On August 14 last year, just 24 hours after Fortnite was removed from the App Store due to Epic circumventing Apple’s internal payment system, Epic launched Nineteen Eighty-Fortnite. The video, a parody of an old Apple ad from the titular year, positioned Epic as a hero battling the Orwellian Big Brother Apple, smashing the “App Store Monopoly” with a hammer. All of this was accompanied by the hashtag “#FreeFortnite” as a call to action to its player base: Fortnite, the beloved of video game players, was in danger. And Epic had arrived to stop the bad guys who wanted to kidnap him.
The highly elaborate and professional-looking Nineteen Eighty-Fortnite didn’t come together as some kind of knee-jerk response to Apple doing something completely unexpected. The video was clearly a planned and calculated move by Epic, prepared months in advance in case Apple made the decision to show Fortnite the door. In fact, the entirety of #FreeFortnite and its associated video propaganda, in-game character skins, and hat competitions was a move to turn public sentiment against Apple and force the multi-trillion-dollar company dollars to do what the billion-dollar corporation wanted it to do. With the game pulled from mobile storefronts and smartphone gamers unable to play any longer, Epic wanted to make sure the public knew who to blame. Epic, the hammer-wielding hero, was there to defeat the evil Monopoly.
In the gaming industry in particular, which thrives on cycles of hype, it’s often easy for the public to overlook the motivations behind pushes for player support. Companies will frequently make statements about wanting to listen to fans, expressing their gratitude for their players’ passion and enthusiasm, and encouraging them to buy into the company. At best, these pleas for support are as innocuous as asking for patience and understanding in the wake of a delayed game – well and good. In the worst-case scenario, calls for support can, coincidentally or not, end up arming the fanbases in some pretty chilling ways.
Epic’s press piece made last year was pretty obvious at the time to anyone watching the media. But as Epic’s lawsuit against Apple kicked off this week, Epic’s specific strategy was laid bare. Among the many documents submitted as evidence were several fascinating slideshows titled “Project Liberty Update,” one dated May 13 of last year, another from July 1 and a third from July 27. will happen once it pulls the trigger on direct payments in Fortnite on mobile, with Epic itself telling the board on July 27 that “significant planning has gone into Project Liberty, Epic’s War against mobile platform fees”. He even mapped out the timing, hoping that Project Liberty’s scrapping just before the Marvel season would “add pressure” on both Apple and Google.
A slide from Epic’s July 1, 2020 Project Liberty update presentation.
Although other documents revealed in the case acknowledge the possibility that Apple and Google could accept or agree to negotiate with Epic, the Liberty project update “assumes that Apple / Google does not accept the proposal” and dives directly in their legal, commercial, partnership and public relations aspects. predicts what would happen when Fortnite was removed from both mobile storefronts. This includes all of the ways Epic conspired to work its audience, partners, and the media to gain a favorable response from the public, and which in turn would use to pressure Apple to either lower platform fees or leave applications use their own payment platforms, or allow third-party application stores in the App Store.
In the May 13 slideshow, Epic lays out its expectations for the launch of the campaign, hoping that sentiment would be largely on its side and that gamers and press would be likely to “highlight 20% savings” for the use of Epic’s payment system. But Epic also knew that the negative sentiment would increase if the game was blocked. He picks up on his talking points: Epic is fighting for players and developers in a “battle” against store monopolies, resulting in “bigger savings and bigger rewards.” It also suggests responses to “anti-epic messages,” highlighting talking points such as emphasizing savings, potential free incentives, avoiding the “nuclear” option of accepting refund requests, and trying to refocus the narrative on Apple and Google “refuse[ing]” gamer savings.
A later slide begins by outlining the goal of getting “players, media, and industry on Epic’s side,” suggesting focusing on “savings benefits” for players using the payment system. of Epic rather than that of the platform. There’s also a line in there about giving the media Epic talking points so “they can have an informed opinion in discussions”, and another about providing interviews with “major media friendly in technology and business”.
The July 1 document talks about using the press to “lobby and build support” and influence groups that could impact Apple and Google. Then there’s a section on paid media efforts, including a petition, which Epic said was the “most effective way to demonstrate consumer support for an issue,” with Epic potentially projecting millions of supporters. depending on the amount spent on such an undertaking. Epic at one point plots to start a 501(c)4 organization to advocate for its political concerns, which it ended up doing. There’s a lot of language in all those slides of Epic waging a war, fighting a battle, and generally being like a hero defending the little guy.
If you’re relatively media savvy, most of this language and battleground isn’t exactly shocking. Companies are constantly trying to win the goodwill of their audience. Happy audiences spend money on whatever companies sell, and companies – regardless of their mission statements – largely exist for the purpose of making money. Without the context of a court case, this could probably be any marketing material for any type of media campaign.
A slide from Epic’s May 13, 2020 Project Liberty update presentation.
But in Epic’s case, the media campaign around #FreeFortnite was something entirely new. Video game companies are constantly fighting legal battles – Take-Two Interactive was involved in at least eight in 2019 alone, and four more in 2020, according to public records. But never has a game company gone so far as Epic has to sway public opinion in its favor in order to pressure a legal opponent as it heads into a massive, potentially life-shattering court battle. ‘industry.
Thanks to Project Liberty, Epic managed to turn a court case that should have only interested business and tech journalists into a hashtag, a social event broadcast on both Twitch and YouTube, and a tweet-worthy event. live like you would with an E3. conference. Its in-game events, contests, and giveaways, while entertaining, were for Epic’s benefit, not ours. While it’s impossible to say whether or not Epic feels any differently now that it’s in the midst of testifying, Epic clearly had careful marketing plans to unleash a surge of public pressure on Apple and Google to get what they wanted. wanted to. Anyone can guess how this ends up playing out in conjunction with the courts.
None of this is to say whether Epic is right or wrong about this particular battle. If Epic wins, that win could potentially mean massive changes not just for the games industry, but for apps and technology in general. Some of these changes are probably good. Epic isn’t the first to criticize Apple’s walled garden verbally or legally, and Epic’s lawsuit could genuinely lead to positive change for consumers and developers. It could also have other consequences, unintended or unknown, whether on the operation of Apple or other platforms. This is all very hazy and highly dependent on how Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers governs. and how a long and inevitable appeal process unfolds.
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