Get ready to play Fortnite when out and about, because the title is going to be coming to mobile. The title became one of the biggest gaming sensations of last year, with Epic Games delivering a great gameplay experience for players with Battle Royale. Although it has yet to hit the full heights of competitor PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, with PUBG now ranked among the top selling video games of all time, Fortnite has nonetheless been climbing quickly.
In part, this has been down to the speed at which Epic Games has been able to bring the title to a range of devices. Fortnite caused a stir when its Battle Royale game mode made its way to consoles ahead of PUBG, with Bluehole suggesting at the time that it could pursue legal action over the similarities between the two games. Nonetheless, Fortnite made the first move and cemented its place in console gaming effectively.
However, it turns out that the move to consoles was not the last expansion of device for Fortnite. Epic Games has now confirmed that Fortnite: Battle Royale is going to be making its way to mobile devices. According to the developer, the game will be coming to iOS phones and tablets with the same gameplay and content as the PC and console versions, with Android support due to arrive in “the next few months.” From Monday, interested mobile gamers can sign up for the iOS invite event too.
On top of that, Epic Games has also confirmed that the title will now have cross play support that includes the iOS versions of the game. This means that Fortnite: Battle Royale players across PS4, PC, Mac, and iOS will be able to play together, with Android set to be added to the list as well. Xbox users are noticeably absent from this list, which suggests that Sony’s blocking of cross play with Xbox is still in place for now.
Fortnite may seem like a bit of a strange game to be on the receiving end of a mobile port, but it certainly fits with how Epic Games has been expanding the reach of the game as a whole. On top of that, it may well be looking at the performance of some other games that have succeeded with well-crafted mobile ports. Minecraft in particular was a smash on mobile, with the Pocket Edition of the game making it accessible to millions more gamers.
Should the Fortnite mobile port be a good one, then it would also be a positive move for mobile gaming as a whole. All too often mobile games from major franchises feel like cheap cash grabs, with Dungeon Keeper and Theme Park just two of the franchises ruined through mobile releases. If Epic Games takes care with its mobile port now, then it could set a strong precedent for others to follow.
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Source: Epic Games
