With the release of third-party keys for Borderlands 3, another chapter in the Epic Games Store debacle unravels.
Borderlands 3 was formally announced earlier this month, and while most of the fans rejoiced at the news, a key detail surrounding its release was lambasted as being an anti-consumer decision: its timed exclusivity for the Epic Games Store.
There are a number of reasons for all the uproar over the Epic Games Store, but perhaps one of the most egregiously disliked is that certain payment methods offered by the store include a transaction surcharge that is paid for by you, the consumer. It’s not surprising that other methods have since popped up in order to bypass these charges; for one, it is now possible to purchase Borderlands 3 on third-party key sellers such as Humble and Green Man Gaming.
Back in the middle of March, third-party key sellers were welcomed and ‘wholeheartedly supported’ by Epic Games, as stated by its founder Tim Sweeney. However, these will only be available for titles that are not exclusive to the Epic Games Store, and titles like Borderlands 3 will only be accessible to purchase within the store itself. Not surprisingly, Tim Sweeney backtracked on his official position a week later, stating that there will be keys available for exclusive titles, so long as the game’s developer chose to work with the third-party site.
What’s surprising is that this move to allow third-party key sellers for exclusives contradicts the entire selling point of the Epic Games Store for developers. A big talking point for most people siding with Epic during the debacle is the fact that developers should get paid more with an Epic Game Store sale. Of course, it's possible publishers will really be the ones making the most of this higher cut than the ones actually making the games.
The kicker here? Some of the third-party key sellers also go by the percentage cut offered by Steam, in this case Green Man Gaming. This means that consumers who are looking to avoid Epic Games Store’s surcharges will most likely buy Borderlands 3 through third-party retail sites like Green Man Gaming – who are also selling the game at a 10 percent discount – instead.
This newest development just raises the question of why does Epic Games really want to snatch exclusives, when going through the aforementioned third-party retail sites would just be the same as going through Valve and the Steam marketplace.
