Ever since Epic Games launched the Epic Games Store, it, and by extension Epic Games, have been at the center of a firestorm of controversy. Largely the controversy centers around Epic getting exclusive PC releases to its launcher, including high profile releases like Metro: Exodus, and most recently Borderlands 3. It’s not the only thing that worries PC gamers, though, with many wondering what exactly Chinese multimedia giant, Tencent (who has a stake in Epic Games), has access to in regards to their user data, as well as the overall safety of the launcher, which has come into scrutiny in the past.
On Twitter, Epic Games’ CEO Tim Sweeney talked about several of these concerns, particularly in relation to Tencent and their role at Epic Games, saying while they are an investor, they do not have access to user data and only have access to the company’s financial data, and said that the Epic Games Store has not been hacked despite popular belief.
Sweeny also answered a few less controversial questions, such as whether or not previous titles from Epic Games will see release on their store anytime soon (they’re looking into it, but it won’t be happening any time soon), and when the store will be “more open” to indie developers (later this year, Sweeney says).
Epic Games launched the Epic Game Store in December last year. Epic and their supporters cited the need for timed exclusive releases to help penetrate the PC market, where Steam has become the de facto standard, to become fully competitive. Critics feel that Epic is using console market-like tactics in an open ecosystem, and using their wealth from the massively popular Fortnite to drive competition out of the space and to gut third party key sellers, which many see as a key factor in PC gaming. Launching the store in a barebones state (the store lacked a search feature, for instance, at launch, though they have a roadmap out of what they plan to add), and the security concerns mentioned above, have also been brought up by skeptics quite commonly.
Either way, Epic Games aren’t stepping away from their current strategy, as Sweeny highlights. Take a look at his tweets below.
Investors have access to Epic’s financial statements. For an example what’s in a company’s financial statement, look up EA’s financial statement online (it’s publicly available). Investors do not have access to Epic customer data.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 10, 2019
Epic Games login data has not been leaked. Rather, hackers use databases of email address and password combinations that were leaked from other sites, and attempt to login to Epic and other services using the same credentials. (Always use a unique password everywhere.)
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 7, 2019
Making older Epic games available on the Epic Games store is completely logical and something we’re looking into in the background, but this isn’t coming shortly.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 6, 2019
Later in 2019, sorry we can’t move faster!
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 9, 2019
Yes, Epic is investing heavily to bring free games and exclusives to the store to bring in new gamers and grow the store customer base. Simultaneously we’re building lots of features, but are going full speed ahead on games without waiting. That’s the essence of our strategy.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 6, 2019
