Sales from customers without PlayStations and who'll never buy one.
The entire reason they started releasing their games on PC.
-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
-
We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.
The entire reason they started releasing their games on PC.
If every major publisher who had their own launcher and released exclusively there backtracked, there's a reason for it.
No, it's not just a launcher (or would not just be). If they made their games exclusive to their own launcher, to push people into some Playstation integrated PC launcher, they'd basically be asking PC owners to leave for a different ecosystem on the same platform.
It's not gonna happen and they will quickly learn the same lesson that all the other big publishers have had to learn, that it's not just a launcher. Steam come with features that are valuable to PC customers. Being forced into some PC version of Sony's console ecosystem to play their titles, will not work. It never does.
Such as day and date on their PC launcher with a Steam release later. That's enough incentive on its own.
Well it depends on the launcher as well. You have EA's launcher which just minimizes on start up and everything else is handled in game. Most other launchers are something you have to open and buy stuff from like MTX. Thats the shitty implementation and these launchers can be buggy as well.
Vast majority of people will just wait or move on to other games while waiting for discount on the Sony game later on.
It doesn't work unless you're GTA or Rockstar.
PC gamers want a good experience. Launchers made to get back an extra $18 from each game sale, by definition, will not be good. They aren't making that extra revenue just to spend it on developing an actual PC ecosystem.
I think Steams features interest only a minority of PC gamers.
People just like to have their games on 1 single place. And they trust Steam with their money & gamers are quite sure Steam will still be relevant in 20 years So they won't lose access to all those games.
People are most of the times lazy & like the convenience of 1 store. Steam became to big to fail, as did Amazon.
If EGS was the first store to launch and Steam came 10 years later, people would be continue to buy their games on EGS.
Steam is successful because it is functional. Every other store available now is buggy and frustrating to use, and probably has been that way for the last half-decade.
You're proving you pay no attention to the PC landscape. Why exactly should people have to waste so much energy on you derailing this thread?
But it's not a stupid question. In fact, it's quite a poignant question. Because if the cut was all that matters, then publishers wouldn't have abandoned EGS so hard. There's obviously a cost/benefit ratio that comes with operating your own launcher, and clearly taking a lower cut to sell more and not have to pay costs associated with said launchers has been something publishers have looked at when deciding how they want to provider their games going forward.
tl;dr, often taking the lower cut is the better option, otherwise all these pubs wouldn't be coming back to Steam.
All this other stuff being brought up about a PS launcher is theoretical — we have no idea what "benefits" Sony will actually offer. Cross play and PS+ are wants and wishful thinking, not necessarily reality.
And Sony specifically removing their games from Steam isn't creating a competitor; it's creating an annoyance. Nobody is gonna download some mediocre PS Launcher just to play inconsistent PC ports. And we already have plenty of Steam competitors. Stop making up ghosts to fight.
Having your games in one place is feature. Having the same friend list across games is a feature. Steam keys are a feature. Universal controller support and remapping is a feature and so on and so forth.
It's all features, as are the many other functions of Steam and whether it's fair or not, Steam got there first. It's the preferred ecosystem on PC. Suggesting that PC users would leave because they can just download the Playstation launcher, if one happened and Sony's games were exclusive to it, is misunderstanding the PC ecosystem.
It's basically saying "it's just a launcher" about the things tied to Steam. It's not. They're valuable features, whether it's your friendlist, your achievements, the sales or any other aspect of the Steam ecosystem.
I did have a question though: if we do get the overlay patched into other Sony games on PC, surely we'd retroactively get the trophies right? That would be nice.
Oh and how exactly would they verify the "integrity" of the save files on PC? What would stop someone from downloading a 100% save of GoT or any other Sony game and auto-popping all the trophies? Now I don't personally care if people do that, but I know Sony does.
Oh and how exactly would they verify the "integrity" of the save files on PC? What would stop someone from downloading a 100% save of GoT or any other Sony game and auto-popping all the trophies? Now I don't personally care if people do that, but I know Sony does.
