Epic Games said on Monday it was seeking to block Apple’s removal of Fortnite from its app store and has asked a judge to prevent any retaliatory action against its other games in the store.
In its filing, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said Fortnite had 350 million registered users as of June 2020, but that Apple’s move will stop them from getting the updates needed to play the game’s most popular mode — a “battle royale” match of up 100 players where the last survivor wins.
“Apple’s actions will ‘break’ Fortnite for millions of existing players,” Sweeney wrote, saying Epic updates the game every few weeks. “Because iOS users can no longer update the game, they will be unable to play Fortnite with most other players, who will have the then-current version available on other platforms” such as PCs.
The videogame maker also said Apple will terminate all of Epic Games’ developer accounts and cut it off from its development tools starting on 28 August.
In addition to making its own titles, Epic also makes tools for other game developers such as the Unreal Engine, which helps game developers create 3D graphics. The tool is also used by medical imaging companies and car designers and is used by millions of developers, Epic said.
In its filing, Epic alleged that if Apple cuts off its access to Apple’s developers, it will be unable to keep offering the Unreal Engine for Mac and iPhone operating systems, which would in turn affect hundreds of game titles. Some of the games, such as PUBG, have hundreds of millions of players.