It’s been a crazy 24 hours for Epic Games. After filing a lawsuit against Apple, Epic Games is suing Google for similar reasons. Google has quickly followed Apple by removing Fortnite from their storefront after the company discovered that Epic have broken store guidelines by offering players a way to buy V-Bucks from the publisher directly and not through the official Google storefront. Fornite is currently still available on Android devices, although only through third-party storefronts.
There’s even speculation that Epic Games broke store guidelines on both the Google and Apple stores deliberately. Both companies take a 30% cut of all purchases made through their respective storefronts, including money spent on microtransactions. Epic has stopped both companies from taking this cut by offering fans a way to pay the publisher directly. They’ve had similar issues with Steam, claiming the company hurts small indie developers by taking a large cut of their earnings. Epic Games has had this anti-monopoly viewpoint for a while, and their actions over the last 24 hours has only reconfirmed their stance.
Epic Games has been ready for a response from both corporate giants. The publisher had a satirical video ready in the wings, rather crudely named Nineteen-Eighty-Fortnite. In the video, it looks like Epic are rallying their fanbase to put pressure on Apple and now Google. Accompanied with the hashtag, #FreeFortnite, Epic Games have done their best to make themselves the underdog and portray Apple and Google as the villains. This is a constantly changing story at the moment, so keep your eyes on KeenGamer for more updates.
