Epic Games will cut out the Play Store when Fortnite comes to Android

While Fortnite did get its mobile debut on the iOS App Store, the game will be going in a different direction for its Android launch. Epic Games plans to release Fortnite for Android soon, but you won't find it on the Play Store. Instead, Epic plans to distribute the app to Android owners itself, bypassing Google entirely.

Earlier today, Epic Games confirmed that when Fortnite launches on Android, it will be distributed via Epic's own website, rather than the Google Play Store. Players will download a Fortnite installer application, which also acts as a way of ensuring that the game can only run on compatible devices. That last part is significant, as there are rumours that Fortnite will be exclusive to Samsung devices for a period of time.

While this is an unusual way of doing things on the mobile front, it is very similar to Epic's strategy on PC. Epic Games has its own launcher for games like Fortnite and Unreal Tournament, keeping a direct relationship with players and cutting out third-party services like Steam.

It will be the same case here for Fortnite on Android. Although it does mean that those on iOS will be getting a slightly different experience, as updates can be pushed out faster to the Android version, without having to wait for any approvals.

KitGuru Says: There's no set release date for Fortnite on Android yet, but Epic is certainly keeping things interesting with moves like this. How do you guys feel about this? Would you rather just have Fortnite on the Play Store? 

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