In what can only be described as an epic move, Fortnite is making its way back to Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) smartphones and tablets via Microsoft Corporation’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Xbox Cloud Gaming service.
What Happened: Catherine Gluckstein, vice president and head of product, Xbox Cloud Gaming said in a post that Fortnite is available on supported browser-enabled devices for free in 26 countries.
Gluckstein wrote that the game requires only a Microsoft account for play and is available on both iOS and iPadOS devices such as an iPhone and iPad. Controller play is supported but so are native touch controls.
See Also: How To Buy Microsoft (MSFT) Shares
Why It Matters: Fortnite has become the first free-to-play game on the Xbox Cloud Gaming platform, according to Gluckstein.
In August 2020, Apple and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) had removed Epic Games’ Fortnight from their respective app stores after a falling out on in-game payments.
Microsoft skirted Apple’s refusal of listing cloud gaming apps on the App Store by opting to go through the web-browser route in 2020.
GeForce NOW, a cloud gaming service from NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is also holding a limited-time closed beta of Fortnite but there’s a waiting list for playing that version.
Price Action: On Thursday, Microsoft shares closed 4.4% lower at $277.35 in the regular session and gained 0.2% in the after-hours trading. On the same day, Apple shares ended the regular session 5.6% lower at $156.77 and rose 0.8% in the after-hours trading, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
Read Next: Microsoft Gives Glimpse Of Xbox Cloud Gaming Numbers
