It's no secret that Fortnite is Epic's greatest moneymaker. The game is such a golden egg there are even golden eggs hidden in Fortnite, at least for now. With tie-ins for everything from music artists to Marvel, it's the cash chow that just keeps mooing.
However, Fortnite has been in the news lately for reasons entirely unrelated to its gameplay or content. Epic Games recently, and very much against Apple's wishes, released a payment method that let players bypass Apple Pay and Google Pay when purchasing V-Bucks. As a result, Apple removed Fortnite from the App and Play Stores, with Google doing the same on Android devices. Epic Games promptly filed lawsuits against both companies.
Epic has very deliberately created the image of itself as the underdog in this fight, painting the image of the small developer fighting a major tech company. While there are definite problems with this image, no one can deny that Epic has capitalized on it in a very efficient way. Very soon after the lawsuit was filed, Epic released a Fortnnite Anti-Apple advertisement poking fun at an ad that Apple had created in the 80s as a parody of 1984. One of the characters from that ad, named the Tart Tycoon, was set to be a skin players can obtain, but seemingly everyone who has met the requirements still doesn't have the skin.
The Tart Tycoon skin was offered as one of several prizes to players competing in the Free Fortnite Cup, a tie-in to the Apple mocking ad. Other prizes included hats, phones, and even video game consoles, but the new skin at least has proved difficult to redeem. Despite players obtaining the requisite prize points for getting the skin, it seems no players actually have it. These fans of Fortnite have taken to Twitter to make their displeasure known, and it seems to be a ubiquitous problem for those trying to unlock the skin.
Why exactly the skin is so hotly desired is anyone's guess at this point. Epic's campaign to stir up resentment towards Apple was carefully thought through, and it is utilizing Fortnite's playerbase to wage a war of public opinion. The removal has also clearly hurt some players' options for playing Fortnite, namely those who used Apple or Google mobile devices to do so. In fact, iPhones with Fortnite installed have become very valuable, not unlike consoles with P.T. still installed.
While Google has largely stayed out of the public eye and debate, Apple has retaliated against Epic's actions. Apple has stated it will block the Epic's Unreal Engine from iOS and Mac, which has big implications. Any developers looking to make apps (usually games) with the Unreal Engine will not find support for it on Apple products. This means more difficulty for them and less money for Epic as developers will turn to universally supported engines. So while Epic seems to be positioning itself to become a force to rival Apple or Google, Apple is meanwhile limiting tools to bring games to the public. No matter when the Tart Tycoon skin becomes available, and no matter who winds up winning the fight, it seems the players are continuing to lose.
Fortnite is available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One. At the time of this article, it is not available on iOS or Android devices.
