Enterprising gamers are unlocking Fortnite’s exclusive Galaxy skin using retail phones

Samsung and Fortnite linked up to bring the game to Android phones as a timed exclusive, with a special skin only for Galaxy Note 9 and Tab 4 users.

To earn the skin, players have to access their Fortnite accounts using one of the phones and then play three matches. In a few days, the Galaxy skin appears in players’ accounts. Players can only download one Galaxy skin per phone, so smartphone owners can’t pass their devices around to each other to unlock the exclusive skin. But the Fortnite community is determined, and Samsung probably didn’t expect players to flock to its stores to game the system. (The game has since gone live for all Android users, but the skin remains an exclusive to the specific phones.)

Related: Fortnite Android beta available now for Samsung Galaxy owners, all Android users on Aug. 12

Players on the Fortnite Reddit page recently posted about using Samsung demo phones in retail stores to download Fortnite and earn the new skin. That’s one way to avoid the Samsung Galaxy Note 9’s hefty $1,000 price tag just for one skin.

One Reddit user, PCGI014, posted an update suggesting that Samsung is catching on. “All Samsung demo phones will not download Fortnite for the skins,” management reportedly wrote on a sign next to the phones. “Please do not install any information or downloads onto the demo phones.”

Others in the replies wrote that the trick worked for them at various stores. “I went to Best Buy yesterday and had the skin this morning, so yes it works,” another user wrote. 

We’ve reached out to Epic Games to see if it’s against Fortnite’s terms of service.