Epic Confirms Fortnite Will Return to iPads, but Only in the EU

Epic Games has announced plans to bring back the iPad version of Fortnite, but it will only be available for countries in the European Union (EU).

In a post on X/Twitter, the Epic Games newsroom announced that EU Fortnite players who miss playing the free-to-play battle royale natively on Apple’s tablet will soon be able to play it again. The statement follows a recent announcement by the European Commission that it now requires Apple to have iPadOS comply with the same rules iOS must abide by as part of the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Epic had already said it planned to bring the iOS version of Fortnite back to the EU App Store thanks to the DMA. This comes as part of a wider effort to launch the Epic Games Store on Android and iOS in the EU, with Epic boss Tim Sweeney previously stating the company’s ultimate goal is to become the “number one multi-platform software store, on the foundation of payment competition, 0%-12% fees, and exclusive games like Fortnite.”

At the State of Unreal event last month, Epic shared some new details on the mobile version of the Epic Games Store, revealing that mobile developers that use its third-party storefront would benefit “from the same fair terms” found on the main Epic Games Store. This includes an 88/12 revenue share, and developers can keep 100% of the revenue it earns by using its own payment system for in-app purchases.

Fortnite was removed from all mobile devices nearly four years ago after Epic rolled out a direct-pay system in-game. The outcome resulted in cheaper V-Bucks for players; however, it violated Apple and Google’s app store policies, with both companies removing the app from their respective digital storefronts. Shortly after Fortnite was banned from both app stores, Epic announced it was suing both companies, with varying outcomes.

Since the removal, those who wanted to play Fortnite on the go but did not have a Nintendo Switch or a portable gaming PC like the Steam Deck were required to stream Fortnite on either Xbox Cloud Gaming or Nvidia GeForce Now. Epic has yet to announce a fresh release date for Fortnite on mobile.

Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.