Red Eats Crow - Epic Exclusivity Re-examined - MMORPG.com

System · September 2019

Red Eats Crow - Epic Exclusivity Re-examined - MMORPG.com

Red Thomas updates his position on Epic exclusive deals after a new update from Steam and several conversations with others in the industry yield new information on the situation. Love… Intrigue… Betrayal… This article has it all.

Read the full story here

Secretdoor101 · September 2019

Nope. Epic could have made a good store, worked to get developers on there (even just offering reduced rates of take, and even better a split reduced rate of take that would benefit both developers and consumers), and treated people well. They didn't. It's really that simple. Exclusivity being paid for is the newest lootbox/gacha type thing. If we accept it, it will be everywhere. I, for one, do not wish to see 25 stores all buying different exclusives with no benefit to the consumers, thanks. I'm not really for Steam, just against Epic's choice of how to compete. Quality, good deals, and respect go a long way for me. When I'm not getting that (Steam isn't really great there, but they beat Epic hands down) I'm not really interested in offering my own respect, and far less my fiscal support. Where possible I still buy direct, although such options are far more limited than they used to be. I do like the idea of competition, but this is simply not the competition we need imo. P.S. I don't blame Epic for the choice of the developers or publishers, and I can understand that choice in some cases where the guarantee is really a good thing for those developers. That doesn't mean I cannot dislike the base practice of paying for things not to be available elsewhere, nor the snide remarks, nor the poor choices, nor the lack of completely basic features that a 1 person web store has...

Siysrril · September 2019

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

rx8993 · September 2019

It's true that Steam needed competition to break up it's monopoly but the way Epic has gone about it was completely wrong. Matter of fact only good thing to come out of Epic store is that it's a competition to Steam, everything else has been to appease big gaming corporations and not to be consumer friendly.

I will not use Epic store until they change their way of thinking, which won't happen in near future or ever. Right now i have other games to play and can wait out for Metro and Borderlands to be released on Steam (that goes for any other game Epic snatches as an times exclusive).

If in future Epic starts snatching games as permanent exclusives not timed ones than that means those developers don't want my money.

alkarionlog · September 2019

Secretdoor101 said:

Nope. Epic could have made a good store, worked to get developers on there (even just offering reduced rates of take, and even better a split reduced rate of take that would benefit both developers and consumers), and treated people well. They didn't. It's really that simple.

Exclusivity being paid for is the newest lootbox/gacha type thing. If we accept it, it will be everywhere. I, for one, do not wish to see 25 stores all buying different exclusives with no benefit to the consumers, thanks.

I'm not really for Steam, just against Epic's choice of how to compete. Quality, good deals, and respect go a long way for me. When I'm not getting that (Steam isn't really great there, but they beat Epic hands down) I'm not really interested in offering my own respect, and far less my fiscal support.

Where possible I still buy direct, although such options are far more limited than they used to be. I do like the idea of competition, but this is simply not the competition we need imo.

and funny enough he kinda like forgot about gog.

like I said before and will repeat, the problem with epic is they are getting a lower rate from devs, ok that is good for devs, but that price is passed to consumer, if they sell the game at 60 on epic it will also be 60 on steam, so why the hell I would have to deal epic lack luster store?

ah yes if you need to hope for someone break the steam "monopoly" why not gog? its even DRM free with IS what we should expect.

plus if we see how the exclusivity deals are a bad thing to consummer and companys, check netflix amazon prime, and all others streamings, thanks for all the exclusivity on each company, piracy is sky high, because people are NOT willing to pay for more then one plataform and having the hassle to deal with more programs

FlyByKnight · September 2019

*No one says competition is bad.*

"HURR DURR DURR COMPETISHUN ITH GOOD!"

Exclusivity of a major IP that previously made it's mark on PC via 4 titles on another platform flies in the face of the "COMPETISHUN" echo.

Aeander · September 2019

Epic had the potential to do better, and it's sad.

Prior to the store launch, they were a real class act. They showed consumer friendliness by offering full refunds for their canceled Paragon, including years-old founders packs. I was one such recipient of a full refund, so you can imagine that I would be supportive of them.

Early in to the launch, they still looked great. The imbeciles among us refused to give any non-Steam launcher a chance, but this one showed real promise with its weekly free games and great developer-side benefits.

Here's the problem though... they are still running around with a beta quality storefront while swinging it around like a finished product. They have failed to meet their own roadmap goals, and failed to fully implement features like cloud saves that they have marked as finished.