I am willing to bet that more people would buy games on a PS launcher over EGS
And 100% cut for PlayStation. Tim Sweeney would be in shambles if it sold more copies with less features. 🤣
One additional annoyance I have with publishers store/overlays, and perhaps I'm missing the downside of this, but I would so, so prefer alternative overlays/launchers to just load your default browser to present the login page and then pass that login back to the launcher/overlay, rather than having one inside the overlay (which is just an internal web service anyways!). I really hope Sony's overlay operates like the former.
Chances are my browser is already loaded, and I use a password manager with it so the passwords are sufficiently complex. It's so much more convenient when apps that need a third party login just redirect you to your browser to open up the page, as then it's just a one-click autofill credentials with my password manager, then automatically back to the overlay. Boom, done.
As they operate now, it's:
- Login page shows up in- game.
- Alt-tab to open up my browser.
- Load my password manager extension, type to search for the publishers site, copy the password.
- Alt-tab back to the game.
- Type in my email login. Then cut and paste the password.
- Alt-tab back to my email client, or use my phone to get the 2 factor authentication.
- Enter that as well.
So damn annoying. Just redirect me and use the already authenticated browser installed.
Chances are my browser is already loaded, and I use a password manager with it so the passwords are sufficiently complex. It's so much more convenient when apps that need a third party login just redirect you to your browser to open up the page, as then it's just a one-click autofill credentials with my password manager, then automatically back to the overlay. Boom, done.
As they operate now, it's:
- Login page shows up in- game.
- Alt-tab to open up my browser.
- Load my password manager extension, type to search for the publishers site, copy the password.
- Alt-tab back to the game.
- Type in my email login. Then cut and paste the password.
- Alt-tab back to my email client, or use my phone to get the 2 factor authentication.
- Enter that as well.
So damn annoying. Just redirect me and use the already authenticated browser installed.
100% of 200 copies is worth more than 80% of potentially millions, math checks out.
PC gamers are not switching. I know this, I won't either, even I don't mind having free games on EGS.
Having all the games one place or a friend list is something every launcher (more or less) is doing? That's not "killer features" of Steam. Not saying is fair or not, just being there first helped Steam massively (and doing the right moves and having a very functional store of course).
Launching a storefront today would be like launching a mobile OS or new gaming console. Almost impossible to succeed.
Of course!
It's the 'simple & obvious' things that make Steam THE PC storefront. Not the numerous features a minority is using.
Please elaborate how this is "definitely" moving towards quicker ports and specifically day one?!?
Press 1 if you think a Sony game will sell just 200 copies on their store vs millions on Steam or press 2 if you just wanted to use an extreme and unrealistic difference to try and prove a point :D
Where are these potentially millions of people buying Playstation games on EGS, wut
Minority doesn't use Steam's Gamepad support, Majority does by this point.
Minority doesn't use Steam's Discussion/Forms for bug/fixes/guides, Majority does by this point.
No, it's not. It's that specific list of titles or that specific friendlist or that specific remapping feature or that.. Anything feature.
As I've tried to make clear with the examples, I consider anything that might draw or keep a user to or in Steam a feature, that includes the tens of thousands of games available, if that is valuable to someone or the specific friend list they made in Steam. The point here being "it's not just a launcher" but a package of features, a combination of a multitude of things, so suggesting people can just download Sony's launcher, if they made their games exclusive to it, as the other user I replied to suggested, is misunderstanding the PC ecosystem.
You can't just ask the user to exchange or build their library with titles available in another launcher or just make another friend list, because that other launcher also offers the option to make a friend list. They might look similar. A friend list is a friend list, but Steam was where most PC users established their friend lists first. That makes those friend list options different. They don't hold equal value.
Last edited:
Why do people care about trophies so much?
Steam "being there" is arguably still something Valve deserves commendation for. You said Epic Games would have been successful if they made a PC store earlier on, but they didn't. Epic, like many other developers ditched PC in the mid-2000's because they were fed up with piracy, with their CEO saying that consoles would be the sole domain of big-budget titles while the future of computer games would be on Facebook. For over a decade, Valve was the only one interested in solving piracy on the platform, and they absolutely succeeded. Everyone else either wanted to put deep everyone else either gave up, or thought the only solution to piracy was abysmal DRM.
