CARY – Hard to believe today that in recent years executives from Epic Games have been feted on stage at Apple events to discuss game and technology developments. Now Apple is threatening to remove Epic from its ecosystem.

Following a dispute over Epic’s challenge to Apple’s payment system, both Apple and Google kicked Epic’s globally popular Fortnite from their platforms.

Epic sued.

On Monday, Apple reacted with a broader threat and said Epic is to blame for the dispute.

“The App Store is designed to be a safe and trusted place for users and a great business opportunity for all developers. Epic has been one of the most successful developers on the App Store, growing into a multi-billion dollar business that reaches millions of iOS customers around the world,” Apple said in a statement provided to The Verge.

“We very much want to keep the company as part of the Apple Developer Program and their apps on the Store.

“The problem Epic has created for itself is one that can easily be remedied if they submit an update of their app that reverts it to comply with the guidelines they agreed to and which apply to all developers. We won’t make an exception for Epic because we don’t think it’s right to put their business interests ahead of the guidelines that protect our customers.”

Contacted Monday by WRAL TechWire, Epic said it would not comment on pending legal action. But later in the day that changed. Greatly.

“When Epic gave users of its app Fortnite a choice of how they wanted to make purchases, Apple retaliated by removing Fortnite from its App Store,” Epic said in a statement. “Then when Epic sued Apple to break its monopoly on app stores and in-app payments, Apple retaliated ferociously.”

Epic went on to seek an injunction against Apple.

Epic Games sues Apple, Google after Fortnite is banned from app stores

“Not content simply to remove Fortnite from the App Store, Apple is attacking Epic’s entire business in unrelated areas,” the company said. “Epic is likely to succeed on the merits of its claims, but without an injunction, Epic will be irreparably harmed long before final judgment comes.”

In a letter shared with The Verge, Epic noted:

“Apple’s actions will irreparably damage Epic’s reputation among Fortnite users and be catastrophic for the future of the separate Unreal Engine business.”

Epic also asked for Fortnite — with its lowered prices and alternate payment option — to be returned to the App Store, The Verge noted.

Apple says Epic has until Aug. 28 to resolve the situation by restoring fees and payments within Fortnite at the 30% rate it changes. Google also charges 30%.

In tandem with lawsuit, Epic mocks Apple with short film on ‘Fortnite’ – watch it

Epic under CEO and cofounder Tim Sweeney have argued quite vocally against the 30% fees.

Removal of Epic from the Apple ecosystem could hurt the multi-billion-dollar company well beyond Fortnite.

“Cutting Epic out of the developer program entirely would be a significant escalation in an already high-stakes battle,” notes Shivdeep Dhaliwal of Benzinga. “The developer program is the gateway to publishing apps on Apple’s platforms, and the ubiquity of Epic’s Unreal Engine could lead to problems that reach far beyond Epic itself.”