Their security is also lacking - and I can personally say that my account was hacked prior to the storefront's launch when Fortnite was taking off. Needless to say, I removed my payment information and am hesitant to ever put it back up. Not that this is new. I don't even save my card in consoles anymore, because the convenience isn't worth the risk.

It's a shame that they couldn't take some of this exclusivity money and funnel it into store improvements. I personally have nothing against exclusivity (and I love it on consoles where most of my favorite games are Nintendo and Sony exclusives), but the platform needs to be up to snuff first. If an Epic store exclusive had a console equivalent, it wouldn't be a Nintendo Switch or Playstation 4, it would be a CDi.

dotdotdash · September 2019

alkarionlog said:

Secretdoor101 said:

Nope. Epic could have made a good store, worked to get developers on there (even just offering reduced rates of take, and even better a split reduced rate of take that would benefit both developers and consumers), and treated people well. They didn't. It's really that simple.

Exclusivity being paid for is the newest lootbox/gacha type thing. If we accept it, it will be everywhere. I, for one, do not wish to see 25 stores all buying different exclusives with no benefit to the consumers, thanks.

I'm not really for Steam, just against Epic's choice of how to compete. Quality, good deals, and respect go a long way for me. When I'm not getting that (Steam isn't really great there, but they beat Epic hands down) I'm not really interested in offering my own respect, and far less my fiscal support.

Where possible I still buy direct, although such options are far more limited than they used to be. I do like the idea of competition, but this is simply not the competition we need imo.

and funny enough he kinda like forgot about gog.

like I said before and will repeat, the problem with epic is they are getting a lower rate from devs, ok that is good for devs, but that price is passed to consumer, if they sell the game at 60 on epic it will also be 60 on steam, so why the hell I would have to deal epic lack luster store?

ah yes if you need to hope for someone break the steam "monopoly" why not gog? its even DRM free with IS what we should expect.

plus if we see how the exclusivity deals are a bad thing to consummer and companys, check netflix amazon prime, and all others streamings, thanks for all the exclusivity on each company, piracy is sky high, because people are NOT willing to pay for more then one plataform and having the hassle to deal with more programs

Exclusivity being paid for is NOT new, by any stretch of the imagination. It's been something that retail stores - including online giants like Amazon - have used for decades to increase clicks/footfall. Every major retail brand you shop with has exclusivity deals and distribution rights locked down on a great many products. The scenario you're highlighting - where the different stores you go into have exclusivity deals with product manufacturers and distributors - already happens. Epic didn't come up with the idea; they adapted it from standard retail practices outside of the digital game retail space. You just didn't care until now, because... well... you'll have to ask yourself why you didn't notice or have an issue with the practice until now. I wouldn't want to speculate, 'cause I don't want to get banned.

The example provided, re: GOG, is a really bad example. CD Projeckt intentionally pursued a fixed niche, and they haven't really deviated from that niche. As such, they're not competing with Steam and don't really try to compete with Steam outside of a few select titles that are often continuations of franchises the service already supports (or in-house titles).

If we look at the stores that have tried to compete with Steam: Discord has categorically failed to leverage it's leading position, and has failed to convert its massive user based into game sales. Humble is a fraction of the size of Steam, and relies on bundle sales to make the small amount of money (relatively) that it makes. GMG is tiny compared to Steam. The only store that has released in the last decade or two that has succeeded in competing with Steam is... the Epic Store. I wonder why that might be? Maybe it's because competing with Steam along conventional lines doesn't work and has never worked.

Also, your Amazon Prime/Netflix shtick is garbage as well. Different programming on different streaming services is no different to having different programs on different channels. You used to have access to channels based on the service you paid for, and if you weren't paying for a particular aspect of a service you didn't get access to certain programming. Different channels competed with one-and-other by... shock horror... having different exclusive flagship content. You didn't complain then, so why are you complaining now? Also, piracy may have increased but so has the amount of revenue brought in by Prime and Netfilx when compared to conventional broadcast television.

The reality is that the vocal element of the gaming community is, by and large, a bunch of skinflint, entitled, low-intelligence nutters who want everything their way or no way at all. If Epic were giving away their exclusives for free, this vocal section of the community would find a way to whine about that to. As Red pointed out, on average... normal consumers don't care.

elveone · September 2019

Siysrril said:

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

It honestly depends on what you find to be subpar. I find EGS to be the superior store just because i'm not bombarded with tons of crap when i try to find anything new on it.

gervaise1 · September 2019

Siysrril said:

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

Who would fill up at a gas station whose prices were 10 cents higher than the next to it for the same standard of gas? And I do mean next to it and on the same side of the street.

I know we didn't. There didn't seem to be any difference between the two but maybe he more expensive one offered windscreen wiping.

