#GamingBytes: Epic Games Store's new refund policy gives Steam competition
What's the story
Epic Games Store is the latest platform by Epic for purchasing games online. In this endeavor, it has to compete with existing giants, Steam. While Epic is already giving it stiff competition through free games and expanding its base to mobile platforms, the company has taken things up a notch by revising its refund policy. We report here.
Policy
Refund within 14 days of purchase, under two hours gameplay
Sergey Galyonkin, the Director of Publishing Strategy at Epic Games, made the announcement on Twitter. He said that the Epic Games Store would now allow a buyer to be refunded for a game as long as it is within 14 days of purchase and under two hours of gameplay. The Epic store would also do unlimited refunds, making its policy same as its competition.
Twitter Post
Epic Games announces revised refund policy for game store
We also changed our refund policy. Unlimited refunds within 14 days of purchase and under 2 hours played. The team is working on the self-service solution, but for now, you'll have to go through player support.
— Sergey Galyonkin (@galyonkin) January 11, 2019
Old system
Epic's original refund system was lengthy and confusing
Originally, to refund games on the Epic Store, players would go to Epic's contact form and send a request. A lengthy verification process would follow, including player's public IP address, invoice ID, game purchase location, date of creation of Epic Games account, account display name, date of last login, last four digits of card used for purchase and associated accounts connected to Epic ID.
New process
'The team is working on the self-service solution'
Epic cited player security and did not issue refunds unless players completed the verification process. This process frustrated gamers due to unnecessary complexity compared to other platforms like Steam's. However, Epic had stated the process was temporary and though players still have to go through the ticket system for a refund, Galyonkin has said that "The team is working on the self-service solution".
Opinion
Could Epic become biggest online game store soon?
Epic is setting up to become the biggest game store online. It is giving Steam tough competition by announcing better deals for developers, taking lesser cuts of profits and aiding them using its Unreal Engine. Recently, signs of Epic's dominance has started to show as Tom Clancy's The Division 2 headed to its store exclusively.