Epic will continue to sign exclusives, even for games already on Steam

DaleTheWhale · 4 Apr 2019 at 09:42

Isn't it about time Steam had some competition?

Yaayuh! · 4 Apr 2019 at 09:44

ThaReaperGuy said:
Isn't it about time Steam had some competition?

Exclusivity isn't competition.
But yeah, Steam are getting a sort of comeuppance.

Tombstone · 4 Apr 2019 at 09:58

Rossi~ said:
Imagine a world where you could buy a game from any store/DRM system and they would have to compete on price, quality, functionality, privacy and general additional incentives.

What a world that would be.

I'd like that world, it would be the same world where I could watch a football match on any tv channel and I wouldn't need Sky Atlantic access to see Game of Thrones. But then I'd also like a world without national borders and no currency and the human race working as one.

I guess really what I am saying, is that I want to live in the Star Trek universe

Vimes · 4 Apr 2019 at 10:03

Tombstone said:
I'd like that world, it would be the same world where I could watch a football match on any tv channel and I wouldn't need Sky Atlantic access to see Game of Thrones. But then I'd also like a world without national borders and no currency and the human race working as one.

I guess really what I am saying, is that I want to live in the Star Trek universe

Yaayuh! · 4 Apr 2019 at 10:09

Tombstone said:
I'd like that world, it would be the same world where I could watch a football match on any tv channel and I wouldn't need Sky Atlantic access to see Game of Thrones. But then I'd also like a world without national borders and no currency and the human race working as one.

I guess really what I am saying, is that I want to live in the Star Trek universe

Indeed, I said it ages ago (before the EU Referendum) that it sounded like something that the EU could create; anti-competition regs against exclusivity in media.

kevman · 4 Apr 2019 at 19:13

Rossi~ said:
Indeed, I said it ages ago (before the EU Referendum) that it sounded like something that the EU could create; anti-competition regs against exclusivity in media.

This should be added to the indicative brexit voting

ic1male · 5 Apr 2019 at 10:15

*chuckle chuckle*

Do you remember the new game from Patrice Desilets of Ubi Assassin's Creed fame? It has a Steam page now saying "Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey will be available on Steam one year after launch on other exclusive digital PC platforms"

They got another one then. I can see this actually being a thing for nearly all games going forward.

Tombstone · 5 Apr 2019 at 10:21

ic1male said:
*chuckle chuckle*

Do you remember the new game from Patrice Desilets of Ubi Assassin's Creed fame? It has a Steam page now saying "Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey will be available on Steam one year after launch on other exclusive digital PC platforms"

They got another one then. I can see this actually being a thing for nearly all games going forward.

Surely Steam could stop all this from occurring by simply making themselves more desireable to the game companies in some way? If the reason why companies are leaving steam and going with Epic is because they are better rewarded monetarily and if Steam is the more desirable platform in other senses, then all Steam needs to do in order to stem and reverse the tide is make themselves more attractive to the game companies? I'm guessing that Steam isn't short of a few bob.

Or am I just looking at it too simplistically

Marky · 5 Apr 2019 at 10:23

Nothing could make me less likely to buy a game, than making it exclusive to the Epic Store.

SS-89 · 5 Apr 2019 at 10:30

Did this really warrant another thread when there is an Epic Store thread on this page? Not sure why this is newsworthy this was pretty obvious as they are flush with cash atm and want to press home whatever advantage they get.

CaptainRAVE · 5 Apr 2019 at 10:34

Rossi~ said:
Exclusivity isn't competition.
But yeah, Steam are getting a sort of comeuppance.

Pretty much this. Exclusivity is a disaster for the consumer - at least previously we had some choice.

Steam haven't helped themselves though, but then they didn't have much reason to. It'll be interesting to see their response.

Marky said:
Nothing could make me less likely to buy a game, than making it exclusive to the Epic Store.

Yup.

I'll just wait - the games will be cheaper and patched.

With a bit of luck it backfires on all involved.

MikeTheNative · 5 Apr 2019 at 11:20

This happens with every new store. When origin and uplay launched people was moaning about exclusives on those platforms but after they get established it becomes the norm and everyone forgets about it, I predict the same will have with epic's store.

