Shenmue III is now skipping Steam in favor of the Epic Games Store
Update 2: Deep Silver has responded to those looking to get a refund due to Shenmue 3 now moving to the Epic Games Store. The answer of which isn’t favorable, as they have stated they will not honor any refunds. Now, I’m not a lawyer, but this is going to fall into a legal issue. While nothing can force them to provide refunds in North America. Other countries do have laws that prevent this very thing, such as New Zealand, Australia, and Europe. So this is going to be interesting to see where this goes now.
Update: Confirmed via the Shenmue III Kickstarter, the title is now skipping Steam.
We are happy to announce that Shenmue III for PC will be will be an Epic Games Storeexclusive. Development for Shenmue III has been moving forward using Unreal Engine and the support we have received from Epic has been excellent. But most importantly, in looking for the most enjoyable experience on PC, it was decided together with Deep Silver after much discussion that the Epic Games Store would be the best distribution platform option.
*For inquiries regarding the General Sales such as Epic Games Store exclusive or Pre-Order, please see our FAQ page. For other inquiries please visit Deep Silver customer support.
What I don’t understand is how can Epic Games keep getting away with this? People funded this game, a good majority to have the title released on the PC (Steam). Now, thanks to their involvement with Deep Silver, this will skip Steam completely.
That all said, when development started, it was only stated for PC. However, this was way before EGS was a thing, so Steam was the obvious choice. There’s even a Steam page, which implies where it was going. Lastly, when you selected how you wanted to receive your copy of the game via the Kickstarter. It was either the PlayStation 4 or Steam. Seeing that the Steam page is still up meant Valve wasn’t even told or made aware of this recent change up.
No words.
Original Story
If you’re watching the PC Gamer E3 2019 show, you’ve noticed that Shenmue III made an appearance, sporting an Epic Games Store logo. While the Steam store logo was nowhere to be found. Yes, I know you’re probably thinking the worst, as are we.
So, is this no longer coming to Steam? The short answer is we don’t know. When the Kickstarter was launched, it was for both the PS4 and Steam. And the Steam page is still up, but you can only wish list the game.
We’ve contacted Sega and Deep Silver for confirmation as well. However, one thing is really bothering me. Deep Silver signed an agreement with Epic Games, to move Metro Exodus from Steam to EGS, at the last second. Which possibly means that Shenmue may skip Steam, as the same thing could potentially happen again.
For now, hang on until we get confirmation.
