Fortnite is back on iPhones — how to play the game on iOS using Nvidia GeForce Now loophole

Fortnite
Fortnite (Image credit: nikkimeel/Shutterstock)

Epic Games and Apple's vicious legal headbutting caused Fortnite to get blacklisted from the Apple App Store in 2020, leaving many iOS users out of the battle royale fun. Fortunately, there's a light at the end of the tunnel for iPhone owners, thanks to GeForce Now.

The Nvidia cloud-gaming service rolled out a time-limited closed beta of Fortnite on iOS Safari and Android devices — and you don't need a paid GeForce Now membership to participate (h/t Gizmodo).

How to play Fortnite on iPhone

Nvidia announced its plans to bring Fortnite to iOS in the fall of 2020. However, due to Apple's restrictive policy that requires streaming services to list each game individually in the App Store (a guideline that deters cloud-gaming platforms from entering the iOS marketplace), Nvidia had no choice but to launch GeForce Now on Safari.

Apple doesn't impose the same prohibitive guidelines on Safari, so Nvidia is taking advantage of this. Plus, the company can circumvent Apple's 30% commission rate.

As mentioned, iOS users may get a chance to play Fortnite via Nvidia GeForce Now's closed beta game, and you don't need a subscription to run it. The following instructions tell you how to apply.

1. Go to Nvidia GeForce Now's main page and click on Join Now to sign up for an Nvidia GeForce Now account (or log in if you already have one).

Nvidia GeForce Now

Nvidia GeForce Now (Image credit: Future)

2. You can opt for a free account or a paid subscription to play the Safari-based battle royale game.

3. Click here to navigate to Fortnite's time-limited closed beta page. Click on Join Waitlist.

4. Next, click on Login or Create Nvidia account (You've already logged in thanks to the first step, so clicking this should automatically take you to the Waitlist Registration page).

Nvidia GeForce Now

Nvidia GeForce Now (Image credit: Future)

5. You'll be prompted to select which device you plan on using for the Fortnite closed beta, click on iOS Safari and hit Submit. 

That's it! If you're selected to be a part of the closed beta, you'll be notified via email.

Nvidia didn't reveal when Safari-based Fortnite will be released to all GeForce Now users, but after the gaming giant successfully hits its milestones for this testing stage, the popular battle royale game should be widely available for all iPhone owners.

Kimberly Gedeon

Kimberly Gedeon, holding a Master's degree in International Journalism, launched her career as a journalist for MadameNoire's business beat in 2013. She loved translating stuffy stories about the economy, personal finance and investing into digestible, easy-to-understand, entertaining stories for young women of color. During her time on the business beat, she discovered her passion for tech as she dove into articles about tech entrepreneurship, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the latest tablets. After eight years of freelancing, dabbling in a myriad of beats, she's finally found a home at Laptop Mag that accepts her as the crypto-addicted, virtual reality-loving, investing-focused, tech-fascinated nerd she is. Woot!