Epic Games General Thread - Its time to talk about what the AAA gaming industry does not understand about the PC console.

[Cubanodun]

Death Stranding also partially uses the Unreal Engine.

It uses the Decima engine, a engine that Guerrilla games did to flex in the peasants that don't know the light of Sony/PCMR

 

[KanaPostsonKiwi]

Also i have to commend Microsoft for the 200IQ play. I'm sure they know people dislike Epic Store for various legitimate reasons, so they make Outer Worlds an Epic Exclusive for 60bux.

Then they release it for game pass which is currently 1¤/month. While game pass is a bit of a shit system where the games are locked behind so many layers of security it takes pretty decent puter knowledge to even get anywhere near the install folder... it's amazing marketing stunt from MS, and the game pass actually has other worthwhile titles too.

 

[Exceptionally Exceptional]

I had a fun little autistic daydream while doing the dishes today.


I was an indie dev who was building a game over which everyone was losing their shit in anticipation. The press calls it "The most intriguing game of the decade" and people stalk my website and social media accounts thirsty for any bit of info they can get their little mitts on.
As time goes by I release trailer after trailer for the game, which only increases the furor my game has created. Millions of people watch my every move in anticipation.

One day I check my business email and spot an email sent to me by Epic Games. They'd like to discuss an exclusivity deal. A wicked smile spreads across my face as I shoot back a quick email telling them that I'm interested but would need to see a contract. They send it along for me to look over and, well, it seems to be of great benefit to me. Millions of dollars guaranteed upon signing.
I shoot the contract to my legal department with a memo expressing my intentions. My lawyers comb over the agreement and tell me that what I intend it perfectly legal.

I agree to Epic's contract, publicly announcing the deal, which is for 6 months. The public are at first pissed until my assurances that the additional funding from Epic will allow me to make beneficial changes to the game and expand it's scope and scale, mollifying some while others resolutely hate me. The game releases on Epic, as planned. It makes Epic back a fraction of what they spent on it in the 6 months that it's exclusive to their store.
Then comes the Steam release.... which is advertised as "The Steam Edition!". Upon release players find that The Steam Edition! features enhanced graphics, more gameplay, a larger world, and generally a lot more content... content that will never see the light of day in The Epic Edition!

Then comes the announcement on my social media profiles. I've played Epic for a damn fool. Their contract never stipulated that I had to ensure content parity across platform releases. I've actively stripped out elements from the The Epic Edition! that will only be seen in The Steam Edition!, including several large DLCs that are The Steam Edition! exclusive, despite me never signing an exclusivity deal with Steam.
To top it off the first year of The Steam Edition! exclusive DLC releases will be completely free, paid for by the chumps at Epic Games. What's more, those that purchased a copy of The Epic Edition! receive free keys for the superior The Steam Edition!
The effect is staggering. All those who detest Epic hail my dev company as the "hero we deserve" and my game sells millions of copies on Steam.

Epic attempts to sue my studio, of course.... but I already planned on this. My case is airtight, nothing I've done violates either my contract with Epic or the law as the promised product was delivered. The Judge rules in my favor within months. In addition I counter-sue Epic for legal fees and am awarded them in full.
I gain the reputation as the man who made Tim Sweeny his bitch and made the cuck fund my studio at his own expense, which he will never see back as it's widely known that The Steam Edition! is far superior due to it's exclusive functionality and content. In the end Epic only makes back 12% of the money they paid me, while Steam makes millions in profit off my game. In all future public appearances I wear a shirt that shows me as a glorious king using Sweeny as my footstool, which causes no end of salt from the Swiener.



And that's my dream. I know it'll never happen, but if someone DID somehow manage to fuck Epic over like that I'd build a fucking temple to the bastard.

 

[BillyGoat2]

I had a fun little autistic daydream while doing the dishes today.


I was an indie dev who was building a game over which everyone was losing their shit in anticipation. The press calls it "The most intriguing game of the decade" and people stalk my website and social media accounts thirsty for any bit of info they can get their little mitts on.
As time goes by I release trailer after trailer for the game, which only increases the furor my game has created. Millions of people watch my every move in anticipation.

