Distribution Epic Games Store

Warspite2

Member
Has anyone here published to the Epic Games Store yet? I checked it out and so far I haven't found any information on there about it. From what I can see, it's not like Steam. So if any of you had published on Epic yet and would like to share your experience I would appreciate it, thanks.
 
Last I heard they ask you to be in it and it's usually games that run the Unreal engine games with some exceptions if the names are big enough.
 

Warspite2

Member
If that is true that will leave the majority of indie devs out of the picture. It says in their faqs any engine is acceptable but from what I gathered there was no way to simply submit a game to their store. So if I confirm this is correct that tells me Epic is mostly in it to promote their engine and target bigger publishers so I will stay with Steam and Itch.
 
but from what I gathered there was no way to simply submit a game to their store.
It looks like you just use the submission form at the bottom of the FAQ page to let them know that you are interested in submitting your game. I guess they then get in touch and do their own checks before they decide whether to accept it onto the store or not.
https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/about
How can I make Epic aware of my interest to put my game on the store?
Complete and submit the form at the bottom of this page or if you have an existing relationship with Epic through Unreal Engine licensing, reach out to your business contact.
 
From what I hear, they set a very high bar on quality for the games that they let through. Even GOG.com isn't as strict. The only GameMaker games I know of that are on the EGS right now are Hyper Light Drifter and MINIT. The devs for those games aren't ever on the forums, so you're unlikely to even get a response about publishing experiences.
 
From what I hear, they set a very high bar on quality for the games that they let through. Even GOG.com isn't as strict. The only GameMaker games I know of that are on the EGS right now are Hyper Light Drifter and MINIT. The devs for those games aren't ever on the forums, so you're unlikely to even get a response about publishing experiences.
Yes one of the Hyper Light Drifter devs is on this very forum quite a bit. Chances are it's the publishers that deal with the store things, but there are some publishers that only want to have exclusive rights on Steam and developers are free to publish elsewhere. I've run into quite a few games now that have similar situations where on Steam they have a publisher, but on itch and other PC distribution, they go with a different publisher.
 
Yes one of the Hyper Light Drifter devs is on this very forum quite a bit.
Are you talking about @Juju? IIRC he's not a full member of the team. He was hired as a contract worker to clean up the game's code and improve performance. While I think he did an absolutely fantastic job there, if my memory isn't failing he wouldn't really be knowledgeable about the details of publishing that game.
 

Juju

Member
games that run the Unreal engine games with some exceptions
Nah, the Epic store takes games from any engine...

if the names are big enough.
...but this is sorta true. Epic is going at this like Valve did in the early years of Steam - personal contacts. This means there'll be a bias towards people using UE4 simply because of existing relationships between people.

Epic is mostly in it to promote their engine and target bigger publishers
They've chucked a lot of money at (higher-end) indie games recently so I think Epic have a broader business strategy than promoting their own tech. They're trying to compete with Steam.

there are some publishers that only want to have exclusive rights on Steam and developers are free to publish elsewhere.
Yeah, different publishers for different platforms happens a lot (though it's usually differentiated between consoles/desktop rather then PC storefronts).

The only GameMaker games I know of that are on the EGS right now are Hyper Light Drifter and MINIT.
Likewise. I'll ask around to see if anyone else has ended up there.

He was hired as a contract worker to clean up the game's code and improve performance.
Correct. I try to steer clear of publishing matters to focus on the fun bits.

While I think he did an absolutely fantastic job there
Thank you very much!

if my memory isn't failing he wouldn't really be knowledgeable about the details of publishing that game.
Yeah, I don't keep up with HLD these days. Alx would be the chap to talk to, but he is extremely busy these days.
 

Yal

🐧 *penguin noises*
GMC Elder
Tons of people still seem to take it personally if a game is Epic-exclusive because of not wanting to split up their library (and allegations of Epic stealing personal info and having inferior UX on the storefront) so keep in mind that even if you get a better revenue split or an exclusivity bonus you might get more hate from annoyed kids on the internet as well. Not sure if it's gonna be a big thing if you're not the likes of Retro City Rampage 2 or Shenmue 3 levels of hyped up already, but it might be worth keeping in mind when making decisions.
 
so keep in mind that even if you get a better revenue split or an exclusivity bonus you might get more hate from annoyed kids on the internet as well.
I've never seen people get annoyed about a game being on EGS when it's not exclusive. I will add onto your comment to say that if you're going to take Epic exclusivity, please, PLEASE don't make fun of or complain about potential customers. A couple of devs have done this on Twitter and it's a stupid decision that only serves to anger the more reasonable people. The unreasonable ones are going to be mad at you regardless.

Not sure if it's gonna be a big thing if you're not the likes of Retro City Rampage 2 or Shenmue 3 levels of hyped up already, but it might be worth keeping in mind when making decisions.
I don't know what Retro City Rampage is, but people were beyond mad about Shenmue 3. Rightfully so, IMO, since the KS promised Steam keys which will no longer exist. I'd say your game has to be on the level of Borderlands 3 for people to really not care.
 

Yal

🐧 *penguin noises*
GMC Elder
I've never seen people get annoyed about a game being on EGS when it's not exclusive.
Probably because without exclusivity, they can get it on Steam; if it's an Epic Exclusive they can't get it at all (without stepping down from their high horses).
 
Probably because without exclusivity, they can get it on Steam; if it's an Epic Exclusive they can't get it at all (without stepping down from their high horses).
To a lot of people EGS is a Chinese spy... spying on people. At some point Half-Life 2 was the enemy for forcing people to get Steam. To some people Steam is still the enemy. Luckily there are so many choices of online stores now. Microsoft store, GOG, Origin, uPlay, Activision, Itch, and both small and big game pass stores and sites. People can now hate them all for one reason or another.
 
Z

zendraw

Guest
one thing about epic store, they give up a free game every week, this week is MIMIC, so yeah theyr definetly tryin to compete with steam.
 

Yal

🐧 *penguin noises*
GMC Elder
Wouldn't that information (or heated debate, depending on how conclusive it is) help OP make the right decision, though?
 
Wouldn't that information (or heated debate, depending on how conclusive it is) help OP make the right decision, though?
No. It's not a general Epic Games Store topic; OP is specifically asking for experiences or advice from people who have published to EGS. "I'm wanting to publish on EGS. Tips?" -> "EGS is evil! Don't do it" is about as relevant to the discussion as "I'm trying to make an platformer. Tips?" -> "Platformers are dumb! Make an RPG instead" in my eyes.
 
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