News Epic Games Store

[Hektor]

I just noticed Detroit Become Human costs 40€ on the EGS? FORTY EURO FOR AN ALMOST TWO YEAR LATE PORT??


Member?:

You’ll soon see “lower prices” for games on the Epic Store… says Epic

Tim Sweeney reckons devs will pass savings on to you

www.pcgamesn.com

 

[Wok]

 

[lashman]

I just noticed Detroit Become Human costs 40€ on the EGS? FORTY EURO FOR AN ALMOST TWO YEAR LATE PORT??


Member?:

You’ll soon see “lower prices” for games on the Epic Store… says Epic

Tim Sweeney reckons devs will pass savings on to you

www.pcgamesn.com

it'll all trickle down ... aaaaaaaaaaany minute now, i can feel it!

 

[xxr]

Ah yes, finally something of use, it's ESET NOD32 Anti-virus!

 

[lashman]

Ah yes, finally something of use, it's ESET NOD32 Anti-virus!

lmao

 

[Wok]

Reminder of the leaked list. After TTP, we could expect KCD, Y-LatIL, and maybe A Knight's Quest and Cardpocalypse.

 

[Alextended]

Anyone find it weird they don't even boast about the downloads for some of these games? Shouldn't they expand the audience of those devs by many millions?

 

[lashman]

Anyone find it weird they don't even boast about the downloads for some of these games? Shouldn't they expand the audience of those devs by many millions?

the last time they were flaunting those numbers around was at GDC during their "keynote" ... after that - absolutely nothing

 

[Arsene]

I just noticed Detroit Become Human costs 40€ on the EGS? FORTY EURO FOR AN ALMOST TWO YEAR LATE PORT??


Member?:

You’ll soon see “lower prices” for games on the Epic Store… says Epic

Tim Sweeney reckons devs will pass savings on to you

www.pcgamesn.com

Detroit is $20 on PS4 and is currently on sale for like $15 on PSN. But is $40 on EGS currently on "sale" for $30 which is still double PSN's sale price. Still waiting for those prices to trickle down Tim.

They also gave out Detroit on PS+ back in July lol

 

[fantomena]

Reminder of the leaked list. After TTP, we could expect KCD, Y-LatIL, and maybe A Knight's Quest and Cardpocalypse.

That leaked list came from Epic Games Korea form what Ive heard, games that are gonna be available for purchase there.

 

[Wok]

That leaked list came from Epic Games Korea form what Ive heard, games that are gonna be available for purchase there.

Sure, that is the origin of the leak. So far, the list of 7 leaked games matches 5 out of 11 free games, which is not too bad, especially with two days left.

Date	Game
31/12/2019	???
30/12/2019	???
29/12/2019	The Talos Principle (5)
28/12/2019	Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun (4)
27/12/2019	Hyper Light Drifter
26/12/2019	Faster Than Light
25/12/2019	Totally Accurate Battle Simulator (3)
24/12/2019	Celeste
23/12/2019	Ape Out (2)
22/12/2019	Little Inferno (1)
21/12/2019	Superhot
20/12/2019	TowerFall Ascension
19/12/2019	Into The Breach

 

[kio]

Sorry if this was already talked about.
I'm trying to catch up on Timmy's wild adventures in the last month and noticed somewhere that RDR2 only sold ~300k units on EGS in it's first month and Steam sold basically the same in the first few weeks. Those aren't very good sales right? I don't particularly care about the game, or any of rockstar's output tbh, but weren't it's console sales an order of magnitude greater?
Btw, did we ever get some estimate of how much BL3 units were sold?

 

[lashman]

Btw, did we ever get some estimate of how much BL3 units were sold?

you'd have to ask LittleDinamit ... i believe he has the numbers

 

[Alextended]

the estimates*

 

[gabbo]

I just noticed Detroit Become Human costs 40€ on the EGS? FORTY EURO FOR AN ALMOST TWO YEAR LATE PORT??


Member?:

You’ll soon see “lower prices” for games on the Epic Store… says Epic

Tim Sweeney reckons devs will pass savings on to you

www.pcgamesn.com

Rich businessman trying to sell trickledown econ to gamers with straight face.

the last time they were flaunting those numbers around was at GDC during their "keynote" ... after that - absolutely nothing

Someone must have told Tim to just let go of the pr he's been attempting, and just announce releases.

