The battle between Epic Games and Apple has arrived at a truce that finds the game maker’s massively popular “Fortnite” title back on iOS in the European Union, where Apple was pushed into the move by the competition-fostering Digital Markets Act. “Fortnite” is now available for iPhones there via the new Epic Games Store as well as the third-party outlet AltStore PAL. The launch comes after years of litigation between Epic and Apple in Europe and the U.S., where the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal, resulting in a decision Epic found less satisfactory than the EU outcome.

The EU’s Digital Markets Act, which took force in November 2022, mandates that gatekeepers such as Apple allow alternate app stores to provide products and services for its devices and platforms. Epic says it will eventually make its games available there on Aptoide’s iOS store and the ONE Store on Android, adding that “we look forward to bringing our games to other stores around the world.”

“‘We’re really excited and grateful for the European DMA law,’ Epic Games founder and CEO Tim Sweeney said in a briefing with reporters,” reports The Verge, which notes that “the revived iOS version of ‘Fortnite’ is launching just in time for the new Marvel-themed season, giving EU players a potentially major reason to come back to the game on Apple’s mobile platform.”

Sweeney said at the press event he is now confident Epic will be able to update “Fortnite” simultaneously, worldwide.

As with the U.S. outcome, Sweeney sees a bittersweet aspect to the result with Apple, which was successful in requiring that developers pay Apple an annual “Core Technology Fee” of €0.50 per install beyond 1 million.

“This fee applies to app installs on both third-party app stores and the App Store, which could add up quickly if you have a successful app on the App Store and want to offer your app through an outside marketplace,” writes The Verge, quoting Sweeney saying that the effect will “dissuade any developer of a current, successful game from putting their game on any store that competes with the iOS App Store.”

As of May in the U.S., Epic was back in court with Apple to challenge auxiliary fees.

But VentureBeat writes that because the EU forced Apple’s hand, resulting in a rapprochement that puts “Fortnite” “back on iOS in Europe and on Android worldwide,” the news “is significant for Epic Games.”

Since Epic also challenged Google’s app store practices, “Fortnite” has been absent from both platforms’ online stores since 2020, explains TechSpot.

According to the Epic release, “the Epic Games Store is available for download on iPhones in the European Union and on Android devices worldwide. The store is launching with “Fortnite,’ ‘Rocket League Sideswipe’ and the all-new ‘Fall Guys’ for mobile, and we are working to enable all developers to launch their games and apps through the Epic Games Store in the future.”