Epic Games‘ Free Games Have Been a Success, but CEO Tim Sweeney Admits Some Store Exclusives Were Not Worth It

Epic Games, the company behind popular titles like Fortnite, has been making waves in the gaming industry with its Epic Games Store. While the store has faced criticism for its exclusivity deals, one aspect that has been widely praised is its weekly free game giveaways. Since 2018, Epic Games has been offering free games every week, with certain seasons even featuring daily free games. This strategy has been a key part of Epic’s efforts to attract users to its platform.

In a recent press call, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney shared that the free games program has been a „very economical“ user acquisition program. Sweeney explained that while giving away free games may seem counterintuitive, it has been a cost-effective way to bring in new users to the Epic Games Store. By paying game developers for the right to distribute their games for free, Epic has been able to acquire users at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising methods like Facebook ads or Google Search Ads.

Interestingly, Sweeney also noted that developers who participate in the free games program often see an increase in the sales of their paid games on the Epic Games Store. This is because the free game raises awareness of the developer’s other titles, leading to more sales overall. In fact, some developers have even approached Epic to coordinate timed releases of free games to drive awareness of their upcoming titles. This symbiotic relationship between free games and paid games has been a major success for both developers and Epic.

In addition to the free games program, Epic has also tried to attract users to its store by offering exclusive titles. While some exclusives, like the critically acclaimed Hades, have been successful, others have not performed as well. Sweeney admitted that while the company has spent a lot of money on exclusives, not all of them have been good investments. Despite this, Sweeney emphasized that the free games program has been „magical“ in terms of driving user awareness and acquisition.

Overall, Epic Games‘ strategy of offering free games every week has been a successful and cost-effective way to attract users to its platform. While the store’s exclusives have not always been well-received, the free games program has been a standout success. As Epic Games continues to grow and evolve, it will be interesting to see how the company continues to leverage this program to drive user acquisition and engagement on the Epic Games Store.