Trophies being patched into earlier PC ports would be lovely, but I would not hold my breath. Hopefully, if Sony does undertake that, popping those Trophies could function similarly to how Steam and Xbox Achievements are interconnected. With a game like Halo: The Master Chief Collection, any Achievements you earn via Steam are automatically claimed on Xbox, and vice versa. It even works upon account linking years later, as I discovered myself by unlocking Steam achievements in 2024 for tasks I completed on an Xbox One back in 2014.
Sony's impending situation vaguely reminds me of the so-so support for Trophies when they debuted on PS3 back in the middle of 2008. They did not become a necessity in games until 2009. I recall being disappointed when some previously released, yet notable, first-party titles like Resistance: Fall of Man never supported the feature. Even Sony's own games that did receive a set of Trophies after release, such as Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, required new playthrough(s).
Sony introducing their own storefront would be a gamble not worth taking, in my opinion. Steam is so far ahead of everything else, to the point where Sony would have to offer substantial incentives to bring PC gamers through their virtual doors. Not to mention, Steam also has the advantage of being the oldest of the bunch. Some users have purchases that occurred roughly 20 years ago tied to the service. Out of every launcher/storefront/etc. that is available on a PC running Windows, Steam is the closest one to replicating (and even superseding in some areas) the console experience.
EA left Steam and then returned. Ubisoft left Steam and then returned. Even Call of Duty's departure was short-lived. The Epic Games Store is still a glorified Fortnite launcher. The growing number of free games that have come and gone from the latter cannot compensate for the absence of features. Some of those include controller remapping, game library customization, installed games management, performant download speeds, universal in-game overlay, as well as actual socialization options. To put it nicely, the current friends list does not offer much more than already present on Nintendo Switch Online.
Essentially, I believe that the monetary cost and time Sony would need to invest into developing a capable launcher could be better served elsewhere. If anything, it would have been wise to bring this launcher to market alongside the Horizon Zero Dawn port in 2020. Four years later, plenty of us (myself included) have already crafted a sizable collection of PlayStation PC LLC's games on one or more programs. I prefer to keep everything inside Steam, but EGS' occasional greater discounts or GOG's promise of DRM-free downloads are also factors to consider. I think introducing a fourth location to purchase these games would be unsuccessful in the long run.
Sony's own PC store would work if they'd start day-1 launches in it AND it wouldn't be a bad launcher. Both seems kinda unlikely so IMO it just wouldn't work.
Your question isn't that deep, it's a loaded question. You're already under the presumption no one is going to use the store front.
Which publishers abandoned EGS?
Sony is not just a publisher; it is also a distributor, similar to Valve. The majority of their revenue is generated through third-party sales.
I mean you double down on the logical fallacies about Sony's inability to operate a storefront, even though they successfully managed their console business for 3 decades. Are you also frustrated that Valve doesn't release their games on other PC storefronts, or is it just you have some bias with Steam.
Really? Do you engage with other launchers as frequently as you do with Steam?
But YOU were the one who posed the dumb question
On the topic of Sony releasing their own launcher, the way I see is it that with the exception of itch and GOG, other launchers/stores competing with Steam are maintained by companies that are not PC-centric. Valve stands out from the likes of EA, Ubisoft, Epic and even Microsoft as a PC-centric company that doesn't need to consider let alone maintain a platform elsewhere (there's Steam Deck and SteamOS but that is "PC" too.)
If Sony was to release a PC launcher it would very likely suffer the same fate as others because Sony's focus will naturally remain on Playstation hardware. There's nothing stopping these companies from making more of an effort to compete with Steam but while their attention is split and mostly leans more towards other platforms the unwillingness to make the necessary effort will remain. So, Sony sticking with Steam - the one launcher where an effort is being made and benefitting greatly because of it - makes much more sense.
If Sony was to release a PC launcher it would very likely suffer the same fate as others because Sony's focus will naturally remain on Playstation hardware. There's nothing stopping these companies from making more of an effort to compete with Steam but while their attention is split and mostly leans more towards other platforms the unwillingness to make the necessary effort will remain. So, Sony sticking with Steam - the one launcher where an effort is being made and benefitting greatly because of it - makes much more sense.
If EGS launched a store first it would be losing to piracy and people would complain about having to use it just like it happened with Steam when it first launched before it became good enough.
Obviously the forums (there is toxicity but also tons of solutions for problems) and steam reviews are popular judging by the number of people posting and reviewing.
