Fortnite on iOS already feels empty and dated

Today marks the launch of an exciting new season Fortnite – but not for everyone. Due to the ongoing legal battle between developer Epic Games and Apple, the last season of the game will not appear on Apple hardware, including the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. This marks a huge change for Fortnite, a game that has long been at the forefront of crossplay. Now that has changed. If you play the game on an Apple device – which is still possible if you already have it installed – you will experience a very different version of Fortnite. And it’s one that feels a lot inferior to what is available on any other platform.

One of the best things about Fortnite is the way it works smoothly across mobiles, consoles and PCs. Besides some control and graphical differences, it is essentially the same game on every device. That means I can play it on my PS4 and then pick up the experience on a Switch, PC, or anywhere else with the same account, and all my progress and customization is over. It’s one of the reasons I installed the game on so many devices; I typically play on console, but use the portable versions to sneak in some missions and raise my battle pass while I’m away from the living room.

For the new season, which is Marvel-themed, there are a lot of cool things to dig into. When you buy the battle pass, you immediately unlock a playable version of Thor, and there are also some new points of interest on the island. My current favorite is a sentinel churchyard, a patch of land filled with the high towers of the X-Men series now reduced to a part of the landscape. There are other cute touches that add to the Marvel atmosphere. You are waiting for a match on a Helicarrier, and the flying combat bus is accompanied by some planes as it heads towards the island.

When playing on iOS, none of these elements are present. Instead, you get essentially a stasis version of the game, with all the content until the beginning of season 4. The loading screen, the lobby, even the island itself remain as they were in season 3. Meanwhile, newly purchased content – like that Thor skin – no longer appears in your closet. Functional, Fortnite still working on Apple hardware; You can play matches in different modes as always. But just a few hours after season 4 debuted, these versions already feel dated. (The only hint of the new season is in the game mode menu, featuring Marvel character art.)

Perhaps the most surreal aspect of the Apple version of Fortnite is the absence of any form of progress. The battle pass menu option is no longer accessible, and there are no daily quests to go on. In fact, there are no experience points. Typically in Fortnite, everything you do – whether it’s winning a game or opening a chest – earns you a little XP, which goes towards unlocking new characters and other goodies. Now there is nothing.

Of course, this makes the Apple versions of the game significantly less attractive. If you use iOS or macOS as your primary platform, you will miss a lot. And even if it’s your secondary option, the lack of cross-platform progression makes this version of the game essentially useless. I can not see that I want to play Fortnite on my iPad if it does not help me to make progress on my main account. You can also lose the social aspect of the game, as the iOS and Mac versions no longer support crossplay, which means you can not collaborate with friends on other platforms.

It is not clear if, or when, this may change. Epic and Apple are currently in the middle of a fierce battle that could determine the future of the App Store – and until one of them comes out, it’s unlikely that iOS will get a version of Fortnite that is equal to all other platforms. It’s a situation that particularly appeals to the general public that the game is primarily played on iOS. (Android users are safe, since Fortnite can be installed via Epic’s own app.) If you’re now playing what’s one of the greatest games in the world on an iPhone, you’re essentially stuck with a time capsule.