Here's why the Epic Games Store takes a 12 percent revenue cut from devs

Epic Games founder Tim Sweeney has explained exactly why the fledgling Epic Game Store only takes a 12 percent revenue cut from devs, as opposed to the once standard 30 percent taken by rival Steam. 

Providing a detailed breakdown of what happens to that 12 percent share on Twitter, Sweeney explained that figure was chosen "to provide a super-competitive deal for partners while building an enduring and profitable store business for Epic."

He claims that Epic actually only nets around 5 percent of that 12 percent slice after direct costs, although that number could grow to 6 or 7 percent with greater economies of scale. 

He also took a pretty blatant swipe at Steam, adding that "you have to understand 30 percent is an enormous markup. When a grocery store sells an Amazon or iTunes or Steam card, their markup is maybe 10 percent to 15 percent."

"That's for a physical retail store with shelves continually stocked by workers. When a credit card company processes those transactions, they take 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent, and that covers their costs of banking and customer service."

The Epic Game Store made waves when it was announced back in December 2018, and has stayed in the headlines thanks to the flurry of exclusivity deals Epic has been signing with big-name companies like Remedy (Control), 2K Games (Borderlands 3), and Deep Silver (Metro Exodus).