One day I check my business email and spot an email sent to me by Epic Games. They'd like to discuss an exclusivity deal. A wicked smile spreads across my face as I shoot back a quick email telling them that I'm interested but would need to see a contract. They send it along for me to look over and, well, it seems to be of great benefit to me. Millions of dollars guaranteed upon signing.
I shoot the contract to my legal department with a memo expressing my intentions. My lawyers comb over the agreement and tell me that what I intend it perfectly legal.

I agree to Epic's contract, publicly announcing the deal, which is for 6 months. The public are at first pissed until my assurances that the additional funding from Epic will allow me to make beneficial changes to the game and expand it's scope and scale, mollifying some while others resolutely hate me. The game releases on Epic, as planned. It makes Epic back a fraction of what they spent on it in the 6 months that it's exclusive to their store.
Then comes the Steam release.... which is advertised as "The Steam Edition!". Upon release players find that The Steam Edition! features enhanced graphics, more gameplay, a larger world, and generally a lot more content... content that will never see the light of day in The Epic Edition!

Then comes the announcement on my social media profiles. I've played Epic for a damn fool. Their contract never stipulated that I had to ensure content parity across platform releases. I've actively stripped out elements from the The Epic Edition! that will only be seen in The Steam Edition!, including several large DLCs that are The Steam Edition! exclusive, despite me never signing an exclusivity deal with Steam.
To top it off the first year of The Steam Edition! exclusive DLC releases will be completely free, paid for by the chumps at Epic Games. What's more, those that purchased a copy of The Epic Edition! receive free keys for the superior The Steam Edition!
The effect is staggering. All those who detest Epic hail my dev company as the "hero we deserve" and my game sells millions of copies on Steam.

Epic attempts to sue my studio, of course.... but I already planned on this. My case is airtight, nothing I've done violates either my contract with Epic or the law as the promised product was delivered. The Judge rules in my favor within months. In addition I counter-sue Epic for legal fees and am awarded them in full.
I gain the reputation as the man who made Tim Sweeny his bitch and made the cuck fund my studio at his own expense, which he will never see back as it's widely known that The Steam Edition! is far superior due to it's exclusive functionality and content. In the end Epic only makes back 12% of the money they paid me, while Steam makes millions in profit off my game. In all future public appearances I wear a shirt that shows me as a glorious king using Sweeny as my footstool, which causes no end of salt from the Swiener.



And that's my dream. I know it'll never happen, but if someone DID somehow manage to fuck Epic over like that I'd build a fucking temple to the bastard.

I want to mark this as autistic with the best of intentions but you could say your daydream was quite... Epic.

 

[Secret Asshole]

I had a fun little autistic daydream while doing the dishes today.


I was an indie dev who was building a game over which everyone was losing their shit in anticipation. The press calls it "The most intriguing game of the decade" and people stalk my website and social media accounts thirsty for any bit of info they can get their little mitts on.
As time goes by I release trailer after trailer for the game, which only increases the furor my game has created. Millions of people watch my every move in anticipation.

One day I check my business email and spot an email sent to me by Epic Games. They'd like to discuss an exclusivity deal. A wicked smile spreads across my face as I shoot back a quick email telling them that I'm interested but would need to see a contract. They send it along for me to look over and, well, it seems to be of great benefit to me. Millions of dollars guaranteed upon signing.
I shoot the contract to my legal department with a memo expressing my intentions. My lawyers comb over the agreement and tell me that what I intend it perfectly legal.

I agree to Epic's contract, publicly announcing the deal, which is for 6 months. The public are at first pissed until my assurances that the additional funding from Epic will allow me to make beneficial changes to the game and expand it's scope and scale, mollifying some while others resolutely hate me. The game releases on Epic, as planned. It makes Epic back a fraction of what they spent on it in the 6 months that it's exclusive to their store.
Then comes the Steam release.... which is advertised as "The Steam Edition!". Upon release players find that The Steam Edition! features enhanced graphics, more gameplay, a larger world, and generally a lot more content... content that will never see the light of day in The Epic Edition!

