Randy Pitchford Admits to Misplaced Optimism About Epic Games Store

Despite raking in money from the earlier, more lucrative years of Fortnite, Epic didn't equip EGS with a competitive feature set and user experience that could rival Steam.

To date, EGS lacks many quality-of-life features that Steam users can enjoy, including user reviews, community forums, and robust library management tools. These are important features that make users stay on a platform for a long time.

EGS' front page, which prominently features mobile game advertisements instead of curated PC titles, is also a point of contention.

While Epic has focused primarily on attracting developers and publishers with more favorable revenue splits and upfront payments for exclusivity, Steam prioritizes the end-user experience. This strategy has allowed Steam to maintain its loyal user base, which in turn continues to attract developers seeking the largest possible audience for their games.

Better products and filling gaps are what pull users to software. It's why Discord is as popular as it is today despite coming in late to the party in an industry once dominated by Skype. You can't just strongarm people and buy your way into relevance. This only works temporarily.

Despite criticisms that Steam does little to earn a 30% revenue cut, the platform does provide significant value outside of putting games in front of the most eyes on the internet although that certainly doesn't hurt.

Steam offers APIs and tools that simplify various aspects of game development and distribution, including server hosting, matchmaking, anti-cheat systems, and even community engagement features. Additionally, Steam's investment in technologies like Proton, which enables Windows games to run on Linux, has expanded the potential market for developers without requiring additional work on their part.

No other platform does as much as Steam does, which is why many publishers are perfectly fine with the 30% revenue cut that Valve asks from them.

The challenge now is for Epic to strike a balance between attracting developers and improving the user experience enough to make users want to stay.

Don't forget, players show up for the games, not the store front. It took years for gamers to warm up to Steam and it only happened after Valve put in the time to add convenience and features, significantly impacting user retention and ongoing interest.

EGS' exclusivity deals may provide short-term financial benefits but it's becoming a lot clearer now in the eyes of developers, publishers, and players that until another platform can invest the same amount of dedication to user experience as Steam, its dominance among PC gamers will remain.