Aeander · September 2019

gervaise1 said:

Siysrril said:

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

Who would fill up at a gas station whose prices were 10 cents higher than the next to it for the same standard of gas? And I do mean next to it and on the same side of the street.

I know we didn't. There didn't seem to be any difference between the two but maybe he more expensive one offered windscreen wiping.

I can personally say that when I go to get gas, the crowd around that gas station is the biggest thing that matters to me. If one of them has more expensive gas, but has pumps with no one at them, I'm more likely to use it.

I don't use the gas station at the nearby Walmart because it's always busy and poorly designed such that getting out of it is a pain in the ass. I use the more expensive station that's less busy and more convenient.

I also don't shop at Walmart. I shop at the local grocery chains where wait times are short and everything isn't locked behind anti-theft glass. It's more expensive, but it's convenient.

Bloodaxes · September 2019

They need to add more features to make the launcher worthwhile. I still have it installed mainly due to the free games.

With that said, getting game updates and no patch notes? That's a big WTF for me. I had to go on other sites (or steam) to know what was the update about.

gervaise1 · September 2019

alkarionlog said:

Secretdoor101 said:

Nope. Epic could have made a good store, worked to get developers on there (even just offering reduced rates of take, and even better a split reduced rate of take that would benefit both developers and consumers), and treated people well. They didn't. It's really that simple.

Exclusivity being paid for is the newest lootbox/gacha type thing. If we accept it, it will be everywhere. I, for one, do not wish to see 25 stores all buying different exclusives with no benefit to the consumers, thanks.

I'm not really for Steam, just against Epic's choice of how to compete. Quality, good deals, and respect go a long way for me. When I'm not getting that (Steam isn't really great there, but they beat Epic hands down) I'm not really interested in offering my own respect, and far less my fiscal support.

Where possible I still buy direct, although such options are far more limited than they used to be. I do like the idea of competition, but this is simply not the competition we need imo.

and funny enough he kinda like forgot about gog.

like I said before and will repeat, the problem with epic is they are getting a lower rate from devs, ok that is good for devs, but that price is passed to consumer, if they sell the game at 60 on epic it will also be 60 on steam, so why the hell I would have to deal epic lack luster store?

ah yes if you need to hope for someone break the steam "monopoly" why not gog? its even DRM free with IS what we should expect.

plus if we see how the exclusivity deals are a bad thing to consummer and companys, check netflix amazon prime, and all others streamings, thanks for all the exclusivity on each company, piracy is sky high, because people are NOT willing to pay for more then one plataform and having the hassle to deal with more programs

You are assuming a game will be the same price on Epic and on Steam. No way of knowing that.

At the end of the day it is the devs who decide based on how much money they expect to get - a number based on how much the devs get per copy sold and how many copies are sold.

And they may decide its 60 on Steam and 60 on Epic - but on Epic they only have to sell 250k whereas on Steam they have to sell 400k (or whatever). And they might decide that going with Epic they are more likely to get the sales they need. Remember most games will have a core "following" but after that your game is competing with many others.

Scellow · September 2019

Valve employees spam their anti-epic propaganda on every websites, that's crazy

fuck valve, fuck steam, and fuck their 30% steal

Tykam123 · September 2019

I think there are a lot of angry people here who aren't thinking logically. As the writer suggested, the gaming companies make these decisions, not the publisher. Secondly, Epic gives better rates to companies that work for them. This is better for devs, video games, and ultimately fans who will benefit from game companies earning more money. I also think people must not be aware that the Epic Games store is evolving. It's essentially in beta right now, and is still testing core functions. Theres a ton of new features coming such as reviews, play time, a better interface, more customization options, etc. You can view it on their public Trello page.

The reason people are upset, is because they've used Steam for years and dislike having to use another publisher. I get it, but that is not Epics fault. Additionally, I think we've all realized that Steam is winning this war numerically, however Epic is destroying Steam in terms of being innovative and services. Free games every week, good exclusive games, etc. I know people might view this as a glorified Epic Games fan boy defense, but I have NOT been a fan of Epic Games prior to this store. I despise Fortnite, always have. I also still hold a grudge over their grand mishandling of Paragon, which I loved at the time. I think this is just a time where emotional people are overreacting, and we all need to take a couple steps back, and acknowledge that Epic is doing some stuff excellent. But yes, I agree that they need to speed up improvement to the store. It's been lackluster for longer than necessary at this point.

