Indie dev sells one copy on Epic Games Store after 20k sales elsewhere
An indie developer revealed that his game sold over 20,000 copies on various platforms and performed well during a Switch promotion, yet only one copy was sold on the Epic Games Store after five days. The post sparked a broader discussion about Epic’s massive user growth versus its low third‑party revenue, with many developers questioning the value of the $100 listing fee and the platform’s ability to convert users into paying customers.
Source: GameLook
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The Incident
An independent developer recently shared a post on an overseas forum describing a stark contrast between his game’s performance on various platforms and on the Epic Games Store (EGS). Over the past year the title sold more than 20,000 copies across “other platforms”, and it even performed respectably during a Switch promotion. The developer paid the $100 submission fee, priced the Epic version slightly lower than the alternatives, and did modest social‑media promotion. After five days on EGS, the game recorded a single sale. He wrote that the result “made me question why a small developer should bother with Epic”. Several other developers echoed the sentiment, noting months of zero revenue on EGS while the same titles continued to sell on Steam, consoles and other PC stores. One comment summed it up: “If you’ve never actually sold a game on EGS, you won’t understand how complete a failure it is as a marketplace.”
Why It Matters
Epic’s user base grew from 108 million in 2019 to 295 million at the end of 2024, a 173 % increase. Yet third‑party revenue rose only from $251 million to $255 million, a 1.6 % gain. The 2025 annual report cites a 57 % rise in third‑party PC spend to $400 million, but playtime grew just 4 % to 2.78 billion hours, indicating most new users aren’t buying games. Comparisons with Steam highlight the gap. Steam’s monthly active users are around 150 million, generating $20 billion in revenue—about $130 per user annually. Epic’s 70 million active users account for roughly $5 per user. Community members describe Epic’s audience as “a massive non‑spending cohort” that mainly uses the client as a Fortnite launcher or to claim free weekly titles. The $100 listing fee therefore appears wasteful for developers whose games sell a fraction of a percent of total volume.
Looking Ahead
The data suggests Epic’s growth strategy—low fees, free‑game giveaways and a $100 entry cost—has attracted users but not converted them into paying customers. Indie studios will likely keep focusing on platforms with proven purchase intent unless a game is exclusive or heavily subsidized by Epic. Observers will watch if Epic changes its revenue share, improves discovery tools, or revises the $100 fee to appeal to small developers. Otherwise the store may remain a peripheral channel rather than a primary sales venue.