Last week we got the news that yet another upcoming video game has become an Epic Store exclusive, this time the upcoming turn based tactical strategy game Phoenix Point.
The game, developed by XCOM veterans and funded through crowdfunding site Fig, was initially due to come to PC via Steam and GOG, but is now coming exclusively to the Epic Games store. While refunds have been offered to anyone unhappy with the change, lead designer and XCOM creator Julian Gollop took to Reddit during a recent AMA to respond to criticisms of the move.
According to Gollop, the change was made in order to improve immediate post launch support for the game, hopefully speeding up when post launch support becomes available.
Additionally, in response to backers update about lack of GOG and Steam keys for the game, Gollop assured backers that, once the year of exclusivity ends, they will receive those codes in addition to the Epic Store code at launch. For those who picked a GOG code in order to avoid DRM, Gollop insists the Epic Store version will be DRM free, and will not require the Epic launcher once downloaded and installed.
Lastly, Gollop confirmed that the Steam and GOG backer codes for the game will come with the first year’s DLC for free, the same deal being offered to backers playing through the Epic Store.
However, some highly upvoted questions in the AMA were not addressed. For example, some backers paid extra to get the game’s first DLC, which is now being given to all backers for free. Gollop did not respond to questions asking if any partial refund would be made available to those backers.
Additionally, some backers in China who cannot access the Epic Store are concerned that they have been ignored in their requests for alternative solutions.
This post originally appeared on Kotaku UK, bringing you original reporting, game culture and humour from the British isles.
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