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tinny_three's avatar
tinny_three

I don't think GOG really positions themselves as Good Old Games anymore - they're leaning more into being DRM-free.

I reckon it's probably more about rounding out the catalogue, and potentially making it easier for devs to give games away for free.

Probably it's also about trying to boost retention - when people need to keep going back to their Steam account or Gamepass because most titles aren't on Epic, it's bad for Epic.

Boomer's avatar
BoomerMod
tinny_three

I think that's true about GOG's positioning now, but it's definitely the place I think of first if I want to buy an old game. Antstream is starting to shake that instinct as they've got a good selection of retro games, but it's a completely different offer.

The retention angle is a good point - nostalgia is powerful and the Epic Games Store does need it's angle (other than being the Fortnite platform)!

Dave's avatar
Dave

Loosely related comment. I own a couple of things on the epic store and on GOG. I regret it because its a big pain/quality of life issue on the Steamdeck getting non steam games working. I've spent many a night trying to get FFXIV non steam version working ( figured it out eventually).

I used to be quite happy buying on any platform but lack of official and easy to use steamdeck support make them not an option anymore.

Boomer's avatar
BoomerMod
Dave

That's a shame. I'd considered getting one for a while, but couldn't really see how useful it'd be.

Apart from the off-platform support, how are you finding it? I was surprised how much use my Switch got in the end, as I always felt handheld gaming peaked with the Game Gear (not including battery consumption!) 😆

Dave's avatar
Dave
Boomer

The main use scenario for me is if my wife is reading a book then I will play on that, those sort of solo activity/hobby while still together sort of evenings if that makes sense. Where I want to play something but don't want to take myself away and sit on my pc on my own. I've tried taking it with me on long train journey or when away for a few days with work etc, but it's just a bit too big and bulky to take with you. It's a handheld device for the home really.

Boomer's avatar
BoomerMod
Dave

That's fair, I could definitely see the value in that, particularly if it gives access to your PC library (with some fiddling!)

I'm not always in the mood for a Switch game, so this could be a good solution.

What's been the game with the best steamdeck experience for you?

Rupert's avatar
RupertStaff

It's quite hard to separate this announcement from everything else going on at Epic recently.

For a long time I think I held Epic on a bit of a pedestal. Making great and successful games for decades, and seemingly operating on a different level to everyone else as well. Favourable terms on their engine, huge payments to developers for Epic Store exclusives, taking on big tech in the courts, driving fairer revenue shares and the creator economy, and with a master plan to bring it all together (Fortnite/Unreal Engine/LEGO/Fall Guys/Rocket League etc).

It's an incredible business.

But with the recent announcement that they've been "spending way more money than we earn" for a while now, then surely it's hard to justify launching a new loss leader initiative at this time. Is it ultimately a good thing for gamers or developers (or platform competitiveness)? Using investor funds to grab market share is pretty common, but I think there needs to be more thought about long-term industry sustainability, and it feels poorly timed given the current backdrop of events.

Boomer's avatar
BoomerMod
Rupert

I wonder how much the sale of bandcamp, redundancies, and the new fees for non-game developers was meant to offset some of this?

It does seem like they've been making some pretty drastic moves lately.

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