Fortnite has some ‘bad news’ for iPhone, Android users

Fortnite players with the game installed on their iPhones, Android smartphones and Mac computers will soon face more restrictions owing to the ‘legacy’ version of the game. Players will not be able to use V-Bucks – the in-game currency – to buy in-game items and there’s also an age restriction in place now.
Fortnite ‘restrictions’ on iPhones, Android
In a Twitter thread, Fortnite announced that starting January 30, all players using the August 2020 build will no longer be able to spend V-Bucks and must be over 18 to play. The company says it wants to update the game with current services, including parental controls, but they are unable to because of the ‘restrictions’ on Fortnite by Apple and Google.

“Beginning January 30, Fortnite players using the August 2020 13.40 app build previously available on iOS, Mac, and Google Play can no longer spend V-Bucks and must be over 18 to play,” Fortnite’s service update handle said in a tweet.
“We want all versions of our games to use the current suite of Epic Online Services including parental controls, purchasing defaults, and parental verification features. We are not able to update the app on these platforms given Apple and Google’s restrictions on Fortnite,” it added.
Fortnite ban
Fortnite was removed from the App Store and Google Play store in August 2020 after it flouted one of their app store rules. The tech giants get up to 30% cut from the revenue generated from app stores as well as in-app purchases. Epic Games started its own in-app payment scheme in Fortnite, essentially violating Apple and Google’s app store guidelines.

Interestingly, the development comes three weeks after Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney sparked speculation that Fortnite will return to Apple iOS devices in 2023.
Gamers still have multiple ways to play the updated game on Mac PCs and iPhones using Nvidia’s GeForce Now streaming service. Android smartphone users can play the game on Xbox Cloud Gaming.