 

[lashman]

the estimates*

well yeah, obviously i don't think i have to specify that every single time ... we all know they're estimates

Rich businessman trying to sell trickledown econ to gamers with straight face.

well there are people who still believe in that bullshit

 

[Alextended]

So if they pass the savings to us what's the benefit to devs for going to a lower fee store, if to convince people to buy there they have to lower prices? Full 180...

 

[Mor]

Jeez if those last two are free to get. why? you might ask, because both are recent EGS releases (paid releases) with exclusivity deals. (in fact, one is from October and the other from September)

 

[gabbo]

So if they pass the savings to us what's the benefit to devs for going to a lower fee store, if to convince people to buy there they have to lower prices? Full 180...

Trickle down never stood up to real scrutiny, it was all in the conviction people sold it and/or tied it to patriotism.
It definitely wouldn't make any fiscal sense for devs to support lower prices for consumers if theyre already scraping by as it is.

 

[Alextended]

I guess it's always assumed that lower prices could lead to a higher volume of sales/profit but I doubt the percentage of the (real, not hyped) fee difference can result in games going to a lower enough pricing tier for that to happen (on the level of the various sales events that can have a tangible effect for many games). Plus when is it not better to launch at a higher price to have room for discounts you can hype? There's a reason pricing tiers have been near standardized.

 

[lashman]

I guess it's always assumed that lower prices could lead to a higher volume of sales/profit but I doubt the percentage of the (real, not hyped) fee difference can result in games going to a lower enough pricing tier for that to happen (on the level of the various sales events that can have a tangible effect for many games).

publishers don't care about pricing games lower to make them more accessible to more people ... just look at what's happening right now with regional pricing on steam

they really really really don't give a single fuck

 

[prudis]

Epic can't even get their own store backend to work properly. This, from the developer of Unreal Engine. It begs belief, to be honest with you.

whats this backend you speak of ??? (they dont have such feature afawk)

 

[Nabs]

These xmas freebies have been very underwhelming. I get why people who don't game much on PC would be impressed.

 

[gabbo]

I guess it's always assumed that lower prices could lead to a higher volume of sales/profit but I doubt the percentage of the (real, not hyped) fee difference can result in games going to a lower enough pricing tier for that to happen (on the level of the various sales events that can have a tangible effect for many games). Plus when is it not better to launch at a higher price to have room for discounts you can hype? There's a reason pricing tiers have been near standardized.

We'd need actual sales numbers for games on EGS to see where the number of sales required to make up for the lower price becomes unfeasible for devs and epic. And that point can't be that much lower than it already is. They aren't Amazon, they can't operate in the red long enough to bleed their competition dry.

 

[C-Dub]

These xmas freebies have been very underwhelming. I get why people who don't game much on PC would be impressed.

The only one I've looked at and thought, "I'll have that." has been Celeste, which I already own on Switch but have not picked up on PC yet.

It's been a pretty meh giveaway other than that.

 

[Alextended]

Nothing underwhelming about Shadow Tactics, Superhot, Hyper Light Drifter and plenty others (not sure if stuff like Rebel Galaxy count as "this" giveaway, I don't check the date each became available in). I mean, we'd not had a game like the first in ages, yet there's been some interest in such with the Commandos remasters, it out of the blue proved a very capable successor (10k overwhelmingly positive reviews on Steam, like HLD) and its devs are now handling a new Desperados which was in the same vein. With a giveaway a day there's bound to be lesser stuff but come on. Even without a personal interest in specific titles/genres it's not hard to acknowledge good shit and doing so isn't a pro-EGS argument in itself. I'd say most of the freebies are way better than the exclusives Epic secured by virtue of being pre-existing widely acknowledged as great games, just older or less mainstream (for the most part).

 

[prudis]

Nothing underwhelming about Shadow Tactics, Superhot, Hyper Light Drifter and plenty others (not sure if stuff like Rebel Galaxy count as "this" giveaway

its not about the games being underwhelming per se ... tbh itts been pretty great "best of indies" selection of past decade ... but with exception of like 2 of them, its always the titles thats already went through the "every deal imaginable circle" (twitch prime , monthly, bundles, random cheap deals , gamepass) prior to the freebie deal.