Then comes the announcement on my social media profiles. I've played Epic for a damn fool. Their contract never stipulated that I had to ensure content parity across platform releases. I've actively stripped out elements from the The Epic Edition! that will only be seen in The Steam Edition!, including several large DLCs that are The Steam Edition! exclusive, despite me never signing an exclusivity deal with Steam.
To top it off the first year of The Steam Edition! exclusive DLC releases will be completely free, paid for by the chumps at Epic Games. What's more, those that purchased a copy of The Epic Edition! receive free keys for the superior The Steam Edition!
The effect is staggering. All those who detest Epic hail my dev company as the "hero we deserve" and my game sells millions of copies on Steam.

Epic attempts to sue my studio, of course.... but I already planned on this. My case is airtight, nothing I've done violates either my contract with Epic or the law as the promised product was delivered. The Judge rules in my favor within months. In addition I counter-sue Epic for legal fees and am awarded them in full.
I gain the reputation as the man who made Tim Sweeny his bitch and made the cuck fund my studio at his own expense, which he will never see back as it's widely known that The Steam Edition! is far superior due to it's exclusive functionality and content. In the end Epic only makes back 12% of the money they paid me, while Steam makes millions in profit off my game. In all future public appearances I wear a shirt that shows me as a glorious king using Sweeny as my footstool, which causes no end of salt from the Swiener.



And that's my dream. I know it'll never happen, but if someone DID somehow manage to fuck Epic over like that I'd build a fucking temple to the bastard.

This is kind of what Take 2 did with RDR2. They took Epic's money and used it to basically advertise their own service, stealing the press (and pre-orders) away from Epic.

 

[CreamyHerman’s]

So EA is going back to Steam, thoughts Kiwis?

 

[Floop]

So EA is going back to Steam, thoughts Kiwis?

EA guud now

 

[Kane Lives]

So EA is going back to Steam, thoughts Kiwis?

Everyone predicted this when they went off and made that shitty Origins service, and yoinked all their former games off Steam.

As they found out, making a game distribution platform isn't easy when you're shit and your library is small. EA's simply meekly following the money trail back to Steam.

 

[Catgirls are Love]

So EA is going back to Steam, thoughts Kiwis?

Nothing changes; their company and games are still shit and are not worth the effort to sail the high seas.

 

[Floop]

Nothing changes; their company and games are still shit and are not worth the effort to sail the high seas.

But EA good now!

 

[Secret Asshole]

EA is still trash, but it shows you that a multi-billion dollar company with money rivaling Epic and a better storefront and business model simply cannot compete, even with its own exclusive games. Again, this is another hit towards Epic, as Origin is a far superior product than the Epic Game Store will ever be. Microsoft rejecting them, now EA coming to Steam...that's bad news bears for Epic.

The whole point of Epic exclusives was to starve the beast that was Steam. 'That's the only way we can compete'. It turns out another multi-billion dollar company tried that. And it didn't work. EA makes more than Epic and it had to come back to Steam. This is not good. EA made 5.1 billion in revenue. Epic is around 3 billion or so.

There's no wonder Epic is not putting any money into developing its platform and just banking solely on expensive exclusives. Destiny 2 has been topping the charts of Steam for I don't even know how long now and now even more content is being added to it, which will fuel further sales. Epic still does not have Destiny 2. EA is coming back, along with its game pass, which is going to pass off money to Steam. Microsoft is giving the Halo Collection to Steam and not Epic. Most people purchased Outer Worlds on the Microsoft store, not Epic. RDR2 was basically an advertisement for the Rockstar Store, in which everyone who has ever bought a GTA game has access to, making it far easier than just buying it on Epic.

Their entire plan to 'starve the beast' is failing extraordinarily badly. Not only have they not reduced the AAA offerings on Steam, the AAA offerings on Steam have INCREASED. The only thing Epic has is their deal with Ubisoft and investment by Sony. Even still, the Quantic Dreams games are not permanent fixtures on the Epic store. They're only one year exclusives. RDR2 is an exclusive for a fucking month and no doubt the Rockstar store ate into their pre-orders.