32% of users using controllers are not using xbox controllers which means vast majority of them probably use steam input.
When it comes to free money (trading cards) even if it is pennies people tend to try and take advantage and lastly why would families not use family share to save money?
This idea that Sony would succeed with a PC launcher where everyone else failed seems based on nothing but hopes and dreams. The idea that Sony will succeed because they have some secret sauce that no one else had. Most of the touted incentives are things only a small amount of hardcore fans care about.
It also assumes the cost of running a store are low when, as we've seen with other publishers, the costs are actually massive. Especially when you have to expand that store into new regions with different policies and currencies.
If even Call of Duty had to go back to Steam, then how could Sony make it work?
(This is all obviously assuming they make their games exclusive to the launcher)
It also assumes the cost of running a store are low when, as we've seen with other publishers, the costs are actually massive. Especially when you have to expand that store into new regions with different policies and currencies.
If even Call of Duty had to go back to Steam, then how could Sony make it work?
(This is all obviously assuming they make their games exclusive to the launcher)
Microsoft has their own store / luancher, no one uses it, EA has their own, no one uses it, people actively hate the epic store, Ubisoft some people use due to exclusives. Sony would probably need to sell day 1 games on their own luancher to have any chance. Delayed releases would be completely DOA
I hope we can opt out of auto-unlocking the trophies. I want to sign in with my PSN account so I can play Legends with my friends that are not getting the PC version, but I was looking forward to replaying the entire game for the trophies (steam achievements) again.
Delayed releases absolutely hurts its trajectory but I hope this does well. I have it on PS5 and I don't want to double dip on PC but I might. It's so tempting.
Those hoping for a launcher don't really care that it wouldn't work, they just want to annoy PC players.
It's thinly veiled platform warring and it isn't new
Feels like cope from sony fans who now concede their favourite PS games will be on PC too.
I would like to see Sony work on their own launcher. Something like Xbox has with good integration between PC and console. Not locked down like Xbox pc launcher though.
Sony has been really good with releasing pc games on multiple launchers. Not just Steam. I don't see them deciding everything needs to be exclusive.
Sony has been really good with releasing pc games on multiple launchers. Not just Steam. I don't see them deciding everything needs to be exclusive.
An overlay is fine, but I don't care about trophies or any level of PlayStation ecosystem integration on PC. Between the cost of development, maintenance, a severe lack of institutional knowledge around PC gaming, on top of inevitably worse sales & engagement compared to Steam, I doubt a Playstation launcher would even be worth the trouble for Sony.
Players using it would face higher price along with an extremely downgraded feature-set and less overall flexibility. Can't imagine those who are PC primary genuinely want this.
Players using it would face higher price along with an extremely downgraded feature-set and less overall flexibility. Can't imagine those who are PC primary genuinely want this.
I'm fairly sure if a Sony luancher existed they would still sell games on steam / epic etc it'd work like the EA and Ubisoft integration currently. Maybe with a 3-6 month exclusive period on their own platform
Yeah like every three months this discussion pops up and it's always people who never participate in the PC thread going "what's wrong with another launcher." As a PC gamer I literally couldn't care less what a console only player thinks is best for me because I literally couldn't care less about consoles.
Sony has already entered the market by being open to both EGS and Steam which support regional pricing and a ton of other features for the latter.
This overlay will work across both EGS and Steam, that too, not replacing the respective client's overlay or features.
Being a third option as a store or even making their games exclusives to their own client for maximum revenue will backfire so bad.
A Sony client is a terrible idea every way you look at it.
This overlay will work across both EGS and Steam, that too, not replacing the respective client's overlay or features.
Being a third option as a store or even making their games exclusives to their own client for maximum revenue will backfire so bad.
A Sony client is a terrible idea every way you look at it.
Ignoring all this launcher stuff, I'll say that anybody thinking about picking up the game that hasn't done so yet on PS4 or PS5 should do so. I just started it on the PS5 a couple of weeks ago and I love it.
The presentation, the striking visuals, the great use of color are just so damn good. The combat feels solid. The story is (so far) also very good and I'm very interested to see where it goes.
The presentation, the striking visuals, the great use of color are just so damn good. The combat feels solid. The story is (so far) also very good and I'm very interested to see where it goes.