The popular online game Fortnite has been missing from iPhone and iPad ever since August 2020, when Apple removed it from the App Store over in-app purchase violations. Now the game is once again available for free on iOS devices, thanks to the magic of cloud gaming.

Microsoft revealed in a blog post on Thursday, “as part of our mission to bring the joy and community of gaming to players wherever they are and to make gaming more accessible to people around the world, I’m excited to announce that we’ve partnered with Epic Games to make Fortnite available on supported browser-enabled devices for free with Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta) in 26 countries.”

You still need a (free Microsoft) account for logging in, and a good enough internet connection for cloud streaming, but you don’t need to pay for Xbox Game Pass or the game itself. The cloud version supports external Bluetooth controllers, but you don’t even need that to play — Fortnite on Xbox Cloud Gaming also has touch controls. The above video mentions that “server availability and wait times vary,” so the game might not be accessible if many people are playing at the same time.

It’s worth noting that Fortnite was already available on Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service, which is also available on iPhone and iPad. However, iPhone and iPad access is still limited to a closed beta, and when it fully rolls out, the game might require a paid GeForce Now subscription like all other games on the platform.

Can’t believe in playing fortnite on my iPhone again aaahhhhh pic.twitter.com/D5JRkzD6iO

— NiteKnight (@NiteKnightZz) May 5, 2022

Just won a game of Fortnite… on my iPhone. Cloud streaming doesn’t make for the best gaming experience but it’ll probably be good enough for many players. pic.twitter.com/ktzOqd7Gen

— Matt Rix (@MattRix) May 5, 2022

Xbox Cloud Gaming usually requires an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, which costs $14.99 per month. That subscription includes access to “over 100 high-quality games,” which can be installed to Xbox consoles or Windows PCs, in addition to the cloud streaming functionality.

Fortnite was removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store in August 2020, after the company attempted to bypass Google and Apple’s payment systems for in-app purchases. Epic responded with lawsuits against both companies and a ‘Free Fortnite’ marketing campaign, which included a video mocking Apple’s 1984 Super Bowl commercial. The lawsuit against Apple ended in September 2021, with a judge ruling in favor of Apple on tine of ten counts, which Epic is attempting to appeal. Google’s trial with Epic isn’t expected to start until early 2023.

Source: Xbox News