Epic’s ongoing lawsuit against Apple’s App Store remains unresolved. Mr. Kreiner has said in an Apple antitrust case deposition that the Microsoft xCloud service is competitive with Epic’s PC offerings. The Epic vice president effectively confirmed Epic is not especially interested in releasing Fortnite for Xbox Cloud Gaming. Fortnite is available on GeForce Now for Nvidia cloud gaming to bypass Apple App Store.

In a deposition for that lawsuit, Epic vice president Mr. Kreiner has revealed why Fortnite is not available on xCloud. XCloud is a former code name that refers to the Microsoft Xbox Cloud Gaming service the big M launched in 2020. That is a streaming service available for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Subscribers that enables players to play Xbox games on mobile devices. Fortnite is not available for xCloud.

Why Fortnite is not available for xCloud

So, why is Fortnite not available for Microsoft’s xCloud service? That was the question put to Mr. Kreiner in a recent Apple vs. Epic lawsuit deposition. Epic’s vice president replied as follows, We viewed Microsoft’s efforts with xCloud to be competitive with our PC offerings. That answer confirmed Epic does not want Fortnite to be available on xCloud. Epic has snubbed Microsoft’s xCloud in favor of the Nvidia cloud gaming service. Players can still play Fortnite on their iPhones via the GeForce Now iOS app for Nvidia cloud. The big difference between xCloud and GeForce Now is that Microsoft does not permit rival game stores on xCloud. Thus, all xCloud transactions must go through the big M. In contrast, all revenue for Fortnite purchases on GeForce Now goes to Epic.

The Epic vs. Apple antitrust case

So, it seems Epic is not happy with the likes of Apple and the big M taking a cut from Fortnite’s in-game purchases. The Epic vs. Apple antitrust case began because Epic refused to comply with the big A’s 30 percent surcharge (known as App Store tax) on purchases made through the App Store. Thus, comparisons between xCloud and the Apple App Store can be made. Epic likely hopes the result of its antitrust case with Apple will enable the company to implement its own payment systems within Apple and Microsoft app stores instead of complying with in-app purchase platforms. If Epic wins its lawsuit, Fortnite will likely become available on the App Store again. However, that does not necessarily mean Epic will reconsider making that game available for Xbox Cloud Gaming.

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