Hashbrick · September 2019

Tykam123 said:

I think there are a lot of angry people here who aren't thinking logically. As the writer suggested, the gaming companies make these decisions, not the publisher. Secondly, Epic gives better rates to companies that work for them. This is better for devs, video games, and ultimately fans who will benefit from game companies earning more money. I also think people must not be aware that the Epic Games store is evolving. It's essentially in beta right now, and is still testing core functions. Theres a ton of new features coming such as reviews, play time, a better interface, more customization options, etc. You can view it on their public Trello page.

The reason people are upset, is because they've used Steam for years and dislike having to use another publisher. I get it, but that is not Epics fault. Additionally, I think we've all realized that Steam is winning this war numerically, however Epic is destroying Steam in terms of being innovative and services. Free games every week, good exclusive games, etc. I know people might view this as a glorified Epic Games fan boy defense, but I have NOT been a fan of Epic Games prior to this store. I despise Fortnite, always have. I also still hold a grudge over their grand mishandling of Paragon, which I loved at the time. I think this is just a time where emotional people are overreacting, and we all need to take a couple steps back, and acknowledge that Epic is doing some stuff excellent. But yes, I agree that they need to speed up improvement to the store. It's been lackluster for longer than necessary at this point.

I think the point of why there is a divide went right past your head.

What's innovative about a dogshit website anyone with some form of cognitive level of low programming can make. It's embarrassing the lack of features and modern staples that don't exist in epic's store. Their Trello roadmap is laughable as well, it contains things that shouldn't take as long as it is and small features seem to take months. The team must be small or the level of skill must be low.

Aside from that, the argument is exclusivity. Epic is stealing games for their own by paying the devs to get on their platform. PC should never be in an exclusive market, it's bullshit and I won't support it. But if you can be bought for some "last years" free games then good on ya.

The only and I mean only thing Epic's store helps is the developer not the consumer and you'd be well to remember it.

Utinni · September 2019

People upset about Epic store are my new favorite salt mines. I appreciate the free entertainment you all provide with your blind rage. Keep fighting for steam, the more money we keep out of game developers hands the better!!!!

Robbgobb · September 2019

What do I know Epic for? I know Epic for getting people to invest in a game called Fortnite. They never finished that game before cannabilzing it to jump on the hot new trend of battle royales. I gave the store a chance. I loaded it up and did not like so won't go back. I don't trust how they treat the customer just by how they have their store.

I use Steam but am just as happy to buy my games on GoG or directly from the devs. I don't want 20 platforms but will use what is gets me the gaming I want. I don't need every game so I might miss some things but Epic offers me nothing I want to deal with.

I don't like Epic. That is just me looking at them from my own thoughts and beliefs. Not out to sway anyone else from using them. If you are happy and enjoy what you are doing then go for it.

alkarionlog · September 2019

elveone said:

Siysrril said:

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

It honestly depends on what you find to be subpar. I find EGS to be the superior store just because i'm not bombarded with tons of crap when i try to find anything new on it.

say that again when epic have more then 2 pages on the list of games to sell

alkarionlog · September 2019

gervaise1 said:

alkarionlog said:

Secretdoor101 said:

Nope. Epic could have made a good store, worked to get developers on there (even just offering reduced rates of take, and even better a split reduced rate of take that would benefit both developers and consumers), and treated people well. They didn't. It's really that simple.

Exclusivity being paid for is the newest lootbox/gacha type thing. If we accept it, it will be everywhere. I, for one, do not wish to see 25 stores all buying different exclusives with no benefit to the consumers, thanks.

I'm not really for Steam, just against Epic's choice of how to compete. Quality, good deals, and respect go a long way for me. When I'm not getting that (Steam isn't really great there, but they beat Epic hands down) I'm not really interested in offering my own respect, and far less my fiscal support.

Where possible I still buy direct, although such options are far more limited than they used to be. I do like the idea of competition, but this is simply not the competition we need imo.

and funny enough he kinda like forgot about gog.

like I said before and will repeat, the problem with epic is they are getting a lower rate from devs, ok that is good for devs, but that price is passed to consumer, if they sell the game at 60 on epic it will also be 60 on steam, so why the hell I would have to deal epic lack luster store?

ah yes if you need to hope for someone break the steam "monopoly" why not gog? its even DRM free with IS what we should expect.

plus if we see how the exclusivity deals are a bad thing to consummer and companys, check netflix amazon prime, and all others streamings, thanks for all the exclusivity on each company, piracy is sky high, because people are NOT willing to pay for more then one plataform and having the hassle to deal with more programs

You are assuming a game will be the same price on Epic and on Steam. No way of knowing that.

At the end of the day it is the devs who decide based on how much money they expect to get - a number based on how much the devs get per copy sold and how many copies are sold.

