After accepting confirmation from Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, we now apperceive Fortnite Battle Royale will not be attainable on the Play Store back it's assuredly appear for Android. Instead, users will accept to download the APK anon from Epic Games' website — and absolutely frankly, this is a bad idea.
By not distributing on the Play Store, Epic Amateur is accretion their affairs for a cardinal of problems. The big one is malware, area users will aback download affected copies of the game's APK, arch to adventitious after-effects such as the accident of their data. It additionally complicates the action unnecessarily for new Android users who don't apperceive about sideloading.
Updates will additionally be an absorbing process, back sideloaded apps can't be automatically adapted via the Play Store. Instead, Epic Amateur will accept to appear up with a workaround. Also, Google's congenital accoutrement for in-app purchases will not work, which is actual important for a bold whose acquirement comes primarily from in-app purchases. For all the aggravation and confusion, it artlessly doesn't accomplish sense.
Why Epic Isn't Application the Play Store
CEO Tim Sweeney batten with The Verge apropos their accommodation to abandon the Play Store. According to Tim, Epic capital to advance a absolute accord with their barter wherever they can. Secondly, Epic didn't appetite to pay Google's 30% fee for all in-app purchases if they were to abode the app on the Play Store.
The aboriginal acumen is based on the abstraction that whenever Epic could go the absolute route, they did. Both PC and Android don't crave amateur to be hosted on the axial administration belvedere (Steam for PC and the Google Play Store for Android), and in both situations, Epic Amateur has created their own absolute pathways.
The additional acumen is based on the abstraction that back Fortnite Battle Royale is chargeless on all platforms, all their acquirement is advancing from in-app purchases — accurately V-bucks, which acquiesce users to buy corrective items such as outfits, backpacks, and pickaxes. This action has been a huge success. In alone 90 canicule of absolution the iOS version, they were able to adeptness $100 actor in sale, the second-fastest app to do so abaft Clash Royale. While it's attainable to accept the reasons, the allowances don't outweigh the problems they are introducing by activity this route.
1. Sideloading Can Be Dangerous
While for Android adeptness users, sideloading may assume like a simple action that you've done endless times, it can be somewhat complicated for new users. Aloof like back the bold was aboriginal appear on iOS, Fortnite Battle Royale for Android will accompany in new users who aren't as tech-savvy as others. Alike with altogether laid-out instructions, mistakes can be made.
But what is added apropos is the crisis of sideloading in general. One of the capital affidavit Android disables the affection by absence is because apps alfresco of the Play Store can be malicious. APKs can appear from any antecedent and be acquaint by anyone. While the majority of the Android association are wholesome bodies who try to advice new users, there is a allocation of bodies who use Android's open-source attributes for their own benefit.
They can actualize affected apps that attending like the absolute Fortnite bold but are, in fact, article else. Whether they ample it with ads to accomplish a accumulation or abduct users' abstracts to advertise on the atramentous market, there are a cardinal of agency to booty advantage of this bearings and annual abuse to abeyant new adaptable Fortnite users.
While the Play Store isn't perfect, it is a abundant added defended place. Google would be able to cull any affected apps masquerading as the absolute bold and accomplish antivirus scans continuously to accomplish abiding the APK hasn't been adapted by a third-party. Users reviews can beacon bodies abroad from ample duplicates which are in actuality not the official game.
A argument can be fabricated that, back Epic will be hosting the bold on their official site, alike the best amateur users will apperceive to get the APK anon from the official source. While this may be true, introducing the masses to the abstraction of sideloading afterwards absolutely educating them on the risks can still annual problems with added APKs.
2. In-App Purchases Will Be Added Complicated
With the Play Store, Android allows its users to save their acclaim agenda or debit agenda to their annual for in-app purchases. This adjustment is convenient, as your claimed banking advice is adequate by Google but calmly attainable whenever you allegation to accomplish a purchase. You can alike deeply add third-party solutions such as PayPal or your carrier billing.
However, sideloaded apps don't accept admission to this ability. Instead, you accept to await on the app's accomplishing for in-app purchases. You'll accept to assurance Epic Games, which is acceptable to action beneath options for acquittal methods. And back the acquittal alone works for Fortnite Battle Royale, it isn't as acceptable as Android's congenital solution.
Just like sideloading, this adds accidental aggravation to the process. New users apparently already accept a acclaim agenda or annual adored to their Google account, but now they accept to accommodate this action for Fortnite aloof because Epic wants to abstain a 30% charge.
Things get alike added awkward back you accede the affected APKs that will accordingly be amphibian about the internet. If you accept to access acclaim agenda advice in the game, a ample affected could calmly abandoned your coffer account.
3. Updates Will Be Harder Than They Allegation to Be
When an app is hosted on the Play Store, developers artlessly upload updates to Google's servers. The Play Store will acquaint users of the update, and depending on your settings, will automatically amend the app for you. It is simple, fast, and advised so that alike beginners will not get confused.
But with sideloaded apps, you can't auto-update via the Play Store. Instead, Epic Amateur will accept to acquisition a workaround. It's accessible they'll body this functionality into the game, but they may acquisition it simpler to absolution a standalone Fortnite Updater app, which would be another app you accept to sideload (and addition advance apparent for malware).
Even if they body afterlight functionality into the Fortnite app itself, the action won't be automatic. You'll still accept to accessible the adapted APK book and especially tap "Install," as Android won't let non-system apps install updates for you.
Then there's addition contraction for accessories active Android Oreo or higher. Back you'll be downloading the bold from Epic's website, the new sideloading permission will accept to be accepted to your browser. But clashing accomplished Android versions, this permission isn't system-wide, it's per-app. So afterwards enabling your browser to sideload the game, you'll additionally accept to admission this permission to Fortnite itself to be able to install updates that were downloaded through the game.
4. Epic Doesn't Accept to Comply with Play Store Rules
Google is now acute all new apps to ambition Android Oreo. This agency they charge booty advantage of several new appearance alien in Android 8.0, including bigger use of accomplishments data, improvements to security, and bigger user ascendancy for notifications (known as Notification Channels). If Epic Amateur acquaint their app on the Play Store, it would accept to accept by this aphorism and the host of added regulations appropriate by every app on the Play Store.
Instead, they can, for example, ambition a lower adaptation of Android to save themselves time. Right now, Android Oreo is alone installed on 12.1% of Android phones. By not targeting Oreo, they can abstain the altercation of implementing appearance that alone a scattering of users will be able to booty advantage of.
However, both targeting Oreo and the added rules of the Play Store are advised to assure you. Apps in the Play Store are subjected to a account of rules that, if broken, can advance to it actuality pulled. Targeting Android Oreo assure you adjoin malware, as apps accept to be congenital application the latest security tools. With sideloading, you instead charge assurance the developer to do the appropriate thing.
5. It Sets a Terrible Precedent
Perhaps the better check to this accomplished book is how it's paving the way to added Android fragmentation. With Fortnite actuality as big as it is, added bold developers will be advantageous abutting absorption to how this works out for Epic.
On the surface, Google accident some of its bound anchor on the Android ecosystem ability complete like a acceptable thing. But if they alpha accident money because of this, they'd be motivated to accomplish sideloading as adamantine and bizarre as it is on iOS.
Epic Amateur is already affected by Apple to use the App Store for abounding of aforementioned affidavit we mentioned here, so why not aloof do the aforementioned with the Play Store, alike admitting you accept options not to? What do you anticipate about Epic Games' decision? Let us apperceive in the animadversion area below.
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