Walmart expected to bring Fortnite to Project Storm on May 4, 2021, 11:48
In brief: The Epic Games v. Apple trial keeps revealing more than some companies might have wanted. In an exchange of confidential emails between Walmart and Epic, the multinational retailer pitched the Project Storm cloud gaming service intending to bring Fortnite into the yet unreleased platform. Moreover, the emails also describe how the service works and show a glimpse on the Home menu UI.
The first rumors surrounding Walmart s cloud gaming service came from 2019, a few days after Google Stadia s announcement. Since then, Project Storm hasn t been mentioned that often, but an exhibit in the Epic Games v. Apple trial brought its name back up.
Confidential emails surfaced in the ongoing Epic v. Apple trial have revealed more details about Walmart’s long-rumoured unannounced game streaming service.
Per the documents, Walmart had pitched the service, codenamed Project Storm, to Epic in April 2019, and Mark Rein, the
Fortnite maker’s co-founder, came away impressed.
“I played Walmart’s demo on an Android phone (with an Xbox controller) and the experience felt like playing on PS4 and superior to playing on Android or iOS,” said Rein in an email thread. To accompany the service, Rein said Walmart was also planning to sell a clip for “like $2 [USD]” that would let players attach their phone to a controller.
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Walmart s unannounced cloud gaming service codenamed Project Storm has been detailed in confidential emails shown during the Epic Games vs. Apple trial.
Back in 2019 it was rumored that Walmart had been courting developers and publishers with a view to breaking into the game streaming business, and now an email chain from Epic co-founder Mark Rein has confirmed those reports.
In an email thread sent in April 2019, as highlighted by The Verge, Rein explained he d been hands on Project Storm and said the experience felt like playing on PS4 and superior to playing on Android or iOS.
The co-founder said he d played Walmart s demo on an Android phone using an Xbox controller, and also shared video footage with other Epic executives that showed how the retailer intended to sell a cheap clip that would let users attach a controller to their phone. “They’re going to sell the clip for a crazy low amount, he noted. They were saying something like $2.
Walmart’s unannounced cloud gaming service detailed in confidential Epic emails
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Walmart’s unannounced cloud gaming service, codenamed Project Storm, has been detailed in new confidential emails. An exhibit in the
Epic Games v. Apple trial reveals Walmart’s efforts to pitch its cloud gaming service to Epic Games and get
Fortnite on board.
“I played Walmart’s demo on an Android phone (with an Xbox controller) and the experience felt like playing on PS4 and superior to playing on Android or iOS,” said Epic Games co-founder Mark Rein in an email thread from April 2019. Rein also excitedly shares a photo of a game clip with the rest of the Epic Games executive team, showing how Walmart was planning to sell this in stores to let a phone attach to a controller. “They’re going to sell the clip for a crazy low amount, they were saying something like $2,” said Rein.
Issue Date: February 13, 2021 (Nora Tam/SCMP/Newscom)
Just before midnight on Jan. 7, legal scholar Benny Tai Yiu-ting solemnly walked out of the Ma On Shan police station in a black coat and a face mask to a scrum of reporters and flashing cameras. A day earlier, police had rounded up Tai and 52 other pro-democracy figures on suspicion of subversion in an early morning raid. Their crime: taking part in an unofficial primary election Tai had spearheaded.
Police released Tai, 56, on bail without charges after more than 30 hours of questioning. They barred him from leaving the city.
“Hong Kong has entered a cold winter. The wind is strong and cold,” he told reporters. “But I believe many Hong Kongers will still use their own way to move forward against the wind.”