And they may decide its 60 on Steam and 60 on Epic - but on Epic they only have to sell 250k whereas on Steam they have to sell 400k (or whatever). And they might decide that going with Epic they are more likely to get the sales they need. Remember most games will have a core "following" but after that your game is competing with many others.

i'm assuming because the "devs" already told us so, intervies with the devs saying they would more like to sell on epic because the return would be bigger, they are not willing to lower the price, and make a win-win for tehn and consummers, so pray tell me why I would support this?

LoganDread · September 2019

Everyone in the comment section hating on Epic per usual.

Last game title I bought I purposely purchased from Epic. I'm not going to ignore them as they give me free games every other week. (even if some of them aren't to my taste). They're intentionally trying to get into this market and if they're willing to give me game titles for free, I'm going to support them with my $$$ when I decide it's time to purchase a game.

From the sounds of it the game devs are getting a much better deal from Epic too. I think it's awesome they're giving devs and consumers a sweet deal & it's funny to listen to the same regurgitated non-sense from the haters.

FlyByKnight · September 2019

*The title of the thread is about Epic EXCLUSIVITY!*

"HURR DURR PPL HATING ON EPIC"

Kyleran · September 2019

Aeander said:

gervaise1 said:

Siysrril said:

Who would be happy to visit that local store to get some beef if the quality of the service in the new store is subpar compared to the one they are used to?

Who would fill up at a gas station whose prices were 10 cents higher than the next to it for the same standard of gas? And I do mean next to it and on the same side of the street.

I know we didn't. There didn't seem to be any difference between the two but maybe he more expensive one offered windscreen wiping.

I can personally say that when I go to get gas, the crowd around that gas station is the biggest thing that matters to me. If one of them has more expensive gas, but has pumps with no one at them, I'm more likely to use it.

I don't use the gas station at the nearby Walmart because it's always busy and poorly designed such that getting out of it is a pain in the ass. I use the more expensive station that's less busy and more convenient.

I also don't shop at Walmart. I shop at the local grocery chains where wait times are short and everything isn't locked behind anti-theft glass. It's more expensive, but it's convenient.

Walmart has free delivery.

ChildoftheShadows · September 2019

LoganDread said:

Everyone in the comment section hating on Epic per usual.

Last game title I bought I purposely purchased from Epic. I'm not going to ignore them as they give me free games every other week. (even if some of them aren't to my taste). They're intentionally trying to get into this market and if they're willing to give me game titles for free, I'm going to support them with my $$$ when I decide it's time to purchase a game.

From the sounds of it the game devs are getting a much better deal from Epic too. I think it's awesome they're giving devs and consumers a sweet deal & it's funny to listen to the same regurgitated non-sense from the haters.

Typically the people it doesn’t bother, like myself, don’t care enough to post. You can’t convince the outrage mob anyway.

Hashbrick · September 2019

LoganDread said:

Everyone in the comment section hating on Epic per usual.

Last game title I bought I purposely purchased from Epic. I'm not going to ignore them as they give me free games every other week. (even if some of them aren't to my taste). They're intentionally trying to get into this market and if they're willing to give me game titles for free, I'm going to support them with my $$$ when I decide it's time to purchase a game.

From the sounds of it the game devs are getting a much better deal from Epic too. I think it's awesome they're giving devs and consumers a sweet deal & it's funny to listen to the same regurgitated non-sense from the haters.

So they give you free games and that's enough to gain their support? Sound. Same regurgitated non-sense from the fan bois.

Red_Thomas · September 2019

alkarionlog said:

and funny enough he kinda like forgot about gog.

like I said before and will repeat, the problem with epic is they are getting a lower rate from devs, ok that is good for devs, but that price is passed to consumer, if they sell the game at 60 on epic it will also be 60 on steam, so why the hell I would have to deal epic lack luster store?

ah yes if you need to hope for someone break the steam "monopoly" why not gog? its even DRM free with IS what we should expect.

plus if we see how the exclusivity deals are a bad thing to consummer and companys, check netflix amazon prime, and all others streamings, thanks for all the exclusivity on each company, piracy is sky high, because people are NOT willing to pay for more then one plataform and having the hassle to deal with more programs

No, I just didn't have the extra word-count to do anything exhaustive. Though, when I mentioned that Steam's monopoly had been eroding for a while now, I was specifically talking about GoG, HumbleBundle, ect...

Howdy, Stranger!

Red Eats Crow - Epic Exclusivity Re-examined - MMORPG.com

Comments

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Howdy, Stranger!

Quick Links

Red Eats Crow - Epic Exclusivity Re-examined - MMORPG.com

Comments

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV