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As an avid PC gamer who's been neck-deep in mobile games for the last decade, I know just how foolish it sounds to pin hope on Epic Games of all companies. On the PC side of things, most gamers are nonplussed with the company constantly paying for exclusives while withholding the games we'd like to buy and play on Steam or any other quality PC game stores. Essentially, Epic Games doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to digital storefronts, but thanks to its war with Google and the Play Store (that it recently won), the company has offered a list of demands that it wants a judge to force on Google (many that I agree with).
Epic Games has some big ideas for the Google Play Store
Epic filed its proposals in federal court following the December 2023 verdict
The battle between Fortnite developer Epic Games and Google is well documented. Epic secured a major victory in December as a US Federal Court jury found that Google illegally monopolized the Play Store and its corresponding billing services. Although the verdict is out, we had little to no idea about what the consequences would be, although it was previously reported that Epic wasn't seeking monetary damages, focusing instead on developer-focused reforms. We're now getting a detailed glimpse into Epic's plans thanks to an injunction filed with the court.
The Epic Games Store is coming to Android by the end of the year
It will have the same revenue-sharing split as its Mac and Windows counterpart
The European Union's DMA (Digital Markets Act) has forced Apple and Google to make significant platform changes. Due to the regulation, both companies must open their mobile OS to third-party app stores and provide alternative billing options to app developers. Many of these changes were made possible by Epic taking a stand against Apple's bullying and suing it. Epic had also made it clear multiple times during the course of the lawsuit that it wants to launch its app store on iOS. As it turns out, the Epic Games Store is also coming to Android.
How you can install and play Fortnite on Android
Fortnite may have been kicked from the Play Store, but you can still play the game on Android
Epic Games did a big no-no in 2020 by releasing a Fortnite update that circumvented Google's in-app payments. As a result, Google removed Fortnite's listing from the Play Store. The whole fiasco left players with limited options for regaining access to the official Fortnite app.
The Play Store is an illegal monopoly, says Epic v. Google verdict
The jury found Google guilty of turning its app distribution method into an illegal monopoly
After months of quarrels in court and years after Epic first sued Google for its alleged Play Store monopoly, the jury has reached a verdict. Google was found to have an illegal monopoly, using the Play Store and its Play Billing service as a vehicle. The jury fully sided with Epic in the case, confirming the allegations put forward by the Fortnite developer. The ruling could completely upend Google’s business model around Android.
Google has a ton of outstanding tools and software that many of us use every single day. But it has an even longer list of products it has killed in about 25 years of its existence. And Stadia sits on top of that list like a crown jewel as a reminder that no Google product is safe from a similar fate. While Stadia came to a foreseeable death earlier this year, it wasn’t like Google wasn’t bullish about it. A new report suggests that Google was about to buy Fortnite developer Epic Games to boost Android’s stature in the gaming world ahead of Stadia’s launch.
Google tried to pay Epic Games $147 million to put Fortnite on Play Store
Tilted Towers or tilted Trust laws?
Every day, it seems like there’s more juicy information coming out of the massive antitrust lawsuit and current trial directed at Google by the US Department of Justice. To catch up on the why's and what's of the trial, we’ve got you covered. In short, Google has been accused by the DoJ of utilizing anticompetitive practices to achieve the current near-monopoly it has over numerous technology sectors in the United States, specifically. Just recently, it came out that Epic Games was offered $147 million by Google to put Fortnite on the Play Store, and that’s caused quite a stir.
Epic's ruination of Bandcamp may have disastrous effects on the indie music scene
Has Epic gutted one of indie artists' best assets?
The music industry isn't exactly kind to upcoming groups and artists; breaking into such a competitive market can be a challenge even for the incredibly talented. This also obstructs fan engagement in terms of monetary support; it's hard to network when nobody can find your address. Bandcamp is the indie music cave of wonders, an app with countless artists selling their work and merch directly to fans. It's a haven for independent music creators, who can post, share, and generally sell their content, with the site taking a 15% cut of each sale — pretty reasonable.
Google responds to Bandcamp's hypocrisy in Play Store billing fight and potential ban
Epic-owned Bandcamp is trying to stay in the Play Store but doesn't want to follow Google's billing rules
Read update
In 2020, Google announced a "new" Play Store policy change to prevent apps from circumventing Google's in-app billing rules. Companies like Amazon, Netflix, and Spotify had ignored its billing policies years in their apps, allowing customers to purchase content and subscriptions without Google taking a cut, but the hammer was set to fall. Although the change itself was delayed for a while, it finally kicks into gear soon, and now Epic Games is taking Google to court to prevent Bandcamp from being yanked from the Play Store for not giving Google a cut of its in-app sales.
Get ready to turn all the junk in your house into 3D models with Epic's upcoming app
You'll finally be able to bring your Hatsune Miku figurine to the metaverse
Epic Games has been around for over 30 years now, and it’s grown from a bedroom in Maryland to a billion-dollar company creating some of the most popular titles around. Lately it's been making a bunch of acquisitions, and not just game developers like Psyonix, Mediatonic, and Harmonix, but also smaller studios that build software centered around development tools. Sometimes those kinds of acquisitions can remain in-house and might never be seen by the public, but it looks like one recent Epic purchase will soon result in a pretty cool-sounding app we'll all get to try for ourselves.
