Video game developer Epic Games has announced that starting January 30, Fortnite will no longer be available to players under the age of 18 on iOS and Google Play. Players will also not be able to spend V-Bucks, the game’s in-app currency.
Fortnite will only be available to players 18+ on iOS, Android
“Starting January 30, Fortnite players using the August 2020 13.40 app that was previously available on iOS, Mac and Google Play can no longer spend V-Bucks and must be over 18 to play,” Fortnite said. Tweeted.
We want all versions of our games to use the current suite of Epic Online Services, including parental controls, purchase defaults, and parental verification features. Due to the ban on Fortnite by Apple and Google, we are not able to update the app on these platforms. (2/2)
– Fortnite Status (@FortniteStatus) January 23, 2023
“We want all versions of our games to use the current suite of Epic Online Services, including parental controls, purchase defaults, and parental verification features. Due to the ban on Fortnite by Apple and Google, we are not able to update the app on these platforms.
In December last year, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said the company has reached a $520 million settlement with Epic Games, maker of the popular video game Fortnite, over allegations of violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). . and deployed design tricks, known as dark patterns, to trick millions of players into unknowingly making purchases.
In addition, Epic Games introduced limited accounts that prevent children from spending money at the in-game store and using voice chat without parental consent.
Fortnite earned over $9 billion during its first two years of existence.
Epic will pay a $275 million fine for violating the Children’s Privacy Act, changing default privacy settings, and paying $245 million in refunds for tricking users into incurring unwanted charges.
Notably, many existing players will not be affected by the new restrictions as there are many other ways to access games besides the App Store or Google Play Store.
With inputs from IANS
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