Shenmue 3 is now an Epic Games Store exclusive and backers aren’t happy

There is always going to be some controversy when a game is taken off of Steam and turned into an Epic Games Store exclusive. However, the situation gets much worse when crowdfunding is involved. We’ve seen this happen once already with Phoenix Point, which ended up refunding man backers. Now, Shenmue 3 is also going to be an EGS exclusive but the publishers behind the game are being stubborn on refunds. 

At the PC Gaming Show last night, it was announced that Shenmue 3 would launch in November this year, four years after initially being crowdfunded by fans. The catch is that the game is no longer going to be available on Steam and will instead only release on the Epic Games Store. According to Ys Net’s Kickstarter announcement, this decision was made between the studio and the game’s publisher, Deep Silver, in an effort to ‘do what’s best for the game’. 

As you would expect, a lot of people were up in arms over the announcement and many have begun requesting refunds. At this point in time, it doesn’t look like Kickstarter itself will be getting involved and refunds from Ys Net itself aren’t being offered to those who requested a Steam key when backing the game. 

Right now, Shenmue 3 still has a Steam Store page live, so it is possible that this will be a timed exclusive, similarly to another Deep Silver published title- Metro Exodus. 

KitGuru Says: If crowdfunded developers keep doing this, then it is going to be harder for future indie developers to get their own campaigns off the ground. Did any of you back Shenmue 3 during one of the several campaigns? How do you feel about the current situation? 

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