Games filed a lawsuit against Apple and Google in 2020 over its anti-competitive behavior.
Epic Games said that is unfair and dampens competition because developers have to use the stores and pay their exorbitantly high commission fees. Attention from media outlets to the lawsuit was high, with many putting the limelight on the app store monopolies.
For Fortnite players, this simply meant the game was no longer available on the Play Store. To the untrained eye, this may seem like a simple business decision, but it forms part of a wider movement in the tech world to break up app store monopolies and renegotiate better revenue-sharing terms for developers.
Consequences of Fortnite Mobile Not Being Available on the Google Play Store
1. A Shift in Mobile Gaming Distribution
Setting this kind of precedent, the decision of Epic Games to bypass the store had sent ripples in the mobile world of gaming. Other developers began to take notice of the potential to distribute their games independently and hang onto more of the profits. The discussion is broadening about whether app stores such as Google Play and the Apple App Store are too restrictive and monopolistic.
While Fortnite is a huge title with a very devoted community, smaller devs will find it significantly more challenging to convince users to download their games out of the Play Store. So far, due to that reason, most developers have preferred distributing apps via official app stores just to make sure they reach the widest possible audience.
2. Security Concerns for Players
The one disadvantage of downloading Fortnite from the Epic Games store and not through the Google Play Store, however, is for security risks. The Google Play Store provides additional security to the user, via Play Protect, a program in place that checks for malware and other security risks before an application is installed on your device.
In directly downloading Fortnite from Epic Games, players bypass the feature and experience much larger security risks in case they get complacent with their actions. Although Epic Games also adopts appropriate measures with regard to maintaining the integrity of the game, users should still remain very cautious about the dangers of downloading applications from third-party sources.
3. Google Play Store Exposure
One of the greatest advantages of availability through the Google Play Store is visibility and exposure. The Store is the number one destination for Android users to locate and install any application. The visibility of an application on the store will surely push the downloads in millions. By not being on the Play Store, Fortnite misses out on this natural exposure, and those players that might be interested in playing simply may not notice that it is available on Android.
However, Fortnite has grown in name such that its absence from the Play Store did nothing to hamper its success. Epic Games still attracts loads of players from other avenues, which include social media, word of mouth, and online communities.
Fortnite on Android: What's Next
For now, Fortnite Mobile remains unavailable to download from the Google Play Store, and it's anyone's guess as to when - or if - Epic Games and Google will kiss and make up. It's worth noting, however, that Epic Games hasn't entirely abandoned Android. The game is most certainly still playable on Android devices; it's just a wee bit more fiddly to install, all things considered.
This might be the turning point of how applications are being distributed to mobile devices-the long-dragged legal battle of Epic Games against Google. Changes in the way mobile app stores operate, probably bringing down the fees developers have to pay, could come out if Epic Games emerges successfully in protesting the policies of Google, opening doors for other games to follow suit.
For now, the enthusiasts will have to go through the Epic Games' website to get Fortnite Mobile on Android. This might be a little inconvenience compared to getting it from Play Store directly but well, that's the cost one pays for enjoying the game on mobile devices.
Conclusion
Fortnite Mobile is not in the Google Play Store because of a combination of Epic Games' desire to avoid the 30% commission fee and their ongoing legal fight with Google. Instead, Epic Games has gone down the path of independent distribution via their website-a move that has triggered a broader discussion about the equity of the revenue models of the app stores and their consequences on developers.
Inconvenient as the unavailability of Fortnite Mobile on the Google Play Store might be for some players, it really reflects the new frontier in mobile gaming and application distribution. As the legal battle goes on, most definitely, more changes may come into view as far as game distribution goes on the mobile platforms, for the benefit of developers and users alike.
If you happen to be a Fortnite fan, well, don't be afraid: the game is still on Android, just not via Play Store.