The era of the Epic Games Store PC exclusive has tailed off recently, but it seems Epic hasn’t given up on the concept. Initially, Epic tried to entice publishers with an attractive revenue split that saw them only take 12 percent of sales on their platform (Steam takes 30 percent) as well as some additional financial incentives. For a while, it worked pretty well for Epic – a number of games, including ones from major publishers like Ubisoft and Square Enix, signed exclusivity deals (most of which lasted a year). Ultimately though, the Epic Games Store didn’t quite take off the way the Fortnite publisher hoped and the audience a game gave up by not being on Steam was too much of a sacrifice for most publishers.
Well, enter the just-announced Epic First Run program. If publishers opt into this program, they commit to their game being exclusive to the Epic Games Store on PC for six months, and in return, they get 100 percent of the proceeds from their game during that period. Here are the details on the program…
“Today, we’re introducing the Epic First Run program: an opt-in exclusivity program for third-party developers on the Epic Games Store. The new Epic First Run program gives participants the opportunity to boost their net revenue from user spending on eligible products from 88% to 100% in their first six months on the Epic Games Store. After their six-month run, participants will continue to benefit from Epic’s 88%/12% revenue split.
The Epic Games Store is home to a huge, rapidly growing global audience with over 230 million players and 68 million monthly active users. Participating products in the Epic First Run program will be presented to those users on-store with new exclusive badging, homepage placements, and dedicated collections. In addition, products will be featured in relevant store campaigns including sales, events, and editorial as applicable. Once a product joins the program, it will benefit from continued exposure throughout its Epic First Run. The new program gives developers of any scale the opportunity to fully activate our global audience right at launch.”
Will the Epic First Run program entice back the big boys like Ubisoft? Probably not, but I could see it drawing in some indie developers. Not having to kick back a cent to the storefront you’re on for six months is a pretty enticing offer – certainly better than having to give up a third of your revenue.
What are your thoughts on the Epic Game Store’s latest tactic? Will it work? Are you still nursing your EGS hate or are you willing to play games via Epic’s launcher if need be?
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