Fortnite could be with us for the next few (human) generations, judging by how Epic Games' founder and CEO Tim Sweeney is talking. Success in the games industry is now measured in decades, and the battle for the future looks like it will be fought, in part (and to the groans of millions of core gamers), by publishing transmedia IP on mobile, which Sony has long been arming for.
Once an experimental spin-off, Fortnite is now a vast, self-sustaining gaming ecosystem. It has been a paradigm-shifting success for Epic, which already occupied a position of dominance in an industry that increasingly adopts (and licenses) its admittedly epic (ahem) proprietary Unreal Engine suite of development tools.
Publishers like Sony must negotiate with one of the powers that be for the privilege. Currently, this means Apple's iOS or Google's Android, which take a standard 30% commission on every sale. But what if Epic was able to provide a third option, regardless of how much money it might cost?
Starting today, the Epic Games Store looks set to burn through billions more with an 88/12 revenue-sharing scheme for processed payments on third-party mobile games. One of the few firms that can afford to do so, Sweeney (thanks, IGN), says he's glad to do it: "We choose to reinvest in growth... We're seeing this as an investment in Epic's future, both our future directly as a game developer ourselves; we see a much greater opportunity for Fortnite as a business if the market is open and competition is allowed".
Continuing, in words that sound like they may be pretty significant in retrospect, Sweeney lays out the master plan: "We also see opportunity for all developers. Because we have businesses serving all developers, the Unreal Engine and the Epic Games Store, and our online services, we see an opening up of the market as offering a real breakout opportunity for Epic as a game company and an ecosystem company."
Have you accepted Sony's larger strategy yet, which devotes significant time, money, attention, and opportunity cost to putting games on platforms not called PS5 or PS4, even transporting them to other media arenas entirely? Let us know in the comments section below.
[source ign.com]
Comments 11
I don't think people will move from the ecosystems where they're comfortable. People still use Steam despite Epic exclusives. People who are on android will use Playstore. App store will still dominate for Apple because that is what most people understand.
If I understand this correctly, Epic wants to launch its own competing app store on iOS and Android systems, which Apple / Google ostensibly would be required to allow in order to avoid anti-monopoly laws, and Epic is betting it can lure publishers away from the major stores by offering a better deal.
Epic Game Store hasn't done much to challenge Steam's supremacy on PC as far as I know. It might be a different story on mobile, but consumer habits die hard.
@JJtheTexan I hate to admit it but I spend some money on mobile games here and there and if Epic does make it's own store, I'll glady use it if that means I can save a buck compared to playstore.
Epic haven't even made a dent in the PC space and that's when many of its users will know who Epic are. On mobile, your average Candy Crush player will likely have never even heard of them, so the chances of them going on the play store to download another store to play the same free to play games, seems rather slim
Need EA to take notes for Apex Legends
Why on earth would i want to play on a phone when i can play on a 1080p or 4K TV?
The problem is not console or pc, but mobile phone market, there's basically only 2 players, apple and google, and this 2 corp can't make some app or mobile games live or die.
@Jamesblob If I was Google/Apple I wouldn't let their dung on the store either because a high majority of customers will be locked into that system and not playing anything else which hurts the industry as a whole for other people's investments or opportunities when hoping to gain an audience after creating a new application or game.
Tim Sweeney playing the David and Goliath card again. Which seems laughable initially, but to be fair RELATIVELY they are small fry.
I find that interesting that if a publisher earns less than a million a year (think of it like small indie) they have 85 / 15 split on Apple and Goole stores both. So Epic's offer of 88 / 12 is not that appealing to them, because the audience is much smaller.
Another thing is having the store means nothing. Steam dominates on Windows. Google on Android. And if Apple allowed third party everywhere and not just in EU it would've been the same: you have to be present in the store where all the people are, or risk bankrupcy
I have done mobile gaming for Pokemon Go and Clash Royale. But for gaming, I can do on my console or PC, I wouldn't choose to do it on my phone if it was made as an option.
However, this would be healthy competition for the mobile gaming industry.
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