Epic Games Store: Hate and Adore

If you think the hate received by the Epic Games Store is down to jealousy or due to reluctance for change by people, or their ongoing legal battle against Apple Inc., then you couldn’t be further from the truth. Yes, there are a few Steam loyalists who are attacking Epic Games at every opportunity presented to them, but beneath the hate are many facts.

Epic Games Store is a well-known American video game software developing and publishing company that rose to prominence after their online Battle Royale video game and Fortnite became a sensation amongst gamers in 2017. The company is currently a major player in the digital distribution of PC games, boasting a host of exclusive games on its service. But why does a company that offers so much get so much hate & dislike? Why are avid gamers regarding Epic Games Store as the enemy despite the presence of Fortnite? Why does the company divide opinion amongst video games enthusiasts? Why do some fans love and adore them?

Notable games by Epic Games Store includes:

• Fortnite
• Battle Breakers
• Robo Recall
• Super Meat Boy Forever

I’m not sure there’s a definitive answer to most of these questions, but we can look at some of the facts behind the love-hate relationship between gamers and Epic Games.

The Steam Rivalry & Cross-Play

Since its launch back in September 2003, Steam has been the go-to online digital game distribution service for gamers across the globe. Created by Valve Corporation as a standalone software client, Steam took a huge risk investing in the PC gaming industry when other big companies wouldn’t have and were duly rewarded for it.

Put it this way, before the idea of cross-platform gaming was ever hatched, thanks to the competition Stadia provided, Steam was the best place for gamers across the globe to play together. Instead of asking all your friends to get a PlayStation console or an Xbox console, you could all get a PC and a Steam Account, and Voila, you are all gaming together. Where PlayStation & Xbox divided fans, Steam united them by offering a platform for people to play together similar to collective fun gamers enjoy on 50 Lions slot, which in turn provided them with a lot of users and a lot of money.
Owning a Steam account is regarded as basically owning an Xbox console on the side and the upcoming release of the handheld console. Steam Deck is further supposed to increase the company’s value and the number of users, but not if Epic Games have its way. The Epic Games Store is not only buying games available on Steam, but the American company is also purchasing new releases for PC and making them exclusive to their digital distribution service.

The new strategy employed mirrors the rivalry between PlayStation & Xbox, something PC gamers have never experienced and find very unappealing. In addition, the emergence of Epic Games Store has already seen the recent release of major titles like Call of Duty and Metro Exodus become unavailable to Steam users, a trend that has not gone down well with a lot of them.

Cross-Play has been the biggest selling point for Steam, with football games like ePES Football and FIFA also considering the idea of letting their games become playable across multiple platforms in a bid to increase players and income. The fact that the presence of Epic Games Store threatens cross-play amongst PC users is one of the reasons why the digital distribution service receives a lot of hate from gamers.

The Presence of Fortnite

We cannot ignore the negatives surrounding Epic Games, but the idea behind developing the Fortnite game seems to be a masterstroke. The online free-to-play battle royale video game is available on every platform you can think of, from mobile phones to the recent PlayStation5 console and continues to remain a huge hit amongst even the half-hearted gamers.
The number of Fortnite players is believed to have gone up to 350 million at the end of last year and will only continue to grow as long as the game continues to garner attention. Actors, athletes, and other celebrities alike are also major players in the game. Some of those superstars having their avatar inserted into the game holla LeBron James and Samuel L. Jackson has further increased the popularity of Fortnite across the globe.

Fortnite is also a hit amongst critics who praised its art style, gameplay, learning curve, as well as its multiplayer and progression system. The game has generated over 2 billion dollars worldwide for Epic Games, who have in turn decided to be generous with their proceeds by handing out $30 million annually to the winner of the yearly Fortnite World Cup. The esports competition brings together the best Fortnite players from across the globe to the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York to compete for the prize of the best Fortnite player in the world.

All of these actions have contributed to the love Epic Games have received globally, and also one of the reasons why the company divides opinion.

At this point, it is safe to say the digital distribution gaming service platform is here to stay. Hopefully, they fix their issues, ranging from poor construction of its launching system and its unnecessary focus on microtransactions.