Epic Games will reduce royalty fees for devs with simultaneous EGS launches

Developers making their games with Unreal Engine could pay less in royalty fees if their title hits the Epic Games Store the same day as (or earlier than) other storefronts.

Epic Games unveiled a new Launch Everywhere program that promises a reduced royalty fee of 3.5 percent (down from the original 5 percent) for simultaneous game releases. The program starts on January 1, 2025, and also includes titles in its First Run initiative.

For iOS games, Epic is waiving the same day launch requirement for the foreseeable future, and just allowing the discounted rate. In Epic's words, "this is because Apple currently imposes a commercially prohibitive ‘Core Technology Fee' on apps that ship on stores that compete with their store. If this changes, we will give licensees a minimum of four months notice."

Meanwhile, if a studio has a same-day PC and Android launch for an Unreal-made game but not the EGS, the fee reverts back to the standard 5 percent.

Epic is trying to bring studios into its fold

Launch Everywhere adds to Epic's list of incentives for developers to bring their games to its ecosystem. In the past, it has offered greater revenue splits (and boosting opportunities) and self-publishing options.

Engine makers have come under scrutiny recently following last year's Unity Runtime Fee debacle, which left the company scrambling to win back the trust of its customers (and also resulted in some notable c-suite departures).

Unity amended and subsequently killed the Runtime Fee in a bid to rebuild bridges with the development community. Speaking to Game Developer, Unity CEO Matt Bromberg said the engine maker intends to become "a fundamentally different company" under his leadership.

Epic will share more information ahead of Launch Everywhere's rollout "so developers will have ample time to plan."