The Epic First Run programme allows developers of any size to claim 100% of revenue if they agree to make their game exclusive on the Epic Games Store for six months.
After the six months are up, the game will revert to the standard Epic Games Store revenue split of 88% for the developer and 12% for Epic Games.
And so the enshitification of epic begins.
Begins? Wasn’t that by original design?
How?
Lure in devs with an unsustainably good deal -> try to lock them in to semi-exclusivity -> use this to pull customers away from valve and other marketplaces -> monopolize the market -> turn around and sell out to shareholders by milking as much money and data as they can from players and developers -> profit
Do you believe there’s a future where Epic games could actually have a monopoly on the video game market?
From our generation, no. We’re all locked in on Steam (and I hope some of you are supporting GOG too).
But the Fortnite generation? Who once they get tired of the game and has been gathering every free game on EGS? Guess what? All their games are in on place! On Epic. Just exactly how steam users are now.
It’s the long long plan and I can see EGS being the Zoomer and (whatever gen is next in line) platform of choice.
I wouldn’t bet money on it but I can see the logic.
Eh if people want to use the epic launcher that’s their choice. I think it’s a worse user experience than steam so even with a bunch of free games idk if that many zoomers would use it exclusively. But maybe you’re right.
I’m much more worried about what happens when Gaben dies and who takes over after him. I can see a future where Epic drops ungodly amounts of money to aquire steam.
Unless Gabe trains a successor that doesn’t take the company public it’s almost certain gonna go public, get bought out and go through Enshitification.
Games exclusive to launchers isn’t healthy for the industry, we don’t need more of that right now. I’m a zoomer, granted I am on the older side, and I’m mostly invested in steam since it’s what I ended up accumulating a lot of games on, it’s what was popular at the time I got into PC gaming. I could definitely see that same thing happening for younger people with Epic.
Thanks for both genuine insight and a good point! Very fair.
Do you believe there’s a present where Epic’s games’ management could actually have a mindset that there’s a future where Epic games could actually have a monopoly on the video game market?
I don’t know what we’re doing here with sentences like that lol
But yes.
This just sounds like competition. A way to keep steam putting in effort.
🤡