Fortnite Players Are Still Playing The Lifeless iOS Version

There are two parallel universes within Fortnite now. One just got a new season full of Marvel superheroes like Thor, Iron Man, and Wolverine while the other is stuck in the past. Most Fortnite players have enjoyed Season 4 since it launched earlier this week--Apple and Android players have been stuck in Season 3 with limited to access to most of what the game has to offer. Despite this, they haven't given up on the game.

"Goodbye, comrades," said iOS player and Redditor LegoRuby360. "We will see you on the other side, someday."

The iOS and Android version of Fortnite lost a host of features since Epic Games began feuding with Apple and Google. Mobile players can no longer utilize cross-play, the battle pass, career stats, team rumble, party royale, or tournaments. They can, however, purchase cheaper V-Bucks. And that is the primary reason why the game was removed in the first place.

On August 13, Epic Games lowered the cost of V-Bucks and introduced direct payments to the mobile versions. This let the North Carolina based studio go around Apple's 30% cut of revenue, pushing the tech giant to remove Fortnite from the App Store altogether (Google did the same with the Google Play Store shortly after). Epic responded by suing both companies. Now Fortnite is unplayable on iOS and Android devices and players don't know when that'll change.

Players say that the games they hop into have more bots than before since the player base shrank after cross-play was shut off. Bots were already a big part of Fortnite's standard modes, but mobile players can no long connect with other console players in any of the game's modes. Cross-play is a big part of Fortnite and matches may have more computer-controlled enemies without it.

"Bland. Stuck in time with no content," said Redditor watchmefallll when asked about how the game feels on iOS. "Just a Battle Royale with bots and angry/sad people."

iOS and Android players still have access to higher chest spawns, Season 4 lowered the spawn rate for the glowing item receptacle, and they also still tactical shotgun that was removed in all other versions. None of the recently-unvaulted items, like the scoped assault rifle, that returned to the game are in the mobile version. Dr. Doom's new named location, along with all the Marvel-specific map changes, are also unavailable.

The next court hearing in the case between Apple and Epic isn't until the end of September, so it could be a while before this issue is resolved. Neither company is letting up in the fight and Fortnite players are caught in the middle. Maybe they can play another battle royale, like Fall Guys or Call of Duty: Warzone, in the meantime.