| Hey y'all, it's Austin. On Sunday, I joined the #FreeFortnite Cup, the hashtag-hyped tournament that developer Epic Games Inc. is using to rally its 350 million players against Apple Inc. The two technology giants have been embroiled in a public battle over the terms of Apple's App Store, which Epic escalated with a battle royale themed around the corporate dispute, complete with "anti-Apple" prizes such as a "Tart Tycoon" avatar and "Free Fortnite" hats in Cupertino colors. The #FreeFortnite Cup arrived just days before Apple is slated to block iOS devices from accessing the next season of Fortnite, the cross-platform video game phenomenon. Epic has alleged the 30% cut that Apple takes on billings through its App Store is anti-competitive, while Apple has argued that the company "won't make an exception for Epic" when it comes to its third-party developer policies. The spat quickly graduated into a legal fight. On Monday, Epic is slated to ask a federal court to restore the Fortnite app to the App Store, and prevent Apple from cutting off its developer tools. But Epic isn't just relying on the law in its cause. It's paired its arguments with an aggressive marketing campaign that paints Apple as a greedy, all-powerful monopolist. This was the backdrop as I joined the #FreeFortnite tournament. In advance, you should know I'm a Fortnite noob. Each time I've played the game, which centers on squads of players fighting until only one is left, the Gen Z audience makes me feel older and older. I tend to survive longest by hiding in virtual bathrooms, and I'm often genuinely baffled by the complex controls and evolving memes. What exactly was Epic trying to inspire players to do with its corporate spite-fueled tournament? (A spokesperson for Epic declined to comment.) Sure, they could switch to a different platform to play Fortnite, but it's not as if a Nintendo Switch or Sony PlayStation could replace an iPhone as someone's primary mobile device. Nor is the revenue Fortnite generates for Apple through associated iOS fees likely significant enough to pressure Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook to upend how their app store has long operated. I voice chatted with other Fortnite players on Xbox Live about the standoff. Many of them sounded under the age of 18—clearly not the demographic that's expected to call elected officials and complain about Apple's perceived marketplace dominance. And most players I interacted with were more interested in winning a tournament than discussing antitrust issues. Still, count me impressed at users' grasp of the dispute, particularly the youngest ones. When asked what was at the heart of the matter, a self-identified 10-year-old player told me, "Apple banned Fortnite on mobile, and next season, there will be no mobile players…they're having a real lawsuit, like for real, for real." He then detailed how many points we'd need to earn together in order to win the tournament's prized avatar and hat. Another very young user told me the #FreeFortnite Cup was sparked because Apple deleted Fortnite from the iOS store. And a third player opined, "Google and Apple are trying to shut it down … it's messed up." (The search giant has also banned Fortnite from its Play Store.) The players weren't entirely on Epic's side, however. The 10-year-old clarified that he's "not anti-Apple," and the other young user explained that, from his perspective, Fortnite only got kicked out of the app store because it "made Apple mad." If anything, they seemed most concerned that some of their favorite live-streamers, including Ducky, who plays on an iPad Pro, won't be joining them in the next season. "I'd rather quit Fortnite than switch to console," Ducky tweeted last week. These kids won't be deciding the fate of this app-store debate in court or in Washington. Yet they are the ones that'll inevitably have to explain this issue to their out-of-touch parents. That might explain why Epic is so intent on convincing the next generation of consumers that Apple is the bad guy. Epic even went so far as to launch an ad, modeled after Apple's famous "1984" Macintosh commercial, depicting Apple as the modern-day version of Big Brother. Whether or not Epic wins its court battle, it seems to be making progress on its crusade for hearts and minds. That could have real repercussions for Apple down the line. —Austin Carr | 
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