Battle Royale games are the new sensation in the mobile gaming industry. We've seen PlayerUnknown's Battleground (PUBG) and Fortnite rise to new heights and make record earnings for both its developers after they hit the mobile platforms. Despite Fortnite's raging success on iOS, Epic Games' title hasn't made it to Android, giving PUBG Mobile the unchallenged advantage.
But the days are not too far for Android users to finally play Fortnite on their smartphones. The company has already listed series of compatible devices for the game, but before we get to it, let us see when exactly Fortnite for Android is coming.
Epic Games has maintained a strong stand on launching Fortnite Mobile on Android platform "this summer." Since there hasn't been an exact release date, a lot of reports and rumours have been swirling around for days now.
9to5Google reported last week that Fortnite for Android will be launched alongside Samsung Galaxy Note 9. That puts the game's first public release on Android platform as of August 9. But the source suggested that the game would remain exclusive to Samsung Galaxy Note 9 buyers for 30 days, which means Fortnite for Android will be available sometime in late-September, considering the Samsung flagship would go on sale August 24 onwards.
In addition to the early access, Samsung Galaxy Note 9 buyers would also be treated with $100-$150 worth of V-Bucks for in-game purchases, the source told the publication. This makes sense for Epic Games as it will have a widely-watched stage to announce Fortnite's debut on Android and also give a chance for Samsung to show off the Galaxy Note 9's gaming capabilities.
Once Fortnite is out of exclusivity, it will be available for download via Google Play Store on all eligible smartphones. Below is the list of smartphones that Epic Games says are compatible for Fortnite Mobile:
- Google Pixel 2/Pixel 2 XL
- Huawei Mate 10/Huawei Mate 10 Pro
- Huawei Mate 10 Lite
- Huawei Mate 9/Mate 9 Pro
- Huawei P10/P10 Plus
- Huawei P10 Lite
- Huawei P9
- Huawei P9 Lite
- Huawei P8 Lite 2017
- LG G6
- LG V30/V30 Plus
- Motorola Moto E4 Plus
- Motorola Moto G5/G5 Plus
- Motorola Moto G5S
- Motorola Moto Z2 Play
- Nokia 6
- Razer Phone
- Samsung Galaxy A5 2017
- Samsung Galaxy A7 2017
- Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2017/J7 Pro 2017
- Samsung Galaxy Note 8
- Samsung Galaxy On7 2016
- Samsung Galaxy S9/S9 Plus
- Samsung Galaxy S8/S8 Plus
- Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 Edge
- Sony Xperia XA1/XA1 Ultra/XA1 Plus
- Sony Xperia XZ
- Sony Xperia XZs
- Sony Xperia XZ1
That's one side of the story. According to another report by XDA Developers, which obtained some crucial information hidden on the Fortnite Mobile page on Epic Games' website, suggests Fortnite might not be available on Google Play Store for Android smartphone users to download the game.
Instead, Epic Games will make Fortnite available for download from its official website and then side-load the APK file on an Android smartphone. But there's one problem with the plan – how will Epic Games work its in-app purchases without Google Pay-based payments.
It's only a matter of days before these confusions are clarified. Stay tuned for updates.