GeForce Now starts testing a new way to play Fortnite on your phone
Fortnite is back on Apple, in a whole new way
Maybe the only thing Epic likes more than making games is butting heads with app stores. Its uber-popular Fortnite is persona non grata on both Android and iOS app stores, leading to no shortage of court battles. And while you can always get the game from Epic itself (at least on Android), iPhone, iPad, and even Android users will now be able to stream a touch-friendly version of Fortnite to their phones and tablets with the help of Nvidia’s GeForce Now.
Google was worried enough about Epic Games that it created a 'Fortnite Task Force'
Seems like Google would rather keep its de-facto monopoly over game and app distribution
Epic Games and Google have been in a legal dispute ever since the gaming company tried to bypass the Play Store's 30% cut on in-game content via concealed code in an update to Fortnite in 2020, but the fight between the two businesses started much earlier. Epic first offered a version of Fortnite outside the Play Store as early as 2018, and that apparently really scared Google. As details from a legal filing reveal (via Bloomberg), Google quickly created a Fortnite task force to come up with a strategy against Epic's break with the Play Store.
Google countersues Epic for the money it made by breaking Play Store rules
After courts ordered a similar payment to be made to Apple last month
Epic’s fight against the tech industry continues. Just a few weeks after its lawsuit against Apple came to a close — pending appeals, of course — there’s a new development in another court case. Epic’s case against Google has yet to conclude, and there’s a new twist unfolding more than a year later: Google is fighting back.
Epic Games may be on the hook for a whopping $3.6 million if it loses appeal against Apple
A narrative shift may toss out rules that would cost Epic the money
Last week's ruling in Epic Games v. Apple which basically allowed app developers to direct customers away from the App Store payment platform for in-app transactions was praised and panned across the spectrum. But in the view of Epic, it did not go far enough in stopping what it alleges to be Apple's harmful practices on its iOS app distribution monopoly. So it went on Sunday as the gaming giant filed an appeal.
Judge rules iPhone devs can route in-app transactions away from App Store, but Apple declares a win
Epic Games, the company that launched the lawsuit, will appeal
Apple probably knew what was coming down the pike when it decided last week to allow app developers to communicate to customers ways to conduct in-app transactions that circumvent the App Store and its 30% commission fee. But it looks like the skids are coming on anyway as the most prominent lawsuit over the iPhone maker's alleged monopoly on iOS app sales takes a final, major turn.
It looks like Google's willing to bend the Play Store rules if you're a big enough customer
The fallout from numerous antitrust lawsuits continue
The last couple of years have brought increased scrutiny on Google Play's power over Android developers, especially in the wake of its lawsuit with Epic. The company followed Apple's lead back in March, lowering its fees to 15% for the first $1 million in revenue. A newly unsealed consumer lawsuit involving Google has revealed some new facts about how the Play Store is managed behind the scenes, including a secret deal made with Netflix.
Google's facing fresh anti-competitive criticism and to no one's surprise it's all about the Play Store
The legal battle with Epic is the gift that keeps on giving
Epic Games and Google have been butting heads for well over a year at this point, and their fight is all about how developers sell apps (and make money) on Android. Now a court order this week has just made public some freshly unredacted documents in the ongoing Epic v. Google lawsuit, publicly revealing some of the seemingly anti-competitive actions that Google was taking in order to —using language from the antitrust complaint itself— limit the "contagion of competition" and keep the Play Store thriving. (Well, according to Epic, at least.) And to hear these accusations, Google was going to great lengths to both keep developers using the Play Store (and putting up with Google taking a 30% cut of their revenue) and phone makers invested in Google's ecosystem.
Get one of 2019's best games for free on PC this week
Control is usually $30, but free at Epic Games right now
One of my favorite games of the last two years is free for a limited time over at Epic Games. The award-winning Control is too good to spoil with an overly detailed introduction, but it's a third-person action-adventure title with fantastic controls, great design, and superb art direction. It's basically SCP: The Game, and you shouldn't miss it, especially while it's free.
The real Rocket League might be coming to mobile, complete with cross-play
And there's a chance testing could start really soon
Thanks to Epic's court case against Apple, a bunch of documents have leaked to the public, and so we've learned through these internal docs that Epic may be planning to bring the full version of Rocket League to mobile. This is not to be confused with Rocket League Sideswipe, a 2D version of the game I went hands-on with in March. Apparently, Epic is planning on creating a new launcher for the PC and console game that will offer the full experience across all platforms, including mobile, with a beta planned for mobile in Q2 2021.
One Apple exec actually wanted to bring iMessage to Android back in 2013
Apple already admitted that iMessage for Android was killed to keep its walled garden
The legal conflict between Epic Games and Apple has already had some fairly substantial fallout. The court of public opinion pressed Apple and Google to reduce marketplace fees for developers on the App Store and Play Store, and a number of Apple's antics have fallen under the scrutiny of politicians and the general public. The hearing also shined light on iMessage's Apple exclusivity, with the company admitting that it kept the messaging platform from Android in order to create a lock-in effect. But apparently that stance wasn't shared with everyone across the board. It turns out that Apple executive Eddy Cue wanted to bring iMessage to Android in 2013, only to be shut down by peers, as a new deposition shows.