Metro: Exodus
- Thread starter Hekotat
- Start date
How is it a win for the consumer? It's the exact opposite. It's a reduction in the options the consumer had on where to buy it. Do you think the money they save on digital publishing cuts is going to benefit customers in some way? How? You can take a look at the big boys like EA to see what the big bucks and an exclusive platform gets the consumer.
Edit: I forgot about the reduction in price. That is indeed a benefit for the consumer. Whether or not that is worth not being able to get it on another platform will be up to the individual.
Ravishing
Uninspiring Title
- 8,452
- 3,577
If Epic wins Exclusives + the game is sold for same or More than it would elsewhere, clearly it deserves an F-U.
But in this case the publisher is making more AND they are passing on some savings to the consumer.
The competition is that now Steam needs to up their game so that these devs refuse exclusivity with Epic.
In the end it'll be a win for consumers.
It might be. This all assumes that they don't just use their giant piles of cash and benefits they gain from funneling people to their engines/games to push cutthroat rates that other platforms can't compete with as easily, rip up the market in the process and then use their future position to strangle all of it, similar to the very real concerns with Amazon now.
Consumers only benefit when the market is fair. The market (as far as I'm concerned) stops being fair when it becomes segmented and the competition stops because one player is holding the cards and the other players don't even get a chance to compete.
Either way, this isn't giving me a choice to make between stores to indicate which I want to support (and thus encourage more competition). It's forcing me to make a choice of play it here or not at all. I didn't like it when Steamworks was pushing developers into Steam-only, and I don't like it now.
For some none of this is no issue at all. For me it's make or break. Deep Silver has said "We'd rather take the cash they're throwing at us and limit your options on how to play our game, while using the low fees to cut the prices a bit as a consolation" and my response is: "Nah, I'm good"
I'm looking at a 30+ game waitlist of games I REALLY want to play, and that's not even looking at the 100 or so other games I haven't gotten around to. I can do without this, and not bat an eye.
Edit: Just to clarify. The optimal competition scenario I could have seen from this would have been Deep Silver using the reduced fees to offer the game at a reduced price on the Epic store while leaving it normal price elsewhere. This most certainly would have encouraged customers to go to Epic while still giving them a choice in the matter. This if anything would most certainly be the type of thing that Valve would have to adjust to. But there was another element to this deal which almost certainly involved a big bag of cash in return for exclusivity
Last edited by a moderator:
Ravishing
Uninspiring Title
- 8,452
- 3,577
This is the part that makes no sense to me.
TONS of games/apps these days are only purchasable via 1 store.
Google vs Apple.
Blizzard games only via Blizzard
DoTA2 only on Steam
LoL only through Riot
Epic games only via Epic
Plenty of examples beyond games too.
Netflix, Amazon Prime video, HBO, Showtime, etc etc.
What doesn't make sense to you? Do you think I like any of the other exclusive options you've listed? I don't. I bitch about the others and now I'm bitching about Epic too.
I mean, it's less of an issue for me in situations where a product is made specifically for a platform by the same people that control the platform, such as Netflix OG's, DotA2 for Steam, and LoL via RIot and the like, but when it's situations like the app stores/consoles/PC digital then I have a really big issue with it.
Ravishing
Uninspiring Title
- 8,452
- 3,577
Gotcha, so if they don't have enough capital to setup the infrastructure to sell it themselves, they better not try to make the best deal they can. makes complete sense!
I am just baffled by Steam loyalty tbh. If the game is good and sold at a decent price, who cares?
I can understand if a subscription is required: Netflix / HBO / Amazon / etc... but this isn't the case here.
The reason I don't take much issue in those cases are that they are either made specifically for that platform and wouldn't exist otherwise, or because they want control over their own distribution and can provide direct benefit to their consumers while also hopefully reaping some added reward. In cases were a product is made to be sold in any which way, choice of where to play it becomes a value-factor to the consumer.
I'm also not loyal to Steam if you were under the impression that I was. I prefer Steam because they put actual work into improving the PC gaming industry and its tech and health as a whole, but I'm not loyal. I do buy games elsewhere. When Epic shows that they're interested in anything other than their piece of the pie through things that benefit either myself or the industry: I'll give them the same consideration I do Steam. Until then, they're just yet another fucking launcher that I don't want to bother with.
gshurik
Tranny Chaser
- 2,517
- -56
I was going to buy it, now I'll pirate it.
If you make anti-consumer decisions I'll make anti-publisher decisions.
Epic are trying to force people to use their storefront instead of providing a better service to make it desirable. I'm not getting bullied into using it, fuck off.
If you make anti-consumer decisions I'll make anti-publisher decisions.
Epic are trying to force people to use their storefront instead of providing a better service to make it desirable. I'm not getting bullied into using it, fuck off.
- 3
Derpa
Trakanon Raider
- 1,985
- 635
Well they've officially pissed off the internet, good luck on surviving what is quickly turning into a blood bath. With that said, game looks great, I'll purchase it regardless of some elitist ideology towards what launcher I have to use and form my own opinions.
- 1
- 1
rinthea
Trakanon Raider
- 82
- 119
I don't understand why everyone is upset about this move away from Steam?
To me it's like crying about getting your coke in a different bottle, when you're going to pour it into a glass with bourbon anyway. Who cares?
At first I thought it was just the usual PR machine orchestrated by a big company, in this case Steam. But while I'm sure that's there, there's obviously more too it.
The only thing I can think of is people with big steam libraries are hurting that moves like this diminish the value of their libraries on steam. Like the fallacy of sunk costs. It's a fantastic example of insidious marketing how Steam has managed to generate fanbois to care so much about the vessel their product is delivered in, rather than the product itself.
At their heart, moves like this are pro-consumer. Somehow gamers have come to the conclusion that it's gamer verse developer. When really they're on the same side. When developers have more money, in aggregate they make better products. Having the developer making more money in direct expense to the producer is better for the consumer.
To me it's like crying about getting your coke in a different bottle, when you're going to pour it into a glass with bourbon anyway. Who cares?
At first I thought it was just the usual PR machine orchestrated by a big company, in this case Steam. But while I'm sure that's there, there's obviously more too it.
The only thing I can think of is people with big steam libraries are hurting that moves like this diminish the value of their libraries on steam. Like the fallacy of sunk costs. It's a fantastic example of insidious marketing how Steam has managed to generate fanbois to care so much about the vessel their product is delivered in, rather than the product itself.
At their heart, moves like this are pro-consumer. Somehow gamers have come to the conclusion that it's gamer verse developer. When really they're on the same side. When developers have more money, in aggregate they make better products. Having the developer making more money in direct expense to the producer is better for the consumer.
Last edited:
- 1
- 1
- 1
Zindan
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 6,612
- 4,404
Eh? The game is available to ANYONE who wants to buy it... if you want the game and refuse to buy it because its on some other "store"... well, that 100% on you (not you specifically) being stupid. Its not like you have to pay for access to the Epic store before you can even buy the game.