EA going back to Steam is an awful fucking thing for Epic, because every major studio that deals with them is going to give Epic pause right about now. If EA's superior launcher, revenue stream and library can't make it, how in the ever living fuck is Epic going to? Epic is paying massive amounts of money for shorter and shorter exclusivity deals? Simply having Sony as an investor and a partnership with Ubisoft is not enough. Neither of them have the revenue of EA or Microsoft, along with the sheer market force of Steam.

This is why Steam needs to do nothing. Epic will continue to panic, stumble and try to snag exclusives. I guarantee they will overpay for Death Stranding to get it for as long as possible. But its crazy not to think that gaming companies are watching what is going on and only viewing Epic as free money, attempting to squeeze as much from them, with as little of an exclusivity window as possible.

That 12% is also MASSIVELY fucking them. It hasn't enticed shit, because even with 30% and not on Steam's front page, you make more money on Steam. The only way you make money on Epic is through exclusivity.

It cannot continue doing this forever and there's eventually going to be a time where they've just got to consider stopping it, because starving the beast isn't working at all. Also, you can't starve something when you're extremely picky, putting out massive cash for exclusives and getting a much less RoI than Steam is.

 

[Zaragoza]

I actually didn't think that EA would bring back their games after 8 solid years. I mean it's understandable considering they got the Sims (their DLC policy makes Paradox Interactive's DLC policy look like child's play), Battlefield, the entirety of the sportsball genre and the fact that they're one giant ass corporation who almost bought out Take 2 interactive a couple years prior so it was realistically feasible for them to stand on their own against Valve but fuck them for even doing so.

 

[BillyGoat2]

So EA is going back to Steam, thoughts Kiwis?

let me know when black & white and Black & white 2 with all DLC gets posted to steam I'll buy those in half a heart beat, but otherwise i might avoid.

Oh, Dragon age Origins with all DLC is on steam. Neat, i might get that.

 

[ZMOT]

This is kind of what Take 2 did with RDR2. They took Epic's money and used it to basically advertise their own service, stealing the press (and pre-orders) away from Epic.

is it really stealing when they knew full well what they were getting into but were simply salty enough just to stick it to steam for one month? for a year old console port and rockstar game not less?

I actually didn't think that EA would bring back their games after 8 solid years. I mean it's understandable considering they got the Sims (their DLC policy makes Paradox Interactive's DLC policy look like child's play), Battlefield, the entirety of the sportsball genre and the fact that they're one giant ass corporation who almost bought out Take 2 interactive a couple years prior so it was realistically feasible for them to stand on their own against Valve but fuck them for even doing so.

eh, most of fifa is probably played on ps4, battlefield is in shambles after the eternal swedes managed to finish what they started years ago, battlefront is equally burned by their lootbox-shenanigans (although there seems to be a little resurgence after they revamped progression), but the game is still shit and star wars in general is going down the drain as well.
no idea how sims 4 does, but most of that normie demographic either stay with the game they already pumped money into and probably runs better than a new version. it's the worst demographic to sell GAAS and endless DLC to.

turns out your platform doesn't bring in people when most of the games are shit.

 

[Remove Goat]

let me know when black & white and Black & white 2 with all DLC gets posted to steam I'll buy those in half a heart beat, but otherwise i might avoid.

Oh, Dragon age Origins with all DLC is on steam. Neat, i might get that.

Iirc the Ultimate edition is a bitch to mod, so if you were planning on getting into that, tough luck

 

[Zaragoza]

I still have my Battlefield 2 digital copy on Steam way before EA took it away. Here's hoping when it comes back on Steam, you'll have players wanting to play that game, it's my personal favorite Battlefield.

 

[Remove Goat]

(from Fallen Order's Steam page)
"INTERNET CONNECTION; EA ACCOUNT; STEAM ACCOUNT; ACCEPTANCE OF EA USER AGREEMENT (terms.ea.com) & ORIGIN END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT (ea.com/legal); AND DOWNLOAD & INSTALLATION OF THE ORIGIN CLIENT SOFTWARE (origin.com/download) REQUIRED TO PLAY. YOU MUST LINK YOUR EA AND STEAM ACCOUNTS TO PLAY; EA WILL SHARE YOUR ACCOUNT ID AND INDIVIDUAL GAME AND PLAY RECORDS WITH STEAM TO VALIDATE YOUR PURCHASE AND/OR REFUND REQUEST."

