The developers of Shenmue III have advised that the move to Epic Games Store exclusive does not warrant refunds, and people are not happy.
During E3 2019 it was revealed that Shenmue III would now be an Epic Games Store exclusive. This was a surprise reveal, especially to backers who had funded the game years ago and were under the impression that they would be getting the game on Steam. This isn’t a significant leap for them to make, Epic Game Store didn’t even exist at the time they backed the game. At the time of backing, you could choose to get the game on PS4, or via Steam.
PC Physical copies will come with a code for the Epic Games Store
— Official Deep Silver (@deepsilver) June 10, 2019
Epic have angered many parts of the gaming community for adopting a policy of snapping up already in development games for Epic Store exclusivity. Worse still, these games will often have been funded through Kickstarter and will have promised backers Steam keys. Even within the last year, backers for Shenmue III received a survey asking them which digital version of the game they would like, with Steam being available as an answer.
Some people are not happy and have requested refunds as they do not wish to support PC platform exclusivity tacitly, but these people received emails from the Shenmue III team advising them that refunds would not be offered.
Hello [Backer],
Thank you very much for contacting us.
The launch was previously planned for distribution on Steam, however it was decided together with Deep silver after much discussion that the Epic Games Store would be the best distribution platform option.
Shenmue III will be distributed through the Epic Games Store and will require the Epic Games Store Client to activate.
We apologize for the sudden change in platform, however, refunds will not be granted for this change.
We thank you for your support and look forward to delivering the Shenmue experience fans everywhere have been waiting so long for.
Best Regards,
The Shenmue III Team
This has left people very unhappy, and Shenmue III’s Kickstarter comments section is now flooded with angry backers who feel they have been misled and left out in the cold. What should have been a good week for the Shenmue III team is shaping up to be a real PR disaster at the moment. We will keep you up to date on any breaking news around this story.