So pretty much everyone who watches such deals and is actively aware of indie scene already has most of these .
Especially the four you mentioned were in pretty much all the deals and even for just few bucks during sales bunch of times

 

[Alextended]

Well they're not given away for free by default on other platforms/by the devs themselves just because they're older so, I'd say the only meh thing (other than a few truly tired stuff like World of Goo) was the repeats but not everyone interested got them the first time so it's fine. Maybe next year they will continue the two games thing they had going but one will be a repeat for folks who jumped aboard later than the rest thanks to whatever game or deal or marketing hype since.

 

[C-Dub]

its not about the games being underwhelming per se ... tbh itts been pretty great "best of indies" selection of past decade ... but with exception of like 2 of them, its always the titles thats already went through the "every deal imaginable circle" (twitch prime , monthly, bundles, random cheap deals , gamepass) prior to the freebie deal.

So pretty much everyone who watches such deals and is actively aware of indie scene already has most of these .
Especially the four you mentioned were in pretty much all the deals and even for just few bucks during sales bunch of times

Basically this. With the personal exception of Celeste which has so far slipped through the cracks of the various Humble Monthlies and bundles I've bought, pretty much all the freebies have been in bundles or bought on sale. Plus I'm noticing a correlation between games on Game Pass and games Epic is giving away.

It's a pretty meh giveaway, all told. But obviously that's just my perspective, and people who have bought fewer of these games may be happier with what's on offer.

 

[ISee]

Underwhelming is a subjective expression. It means that something didn't make a positive impact and failed to impress and that's fair enough of a statement towards a present that you have no need for.
People started to make fun of PS+ games for the very same reason and the current EGS holiday give away is treated the exact same way. There seem to be good days, but for the most part it is underwhelming for most people.

I also wonder how "cheap" some of the games are on the "bundle market". FTL is a fantastic game, but how much did they pay per copy? 5 cent? 25 cent? Certainly under a dollar.

 

[Kyougar]

Pretty sure that Tim said that the exclusivity only lasts for the time agreed on between Epic and the pub / devs, independent of how many copies sold on EGS during this time but I can't find this tweet right now

Exclusivity, yes, but they would be stupid to tell them that they don't need to sell out the sales guarantee in that timeframe.

There would be NO incentive to sell any game on EGS. On the contrary, EVERY SALE on EGS would be a loss for the dev/pub and it could be a sale 1 year later.

 

[fantomena]

I mean, free games is a must for EGS. What else are people gonna return to the store for? And I assume for most people, many of the free games do people already own on other platform(s) or will remain in backlog purgatory.

 

[Alextended]

Exclusivity, yes, but they would be stupid to tell them that they don't need to sell out the sales guarantee in that timeframe.

There would be NO incentive to sell any game on EGS. On the contrary, EVERY SALE on EGS would be a loss for the dev/pub and it could be a sale 1 year later.

The sales guarantee is to minimize the risk of going EGS (and the risk of the game in general). It's not stupid, it's their one advantage to convince devs with. If they're somehow obligated to meet the sales threshold then it makes no sense to go for the deal, it's no longer a sales guarantee but rather just an advance payment, in exchange for the 1 year exclusivity. So for a company like Epic, free 1 year exclusivity as they don't really care for that one year they might have to wait to make their money back. They're already most likely choosing thresholds they deem achievable to make the end result a free for them exclusivity period anyway, it's not like they accept the terms any dev might come up with like how they want 5 million copies in advance to go to EGS. Making it an actual rule is pointless. Of course they likely have terms in regards to the pricing of the game on EGS compared to other platforms and patch/dlc parity and pro-EGS PR etc., to avoid abuse like developers trashing them after the exclusivity ends or increasing the price so people buy on Steam. Or they will after the first abuse of it.

 

[C-Dub]

I mean, free games is a must for EGS. What else are people gonna return to the store for? And I assume for most people, many of the free games do people already own on other platform(s) or will remain in backlog purgatory.

Basically this. I've only claimed Celeste and I'd already played it on Switch. I just added it as a Non-Steam Game and put it in my 'Best. Games. Evar.' category

 

[Wok]

by tinyBuild Games.

 

[C-Dub]

by tinyBuild Games.

Hello Neighbour.

