Epic Games got an ally in the conflict with Apple: Microsoft sided with the creators of Fortnite. The Xbox chapter requires Epic to retain access to Unreal Engine support tools in iOS and Mac.
Such an appeal was made yesterday by Phil Spencer on Twitter. He also published a document that Microsoft sent to the court.
“Today we submitted an application in support of Epic’s request to retain access to the Apple SDK for its Unreal Engine,” writes the head of Xbox. “Providing Epic with access to the latest Apple technology is the right solution for game developers and gamers.”
As stated in the lawsuit, Unreal Engine is an important technology for many game creators, including Microsoft itself, many of whose games are made on this engine. For example, Forza Street, which is now available on iOS.
“Epic’s denial of access to the Apple SDK and other tools will prevent Epic from supporting Unreal Engine on iOS and Mac. This will cause a lot of problems for the Unreal Engine and all those who have created, are creating and can create games on it,” Microsoft points out.
The company also notes that large studios can find resources to develop their own game engine, but it is much more profitable for indie studios to use third-party technologies and work on Unreal Engine.
Microsoft’s statement says nothing about the legality of removing Fortnite from the AppStore and Epic’s antitrust requirements. Although a little earlier Microsoft itself had a conflict with Apple when the latter did not let the service for “playing in the cloud” Project xCloud into the Apple store.
Also on the topic:
- Apple: Cloud games won’t appear on iOSApple has threatened to stop supporting Unreal Engine in iOS and Mac
- Apple has removed Fortnite from the App Store
- Is there any news?
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