2K Games revealed this week that <\/span>Borderlands 3<\/span><\/i>, the latest entry in the much-loved co-op shooter series, will be released on the Epic Games Store as a timed exclusive. Does this mean you should buy it there? Well that\u2019s a tricky question, with both sides having some reasonable arguments in their favor.<\/span><\/p>\n The \u201cStore War\u201d has been going on for months now \u2014 ever since the Epic Games Store was announced late last year. There are a myriad of arguments both for and against the competition between Steam and Epic \u2014 all you have to do is skim the surface of Gaming Twitter or Reddit if you want to find them. And up to now, it\u2019s been more academic than truly practical \u2014 by which I mean no one side had that \u201cone big game\u201d that would sway the public into abandoning the other.<\/span><\/p>\n Hey, your unwavering allegiance to Steam is kinda weird. It’s a shop, with a shitty refund policy, owned by a billionaire meme, run by a company that made maybe 4 or 5 pretty good games a while ago. You’re being weird.<\/p>\n \u2014 David Milner (@DaveMilbo) April 4, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n But <\/span>Borderlands 3<\/span><\/i> is that one big game \u2014 the shiny weight that tips the scales of this cold war one way or another. Most of the other games exclusive to Epic aren\u2019t necessarily the most hyped. <\/span>The Division 2<\/span><\/i>\u2019s and <\/span>Metro Exodus<\/span><\/i>\u2019s predecessors were modest successes, but I don\u2019t think anyone would argue their names alone sold anyone on the Epic Store.<\/span><\/p>\n Borderlands<\/span><\/i>, on the other hand, is a bonafide phenomenon. The whole series has sold tens of millions of copies. It\u2019s still being played by thousands of people daily. This isn\u2019t just a feather in Epic\u2019s cap \u2014 it\u2019s a damned coup.\u00a0But does that mean that I \u2014 a hypothetical fence-sitter who games primarily on PC \u2014 should make the transition to the Epic Games Store in order to play <\/span>Borderlands 3<\/span><\/i>? That\u2019s a tricky choice, and not one I can make on my own. So, taking a leaf out of my buddy Callum\u2019s book<\/a>, I asked an angel and a devil to help me\u00a0figure the issue out:<\/span><\/p>\n Angel: Let\u2019s start with the most important fact of all: Borderlands 3<\/em> is on its way! It\u2019s been five years since the last game in the series came out \u2014 we should be happy the game is coming, regardless of where it\u2019s going to be released.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Devil: Unless you\u2019re one of the literal millions who played both of the previous games with your Steam friends and were hoping to do the same with 3. Better hope all of your friends are willing to make the transition to the Epic Store with you.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Angel: Don\u2019t be like that. It\u2019s a <\/span><\/span>timed <\/span><\/i>exclusive, meaning if you\u2019re so married to the idea of playing with your Steam friends <\/span>on <\/span><\/i>Steam, then you can six months after the game comes out. No one\u2019s forcing you to move to Epic full stop.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Devil: Don\u2019t expect me to be <\/span><\/span>grateful <\/span><\/i>for that. I prefer to keep my games in one place, in one library, and I don\u2019t appreciate being penalized for that. Opening more than one launcher to access the games for which I paid is annoying as hell, and I don\u2019t see why I should have to in order to accommodate devs who put Epic\u2019s paycheck ahead of their players.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Angel: You can\u2019t blame someone who makes a product when they prefer to be paid a large sum for it. Everyone\u2019s said the same thing about Uplay<\/a>, and Origin<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s too inconvenient, they should just release on\u00a0Steam and have done with it, blah blah blah.\u201d Now no one even questions their existence. Hell, they said the same thing about Steam<\/a><\/span><\/span> when it launched.<\/p>\n Devil: Epic\u2019s not doing themselves any favors by buying exclusives out from under Steam. Say what you will about its other practices, but taking food from the mouths gamers who\u2019ve already paid for the pleasure of playing on another system is a middle finger if I\u2019ve ever seen one \u2014 and Tim Sweeney has said he\u2019s gonna keep doing it<\/a>, regardless. Phoenix Point\u2019s Kickstarter backers were even promised Steam codes as one of the incentives, and now the developers are having to give the money back<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 how messed up is that?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Angel: How is that Epic\u2019s fault, though? Developers <\/span><\/span>chose <\/span><\/i>that option because they could take advantage of the better revenue split at the Epic Store. And several of them have been vocal about the fact that it\u2019s just a better place for them. They don\u2019t get lost in the free-for-all that is the Steam store, for starters. Seriously, that place is so overcrowded that you\u2019re just as likely to find a shovelware game as you are a well-made indie. Epic offers a healthier revenue split, exposure to a new audience, and pride of place in a much smaller store. It\u2019s healthy competition!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Devil: No, \u201ccompetition\u201d is when a store has better features that entice both customers and developers. Buying exclusives to force gamers to come to you is rigging the rivalry in your favor. Epic doesn\u2019t have any of the conveniences Steam does. Steam has user reviews, cloud saves, achievements, a mod library\u2026 it\u2019s just a richer experience overall. Why should I have to move to a store with less features for me?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Angel: Are <\/span><\/span>achievements<\/span><\/i><\/span> really worth digging your heels in over? Steam didn\u2019t even have them until a few years after its release. In fact, a lot of the stuff for which we now praise Steam \u2014 all the stuff you <\/span><\/i>just mentioned, in fact \u2014 didn\u2019t exist until years after it launched, and yet we\u2019re expecting the Epic Store to have everything straight out of the box? Isn\u2019t that a little unrealistic?<\/span><\/p>\n Devil: I guess we\u2019ll have to agree to disagree. I don\u2019t want to be forced to play a game on an unfamiliar platform I don\u2019t find appealing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Angel: And I don\u2019t mind moving away from the familiar if it means I get to play a new game in my favorite series. But can we agree at least that the anti-Chinese sentiment<\/a> wrapped up in the debate is more than a little scary?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Devil: Phew, yeah\u2026 even I don\u2019t want to go there.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n TNW Conference 2019 is coming! Check out our glorious new location, inspiring line-up of speakers and activities, and how to be a part of this annual tech bonanza by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n
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