If you recall, a recent report was published regarding Epic Games acquiring Psyonix, which means Rocket League will be under said company. Reports believed that Rocket League would stay on Steam for a period of time and then move to the Epic Games Store, but Psyonix claims otherwise. In this piece, words from Epic Games CEO, Tim Sweeney, and Psyonix will be looked over to see if any contradictions were made or if the former and latter names are in the clear.
For this piece, the following words that Psyonix published on May 1st, 2019, will be included as seen below.
“The PC version of Rocket League will come to the Epic Games store in late 2019. In the meantime, it will continue to be available for purchase on Steam; thereafter it will continue to be supported on Steam for all existing purchasers.”
The following tweet by Epic Games CEO Sweeney will also be of use:
If Steam committed to a permanent 88% revenue share for all developers and publishers without major strings attached, Epic would hastily organize a retreat from exclusives (while honoring our partner commitments) and consider putting our own games on Steam.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 25, 2019
And the last point that this piece will use as a tool to examine is as follows:
Hi all! We wanted to clarify something for you after today’s news: Rocket League is and remains available on Steam. Anyone who owns Rocket League through Steam can still play it and can look forward to continued support. Thanks!
— Rocket League (@RocketLeague) May 1, 2019
The First Point
During a long exchange of words, Sweeney was asked by a curious individual why the exclusive route for The Epic Games Store. The conversation in full is up for your viewing pleasure.
That’s a loaded question! But Epic will stay the course. 30% store dominance is the #1 problem for PC developers, publishers, and everyone who relies on those businesses for their livelihood. We’re determined to fix it and this is the one approach that will effect major change.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 24, 2019
The chatter continues, except a new user chimed in to question Sweeney:
You mean permanently and without major strings attached?
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 25, 2019
If Steam committed to a permanent 88% revenue share for all developers and publishers without major strings attached, Epic would hastily organize a retreat from exclusives (while honoring our partner commitments) and consider putting our own games on Steam.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 25, 2019
To summarize the first point, if Steam commits to a permanent 88% revenue share for all developers and publishers without any silly steps attached, Epic will stop the exclusive move (while honoring partner commitments) and may consider putting their own games on Steam.
The Second Point
Many blogs and outlets corrected past pieces on Rocket League leaving Steam someday and becoming an Epic Games Exclusive due to the following news post and tweet made by the Rocket League team:
“Editor’s Note: We wanted to clarify something for you after today’s news: Rocket League is and remains available on Steam. Anyone who owns Rocket League through Steam can still play it and can look forward to continued support. Thanks!
NOTE: This transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions. Epic and Psyonix currently expect to close the acquisition near the end of May to early June 2019.”
The reason behind the news clarification came in play because of the May 1st, 2019, announcement made by the Rocket League Team.
Big news! We are extremely excited to announce that we are joining the @EpicGames family! Read more in our blog here: https://t.co/mlbsrKJ0b2 pic.twitter.com/fZYMpsBtt6
— Rocket League (@RocketLeague) May 1, 2019
To summarize the second point, Rocket League will stay on Steam — despite strange wording on the original acquisition post — thanks to gamesindustry.biz sibling site usgamer.net getting official word from the Rocket League team:
“We are continuing to sell Rocket League on Steam, and have not announced plans to stop selling the game there. Rocket League remains available for new purchasers on Steam, and long-term plans will be announced in the future.”
The Third Point
The final point is, Epic Games now owns Rocket League as relayed on the official news post: “today is a big day for us here at Psyonix because, just as the headline says, we’re officially joining the Epic Games family.” However, Sweeney claims that Epic Games’ titles aren’t going to release on Steam since the latter storefront won’t capitulate to the 88% revenue share. But if Rocket League does leave Steam, does that make the statement that website usgamer.net received false?
The fact that Sweeney, Psyonix, and the Rocket League team are quiet on the matter and won’t outright acknowledge pressing questions that fans have is something concerning.
It’s worth noting that the transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions and that Epic and Psyonix currently expect to close the acquisition near the end of May to early June of this year, meaning that we should get word on if the game will leave or stay on Steam before the summer is out.