Epic Games recently promised to resubmit the hugely popular game Fortnite to the U.S. App Store, and it carried through with the promise Friday. It’s now up to Apple whether the application will be approved.
The move came after a U.S. judge blasted Apple for willfully violating the court’s 2021 order, and ordered Apple to comply with earlier App Store changes effective immediately. These are changes that Epic fought for, and relate to Apple policies that got Fortnite banned in the first place.
Fortnite could return to the App Store… maybe
Apple and Epic Games have been engaged in a legal battle for years. Epic dragged Apple to court claiming unfair and monopolistic App Store practices. In 2021, a court ruled against Apple and ordered it to allow developers to point customers to external payment options in their apps.
Apple complied with the ruling via its External Link Purchase Link Entitlement. However, it still required developers to pay 12% to 27% commission on such transactions. The court ruled on Wednesday that this was a willful violation on Apple’s part.
Soon after Judge Gonzalez Rogers’s decision, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney announced on X that the company will resubmit Fortnite to the U.S. iOS App Store “next week.”
A week later, the game company carried through, submitting Fortnite to Apple for approval on May 9.
We’ve submitted Fortnite to Apple for review so we can launch on the App Store in the U.S.
— Fortnite (@Fortnite) May 9, 2025
Currently, only EU iPhone users can download Fortnite, and only through the AltStore PAL. Epic Games cannot list the game on the U.S. App Store because Apple handed it an extended ban for its “duplicitous conduct” back in 2021. That’s why Epic Games had to use its EU account to resubmit the game for approval.
Apple confirmed it will appeal Judge Gonzalez’s latest ruling. But for now, Epic Games still made a try to bring Fortnite back to the U.S. App Store after a gap of four years.
Will Apple accept Tim Sweeney’s peace proposal?
He also put forward a peace proposal for Apple. The company must extend the “court’s friction-free, Apple-tax-free framework worldwide.” In return, Epic Games will list Fortnite on the App Store globally. Plus, it will drop all current and future litigation around the subject.
Since Apple plans to appeal the court’s decision, it’s unlikely to accept Sweeney’s peace proposal.
Rajesh has been closely following and writing about the latest happenings in the world of mobile for nearly a decade now. While he prefers Android, he does not deny the superiority of Apple’s products and ecosystem.
