'Metro Exodus' Will Launch in the Epic Games Store Instead of Steam

Metro Exodus is the latest game that's set to be an Epic Games exclusive on the PC at launch instead of releasing through Steam.

Deep Silver and Epic Games announced the plan to release the game through the Fortnite creator's store on Monday ahead of the February 15th release date. Like other game creators who have shifted their games away from Steam launches in favor of the Epic Games store, Deep Silver's CEO pointed to the revenue split Epic Games offers as one of the driving reasons for the decision.

"We are delighted to partner with Epic to bring the digital PC version of Metro Exodus to market," said Deep Silver CEO Dr. Klemens Kundratitz. "Epic's generous revenue terms are a game changer that will allow publishers to invest more into content creation, or pass on savings to the players. By teaming up with Epic we will be able to invest more into the future of Metro and our ongoing partnership with series developer 4A Games, to the benefit of our Metro fans."

For anyone who has already bought the game through Steam, Deep Silver and Epic Games said that those purchases will be honored. An FAQ explaining what'll happen with those orders said anyone who pre-ordered the game through Steam will still be able to download and play Metro Exodus when it releases. The is still currently available to pre-order through Steam for $59.99, but when it's sold through the Epic Games store, it'll be made available for $49.99 instead.

Metro Exodus' Steam page has now been updated to reflect the change and inform buyers that the purchases won't be fulfilled on that platform. Sales of the game will be discontinued on Monday, the Steam update said, while the post reiterated what Deep Silver said about honoring purchases. The Steam update also said the decision seemed "unfair to Steam customers" and that the retailer only found out about the decision recently.

"We think the decision to remove the game is unfair to Steam customers, especially after a long pre-sale period," the game's Steam page now says. "We apologize to Steam customers that were expecting it to be available for sale through the February 15th release date, but we were only recently informed of the decision and given limited time to let everyone know."

Metro Exodus is scheduled to release on February 15th in the Epic Games store and on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, but Deep Silver clarified that the game will still be released through Steam a year later on February 14th, 2020. Epic Games also confirmed that Metro 2033 Redux and Metro: Last Light Redux will be sold through the Epic Games store later this year.