If you’re excited to get Fortnite on your Android device, don’t start looking for it in Google’s Play store. Epic Games has decided to release Fortnite as a direct download on Android systems, which is an unusual move. This means that players will have to download Fortnite through an installer directly off the game’s official website sometime later this year.
Epic’s CEO Tim Sweeney told GamesIndustry.biz that the studio was motivated by economic efficiency.
“The 30 percent store tax is a high cost in a world where game developers’ 70 percent must cover all the cost of developing, operating, and supporting their games,” Sweeney said. “There’s a rationale for this on console where there’s enormous investment in hardware, often sold below cost, and marketing campaigns in broad partnership with publishers. But on open platforms, 30 percent is disproportionate to the cost of the services these stores perform.”
At the same time, Sweeney praised Google for creating open platforms that enable studios like Epic to deliver games however they like. This falls in line with the developer’s long-standing criticism of closed systems like Apple’s.
[Source: GamesIndustry.biz]
Source: Game Informer Fortnite On Android Will Circumvent The Google Play Store