The Epic Games Store has been at the centre of some of the most prominent gaming controversies this year, especially in the PC gaming space, what with its aggressive poaching of exclusivity for major titles. And while it’s something that has brought about the displeasure of the masses, the stance that Epic Games themselves have taken from the very beginning is an interesting one.
While Steam – the leading storefront on PC – charges a 30 per cent revenue from all games hosted on its platforms, the Epic Games Store charges only 12 per cent, allowing publishers using the storefront to make more money off their games and – theoretically – invest that money to develop even better content. It’s something that Epic Games has banked on hard, and even though it’s an industry standard – Nintendo, Microsoft, Sony, Apple, and many others charge the same 70/30 split as Steam – there are many who stand with Epic’s digital store for this reason.
For instance, there’s Chris Early, Ubisoft’s vice president for partnerships and revenue. Recently, while speaking with the New York Times, Early said that Steam’s business model has become “unrealistic” in the current market, suggesting that Valve needs to bring about a change.
“It’s unrealistic, the current business model that they have,” said Early. “It doesn’t reflect where the world is today in terms of game distribution.”
Ubisoft has been one of the most high profile supporters of the Epic Games Store. Earlier this year, they confirmed that barring their own Uplay, The Division 2 would only be available for PC via the Epic Games Store, before going on to confirm that this exclusivity arrangement would continue with other future titles as well. Later this year, Ghost Recon Breakpoint will also be exclusive to the Epic Games Store and Uplay.