Oliver Haslam on November 6, 2020, 7:48 pm

Fortnite Might Be Returning To The iPhone And iPad, But Not Via The App Store

Apple and Epic continue to argue among themselves regarding Fortnite’s App Store ban and whether users should have to buy in-app purchases via Apple’s payment system. That isn’t something that’s going to go away any time soon and, more importantly, it leaves gamers unable to play Fortnite on iPhones and iPads.

But that might be set to change if NVIDIA has its way.

According to a new BBC report, NVIDIA is working on bringing its game streaming service to iOS and iPadOS, using Safari as the delivery mechanism. Apple allows web apps to function however they want and NVIDIA intends to use that to its advantage.

Owners of iPhones and iPads will soon be able to play Fortnite again, via a cloud service, the BBC has discovered.

Nvidia has developed a version of its GeForce cloud gaming service that runs in the mobile web browser Safari.

There are concerns, however. Playing a game like Fortnite via a streaming service is a concern for many, not least because the latency involved could put gamers at a disadvantage.

Nvidia uses remote computer servers to process the players’ commands and to generate graphics. Streaming the relevant data back and forth to the mobile devices introduces a very short delay.

Winning or losing Fortnite’s multiplayer battles can come down to split-second decisions, so lag could be a problem.

The same report claims that NVIDIA’s streaming service should be ready to go before the end of the year. That could mean gamers are playing Fortnite within weeks and that has to be good news for everyone. Assuming it actually works, of course.