A leading industry analyst suggests that Epic Games’ attempts at overhauling its digital storefront may fall short of breaking Steam’s stronghold over the PC gaming market. The analyst from Newzoo questions whether Epic’s current initiatives can close the gap or eventually rival Valve’s dominance in this space.
Epic Games Store Faces Steep Climb, According to Emmanuel Rosier
Emmanuel Rosier, director of market intelligence at Newzoo, casts doubt on the Epic Games Store’s chances of recapturing market share from Steam. Recently, Rosier commented that Steam has become so ubiquitous among PC gamers that Epic’s strategies—including consistent free game promotions—lack the impact needed to foster ongoing user involvement.
Rosier remarked, “I don’t really see how they can turn that around because Steam has become so inevitable.” He highlighted how Epic’s frequent giveaways primarily encourage users to log in, claim free games, but ultimately, these titles often go unplayed. “It’s almost like collecting games rather than actually playing them,” he added.
He also noted a surprising trend: Epic’s free game campaigns can inadvertently drive up Steam’s sales. Since most players favor using a single launcher, when they learn about a game through a giveaway, many end up purchasing or playing it on Steam, seeking to keep their libraries consolidated rather than fragmented across multiple clients.
Epic’s Multi-Front Competition May Be Spreading Resources Thin
Rosier pointed out that Epic has devoted considerable effort over recent years to contending with several powerful competitors. “The challenge I think Epic is facing is that they try to win everywhere in the past few years,” he said, referring to Epic’s battles not just against Valve’s store, but also against Apple and Google Play. This multipronged approach, according to Rosier, may be undermining Epic’s ability to focus strongly on the PC market, where it is most at risk of losing momentum.
While Epic struggles on the digital storefront front, Rosier believes the company is experiencing more success as a developer. He singled out Fortnite for its renewed vitality, noting the marked growth and vibrancy in the game now compared with six or twelve months ago. Rosier attributed this to Epic’s inventive expansions to Fortnite, with new crossover characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, Pac-Man, Sora from Kingdom Hearts, and Joker from Persona 5. “They are doing everything they can, and I think it’s working better when you look at the state of Fortnite today compared to six months or one year ago,” Rosier observed.
Market Share Outlook: Epic Still Lags Steam Despite New Platforms
Epic’s search for additional avenues for its store continues, but prospects for challenging Steam remain slim. Rosier’s final analysis is that the Epic Games Store is unlikely to meaningfully threaten Steam’s market share. Earlier this year, Steve Allison of Epic revealed that Microsoft’s Xbox had agreed to support the Epic Games Store’s arrival on its platform from day one (link). Still, Rosier expressed reservations that even this step would be enough to disrupt Steam’s deeply rooted presence among PC gamers.
With a few dominant companies controlling the lion’s share of the digital storefront market, Epic’s push to reinvent itself and broaden its platform access faces serious obstacles in changing entrenched gamer behaviors and generating persistent user interest.