The Talos Principle is an excellent game - another one I don't have on PC because I played it on PS4. Another one into my Steam's 'Best. Games. Evar.' category, never to actually be played again.

 

[Arsene]

Hello Neighbour.

The Talos Principle is an excellent game - another one I don't have on PC because I played it on PS4. Another one into my Steam's 'Best. Games. Evar.' category, never to actually be played again.

Will it be the first game or one of the spin offs though

 

[Spamlynguist]

Hello Neighbour.

 

[C-Dub]

Will it be the first game or one of the spin offs though

The bad one. I'm not sure which one(s) that is, frankly.

 

[LittleDinamit]

Sorry if this was already talked about.
I'm trying to catch up on Timmy's wild adventures in the last month and noticed somewhere that RDR2 only sold ~300k units on EGS in it's first month and Steam sold basically the same in the first few weeks. Those aren't very good sales right? I don't particularly care about the game, or any of rockstar's output tbh, but weren't it's console sales an order of magnitude greater?
Btw, did we ever get some estimate of how much BL3 units were sold?

Our estimates are somewhere around 2 million copies sold for Boderlands 3 on PC across two app IDs. At 90% confidence the margin of error for that figure is 500K+-. Close to 0% of these users have played the game recently. This is using XBOX API's Windows data, which we correlate with our Steam numbers (more about this method here).

Since we have precise Steam and Origin numbers and total PC numbers, we can usually estimate EGS sales by correlating these databases. For RDR2, here's a tweet with what we have which also used data published on VideoGameBiz.

 

[Arsene]

The bad one. I'm not sure which one(s) that is, frankly.

Uh well that would be any of them

 

[C-Dub]

Uh well that would be any of them

The immediate vibe I got from that series was "designed as a trailer first", so it's no surprise that the first one was bad and then they made (probably already planned) spinoffs that are just as bad.

 

[Copons]

Our estimates are somewhere around 2 million copies sold for Boderlands 3 on PC across two app IDs. At 90% confidence the margin of error for that figure is 500K+-. Close to 0% of these users have played the game recently. This is using XBOX API's Windows data, which we correlate with our Steam numbers (more about this method here).

Since we have precise Steam and Origin numbers and total PC numbers, we can usually estimate EGS sales by correlating these databases. For RDR2, here's a tweet with what we have which also used data published on VideoGameBiz.

Wow, 0% of returning players for a game like blands seems like a very poor performance to me

 

[AHA-Lambda]

At least Hello Neighbor would finally be a freebie that I don't already own and would like to play.

And free is about the right price for it too.

 

[beep boop]

Wow, 0% of returning players for a game like blands seems like a very poor performance to me

I’m sure they’re all drying off their tears with the money they made from those 2 mil sales. It’s not great that there aren’t all that many players there anymore, but they did pretty well regardless

 

[Digoman]

Given Borderlands 2 long... looooooooooong tail on Steam (it has 7k concurrent users right now, and what.. 10M+ copies sold?) if player retention is that bad I don't think 2k is going to be that happy, unless of course the moneyhat was really big

Though to be fair the game does appear to have faded rather fast in popularity in general, so maybe that has more to do with the game itself rather than the store it is in. I guess we will find out in 3 months or so.

 

[Alextended]

I’m sure they’re all drying off their tears with the money they made from those 2 mil sales. It’s not great that there aren’t all that many players there anymore, but they did pretty well regardless

So you don't think a game with staying power can generate even more sales over time? There wouldn't be different hype for each DLC if it was actually played?

 

[Copons]

I’m sure they’re all drying off their tears with the money they made from those 2 mil sales. It’s not great that there aren’t all that many players there anymore, but they did pretty well regardless

Oh that's for sure, but I meant from the series perspective.
It was pretty common (in my echo chamber) to see folks playing blands2 even right before blands3.
Seeing that nobody is playing 3 after just a few months can mean that the game sucks, or that people finally realized that blands always sucked, or that nobody is opening the egs client to actually play stuff

 

[Sygmaelle]

Wow, 0% of returning players for a game like blands seems like a very poor performance to me

yeah thats utterly bullshit. not your claim, the stat. Game constantly has players, even more so with the dlc since it dropped

Can tell

 

[madjoki]

Yeah 0% sounds like something is wrong with stats. Unless it means everyone has been constantly playing it since release