With the recent release of ‘Control‘, while the reviews for the game have generally been more than a little positive, there has been one factor that has been the chagrin of many PC owners. Namely that this was (yet another) game to be released exclusively on the Epic Games Store platform.
While some are seeing these ‘exclusive grabs’ by Epic as a cynical and overly market aggressive move, it seems that they are coming at a significant price. In a report via Eurogamer, it has been revealed that Epic Games may have paid around $8.3m to make this happen!
EDIT – Reports are varying the figure quite significantly. Everyone loves a bit of sensationalism, right? – Although we should note that most seem to agree on around $8m-$10m
Epic Games Paid $8.3 to Get Control Exclusivity?
The news has come following a financial disclosure from the game’s developer (Remedy’s) parent company (505 Games). In it, it is said that a payment of $8.3m was received from Epic Games presumably to secure the exclusive rights for this release. This payment was then split 55/45 between the parent company and the development team.
Why is this important? Well, it is our first practically confirmed example of how far Epic Games is willing to go. Specifically, to secure these titles for their own platform.
What Do We Think?
Ultimately, from a consumer level, how much Epic Games wants to spend on these releases is entirely up to them. Other than the release platform, it doesn’t really affect us that much. For 505 Games, however, it’s very easy to understand why they would’ve accepted this deal.
Having (basically) $5m as an upfront payment is a very nice way to kick off a game’s release. Quite frankly, if Epic Games decides to maintain this policy, you should only expect further releases to go down this road in the future!
What do you think? Are you a fan of the Epic Games Store? – Let us know in the comments!
