Epic Games acquires Rocket League developer Psyonix (update)

By Asher Madan
last updated

This is quite the surprise.

What you need to know

  • Epic Games just bought Psyonix.
  • Psyonix is the developer of Rocket League.
  • Epic Games says the game will continue to be supported on Steam.
  • It's unclear if it'll be removed from the platform in the future.

Updated May 1, 2019: Dana Cowley, Senior Marketing Manager at Epic Games, clarified that the company has "not announced plans to stop selling the game" on Steam, as previously speculated by The Verge. Cowley continued, "Rocket League remains available for new purchasers on Steam, we'll continue to support it on Steam for existing players after it comes to the store." The original story follows.

A few days ago, Epic Games' Tim Sweeney said that if Valve stops taking a larger cut of revenue on Steam, it'll stop making exclusive deals. However, it seems like the company has found another way to acquire exclusives. Instead of simply paying for the partnership, Epic Games is buying studios and making their games exclusive to the Epic Games Store.

Today, the company announced that it has acquired Psyonix, the developer of Rocket League. This news came as a surprise to many, and completely blindsided leading industry insiders. In a press release via The Verge, Epic Games stated the following.

The PC version of Rocket League will come to the Epic Games store in late 2019. In the meantime, it will continue to be available for purchase on Steam; thereafter it will continue to be supported on Steam for all existing purchasers.

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It's unclear what this means for future content, but it's safe to assume that you'll have to go through the Epic Games Store to buy new add-ons like skins. The Steam version will still be playable — and supported — but, while it has no plans to do so now, it's unclear if Epic Games will completely pull Rocket League from Steam in the future. The language is vague and open to interpretation.

What do you think about this move? Let us know. If you own an Xbox One, you can play the game through Xbox Game Pass. Xbox Game Pass is a monthly subscription service which gives you access to over a hundred games for $10 a month. Luckily, there are numerous promotions going on on Amazon and the Microsoft Store, so you can subscribe for much less.

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Asher Madan
Asher Madan

Asher Madan handles gaming news for Windows Central. Before joining Windows Central in 2017, Asher worked for a number of different gaming outlets. He has a background in medical science and is passionate about all forms of entertainment, cooking, and antiquing.

6 Comments
  • I remember when people were excited about the prospect of a worthy ckmpw8for Steam. Now Epic Games is building a tarnished reputation for themselves as the new Steam, not the better Steam.
  • Guess how Steam became what it is today. By Valve buying mod/game creators that were already using Source engine. Counter-Strike, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress, even Portal. All bought by Valve. Now Epic does the same (buying someone that is already working with UE) and it's a bad thing. Double standards all around.
  • I think that is because when Valve did it, there was no viable online store competition so such methods did not restrict the community. Epic doing the same but in the context of the modern digital gaming environment has a large impact on the community and so is a very different thing. If Epic could travel back in time they'd be fine doing this. Since they can't, they need to understand the game has changed.
  • I do love how gamers all over the internet makes it sound as if Epic is quickly killing PC gaming.
  • Bunch of morons is what they are. All while pretending that they had a choice before. Steam is a de facto monopoly. Epic is doing them a favor.
  • So the same thing that console manufacturers do?