Epic Games is banned from its iOS and macOS developer accounts.
And that brings us to the Unreal Engine. Created by Epic, the latter is a game engine that helps developers create 3D graphics. Since banning the Unreal Engine could do harm to other developers not involved in this battle, Kevin Gammill, Microsoft’s general manager for Gaming Developer Experiences, filed a declaration with the court that read “If Unreal Engine cannot support games for iOS or macOS, Microsoft would be required to choose between abandoning its customers and potential customers on the iOS and macOS platforms or choosing a different game engine when preparing to develop new games. Apple’s discontinuation of Epic’s ability to develop and support Unreal Engine for iOS or macOS will harm game creators and gamers.”
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers refused to grant Epic’s request to issue a Temporary Restraining Order against Apple that would have barred it from kicking Fortnite out of the App Store while closing Epic’s developer accounts. The judge did say that she was inclined to protect the Unreal Engine from Apple.
So Epic is, for now, blocked from its iOS and macOS developer accounts. A hearing on a preliminary injunction is scheduled for September 28th. Meanwhile, Apple has told Epic that if it were to “comply with the App Store guidelines, “we will gladly welcome Fortnite back onto iOS.”
Apple also said, “We are disappointed that we have had to terminate the Epic Games account on the App Store. We have worked with the team at Epic Games for many years on their launches and releases. The court recommended that Epic comply with the App Store guidelines while their case moves forward, guidelines they’ve followed for the past decade until they created this situation. Epic has refused. Instead they repeatedly submit Fortnite updates designed to violate the guidelines of the App Store. This is not fair to all other developers on the App Store and is putting customers in the middle of their fight. We hope that we can work together again in the future, but unfortunately that is not possible today.”