Holy shit, that's ass. Two fucking launchers just to play one game.

 

[CreamyHerman’s]

(from Fallen Order's Steam page)
"INTERNET CONNECTION; EA ACCOUNT; STEAM ACCOUNT; ACCEPTANCE OF EA USER AGREEMENT (terms.ea.com) & ORIGIN END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT (ea.com/legal); AND DOWNLOAD & INSTALLATION OF THE ORIGIN CLIENT SOFTWARE (origin.com/download) REQUIRED TO PLAY. YOU MUST LINK YOUR EA AND STEAM ACCOUNTS TO PLAY; EA WILL SHARE YOUR ACCOUNT ID AND INDIVIDUAL GAME AND PLAY RECORDS WITH STEAM TO VALIDATE YOUR PURCHASE AND/OR REFUND REQUEST."

Holy shit, that's ass. Two fucking launchers just to play one game.

That's been the standard since ubishit also

 

[The best and greatest]

I had a fun little autistic daydream while doing the dishes today.


I was an indie dev who was building a game over which everyone was losing their shit in anticipation. The press calls it "The most intriguing game of the decade" and people stalk my website and social media accounts thirsty for any bit of info they can get their little mitts on.
As time goes by I release trailer after trailer for the game, which only increases the furor my game has created. Millions of people watch my every move in anticipation.

One day I check my business email and spot an email sent to me by Epic Games. They'd like to discuss an exclusivity deal. A wicked smile spreads across my face as I shoot back a quick email telling them that I'm interested but would need to see a contract. They send it along for me to look over and, well, it seems to be of great benefit to me. Millions of dollars guaranteed upon signing.
I shoot the contract to my legal department with a memo expressing my intentions. My lawyers comb over the agreement and tell me that what I intend it perfectly legal.

I agree to Epic's contract, publicly announcing the deal, which is for 6 months. The public are at first pissed until my assurances that the additional funding from Epic will allow me to make beneficial changes to the game and expand it's scope and scale, mollifying some while others resolutely hate me. The game releases on Epic, as planned. It makes Epic back a fraction of what they spent on it in the 6 months that it's exclusive to their store.
Then comes the Steam release.... which is advertised as "The Steam Edition!". Upon release players find that The Steam Edition! features enhanced graphics, more gameplay, a larger world, and generally a lot more content... content that will never see the light of day in The Epic Edition!

Then comes the announcement on my social media profiles. I've played Epic for a damn fool. Their contract never stipulated that I had to ensure content parity across platform releases. I've actively stripped out elements from the The Epic Edition! that will only be seen in The Steam Edition!, including several large DLCs that are The Steam Edition! exclusive, despite me never signing an exclusivity deal with Steam.
To top it off the first year of The Steam Edition! exclusive DLC releases will be completely free, paid for by the chumps at Epic Games. What's more, those that purchased a copy of The Epic Edition! receive free keys for the superior The Steam Edition!
The effect is staggering. All those who detest Epic hail my dev company as the "hero we deserve" and my game sells millions of copies on Steam.

Epic attempts to sue my studio, of course.... but I already planned on this. My case is airtight, nothing I've done violates either my contract with Epic or the law as the promised product was delivered. The Judge rules in my favor within months. In addition I counter-sue Epic for legal fees and am awarded them in full.
I gain the reputation as the man who made Tim Sweeny his bitch and made the cuck fund my studio at his own expense, which he will never see back as it's widely known that The Steam Edition! is far superior due to it's exclusive functionality and content. In the end Epic only makes back 12% of the money they paid me, while Steam makes millions in profit off my game. In all future public appearances I wear a shirt that shows me as a glorious king using Sweeny as my footstool, which causes no end of salt from the Swiener.



And that's my dream. I know it'll never happen, but if someone DID somehow manage to fuck Epic over like that I'd build a fucking temple to the bastard.

But did you finish your dishes?

 

[Agent Wet]

But did you finish your dishes?

I see you are asking the big questions right here