Game News Fortnite is back on iOS and Android with GeForce Now! Our management
That’s it: The Fortnite in touch version is available in GeForce Now for Android and iOS players. Here is our suggestion.
By leading the war against the prices charged by the App Store and Android app stores, Fortnite has lost a lot of its audience. Not because he no longer wants to play, but because Apple and Google have banned the mobile version of Fortnite from their stores. Since then, iPhone gamers have had no choice, while Android gamers have had to deal with installing an APK themselves. You don’t know what it is? This is the exact problem: it’s hard to find the general public with such geek principles.
GeForce Now, Nvidia’s cloud gaming service, has been working on a solution for a long time. The Fortnite in touch version has been in closed beta since January 2022. Now the doors are open: everyone can enjoy it! Here’s what you can expect to enjoy Fortnite on your smartphone or tablet again, with touch controls.
New, old
Note that GeForce Now will only ask you two things: register on the service site, and log in to your Epic Games account. The first level of cloud gaming service is free, but limited to one hour session. If you want to play Fortnite, that’s not limited. At the end of this hour, you need to restart the game and wait in line.
Fortnite in the touch version is surprisingly familiar. If you are familiar with the mobile version of the game, you are in conquered land. Despite the fact that the SKU launched is definitely the PC version, all menus are accessible by touch, and the service does not go through the emulation of a touchpad to work. Launching a game is completely intuitive. I thought at first launch that my account hadn’t been activated yet, because I was waiting for other checks; it is not. Want to open Settings? Click it. Want to start a game? Same thing. There are no obstacles, no complications whatsoever.
The real Fortnite on mobile
Once in play, there are still no surprises. And that, in the end, is the real surprise. All the principles of the “legitimate” mobile version of Fortnite are carried into this cloud gaming version, including the possibility to choose between three different firing modes (automatic, tap to shoot, or dedicated) button). For others, we found the exact mobile interface, with many shortcuts arranged on the screen in semi-transparency. A large diagonal helps, as here on the Galaxy Fold 3, to keep the most readability.
What do we lose? The ability to customize this interface. You can change the touch sensitivity in the game settings, at least that’s it. Forget the possibility of managing graphics accurately, though: this version is tied to basic optimization, which still offers all the power of GeForce Now servers for a visual experience that is even better than what is possible to see on the iPhone. In terms of refresh rate, because the Fortnite GeForce Now version runs at 120 FPS. And if you want to hook up a controller, or even a keyboard and mouse, to your smartphone or tablet… Just do it. In simple. It’s obviously compatible, since it’s the PC version.
The right pairing
The most strange thing is that matchmaking also works just like the mobile version. I’m not a Fortnite player, and I especially use it to benchmark smartphones: So I know how to identify a server with bots and tactile players. I placed 8th, and each of my opponents seemed to struggle like me on goal. Conclusion? We are all on equal footing.
Epic Games seems to have a good plan to make it work. If GeForce Now’s Fortnite is actually the PC version, the game seems to separate its touch players from its controller and keyboard / mouse players. And thanks to it, he can put it in different parts. So don’t panic: hardcore mobile gamers won’t be completely broken in half a second by PC players and console users. However, we still retain the advantage of cross-play, and therefore the possibility to group with any friend regardless of their platform of origin.
Keep an eye on your date
In short, GeForce Now and Epic Games have made the right choices about Fortnite’s return to mobile. The experience is very similar to that offered in the later mobile version, except that it is more beautiful and efficient. Its pairing principle, which is very compatible with the platform, means that when Fortnite arrives soon on Microsoft’s xCloud, all players in touch with the cloud and locally will be able to play with each other.
But be careful: it’s better to avoid playing on your 4G/5G. Don’t forget that the cloud game will swallow your data in a flash, because its principle is to stream to the remote screen of a competition PC on your smartphone and allow you to interact with it. Consider some kind of interactive video on YouTube, to simplify. However, Nvidia’s platform is more impressive in terms of latency and stability. This Fortnite experience confuses you about the possibilities offered in a world of 5G coverage and unlimited subscriptions for the future of video games.