TheSwede · 5 Apr 2019 at 11:22

MikeTheNative said:
This happens with every new store. When origin and uplay launched people was moaning about exclusives on those platforms but after they get established it becomes the norm and everyone forgets about it, I predict the same will have with epic's store.

But wasn't that their own games and not "bribing" publishers to come and have their game on their platforms and nowhere else ?

CHokKA · 5 Apr 2019 at 11:38

These "exclusivity" deals are not exclusives at all. They're games being released on the Epic Games platform because the developers have effectively been bribed to do so. Epic are paying the developers to move things across to their platform first, so that it generates momentum on a platform that's inferior (at present) to Steam and isn't winning people over on its own merits. It's a less secure platform, has far less features, and doesn't offer any difference in pricing, so the choice of platform comes down to features of the platform. How anyone can be onboard with that is beyond me. This doesn't benefit us as gamers at all. It's of no competition to Steam because all Steam will have to do is start throwing vast sums of money at developers and get "exclusives" for them as well. Then we'll be into a back-and-forth game between the two, and all the while, who is benefitting? Steam has made it possible for hundreds of indie development studios to get successful sales on their games. Hell, there was an article that I read recently about a studio that was going to go under and had it not been for their game being discounted in a sale, they'd have done just that. It turns out that the sale price was so attractive to people that loads bought it and it allowed the development of the game to continue to completion.

Does this "exclusivity" get us the game cheaper by buying from Epic vs Steam? I doubt it does. The competition should be between the pricing for us, not between what they're paying the developers off with. What a load of rubbish.

MikeTheNative · 5 Apr 2019 at 11:42

TheSwede said:
But wasn't that their own games and not "bribing" publishers to come and have their game on their platforms and nowhere else ?

It was, I think EA may had been giving a few smaller inide devs some money for exclusive games as well, not sure on that though. However I don't see how that is a issue anyways. Platform is a commercial choice, not one of 'which one does of consumers prefer?' For example when a game decides to launch a game with integrated steamworks support, it's not because their consumers like steam, it's the case that it was the best development path for them.

TheSwede · 5 Apr 2019 at 12:05

MikeTheNative said:
It was, I think EA may had been giving a few smaller inide devs some money for exclusive games as well, not sure on that though. However I don't see how that is a issue anyways. Platform is a commercial choice, not one of 'which one does of consumers prefer?' For example when a game decides to launch a game with integrated steamworks support, it's not because their consumers like steam, it's the case that it was the best development path for them.

But don't that lead to the question if the publishers of the games would go to epic stores if they were not giving money or a beneficial deal from epic, on their own accord or pick steam instead that has a bigger user base ?

ic1male · 5 Apr 2019 at 12:17

I'm wondering why Ubisoft has ditched Steam for Epic when they have their own Uplay store. Is the Uplay store missing something that prevents Ubisoft from going alone, like regional pricing or things like that?

Tombstone · 5 Apr 2019 at 12:19

TheSwede said:
But don't that lead to the question if the publishers of the games would go to epic stores if they were not giving money or a beneficial deal from epic, on their own accord or pick steam instead that has a bigger user base ?

I imagine they would still go to the money/beneficial deal. A little like the football (and other sports) on the tv, terrestrial channels have the bigger viewer base than the satellite channel but the sports in question go where the big money is.

MikeTheNative · 5 Apr 2019 at 12:19

TheSwede said:
But don't that lead to the question if the publishers of the games would go to epic stores if they were not giving money or a beneficial deal from epic, on their own accord or pick steam instead that has a bigger user base ?

They pick whatever option makes the most sense for them. They get a bigger user base off steam but they get a smaller cut of the sales and the money that Epic gives them means less they have to worry about sales and can invest it that in the game or their next one. If you don't like the epic store and will not buy from them, I understand that decision. However what I don't get though and I think it is a bit hypocritical is the 'anti competitive' argument. I agree that it is anti competitive but this has been going on for years yet nobody seemed bothered until now.

MikeTheNative · 5 Apr 2019 at 12:23

ic1male said:
I'm wondering why Ubisoft has ditched Steam for Epic when they have their own Uplay store. Is the Uplay store missing something that prevents Ubisoft from going alone, like regional pricing or things like that?

I assume that epic must have give them money to do so. Uplay is more established/accepted than epic store so it's similar market reach as dropping steam and going Uplay exclusive but they get extra cash to do so.