The Division 2 coming to Epic Games Store, skipping Steam

Ubisoft and Epic Games are teaming up to bring the publisher’s PC games, including Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, to the Epic Games Store.

The Division 2 will be semi-exclusive to the Epic Games Store on Windows PC. Ubisoft will also sell the PC version through its own online storefront, but The Division 2 won’t be released through Steam, which previously featured a product page for the game. A representative for Ubisoft told Polygon via email, “We have no plans currently on releasing Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 on Steam.”

Ubisoft and Epic said they will “also partner on additional select titles [coming to the Epic Games Store] to be announced during the coming year.” Ubisoft also said it plans to fulfill pre-orders for The Division 2 made at other online stores prior to the game’s launch on March 15.

The addition of Ubisoft titles for Epic’s recently launched game store is a feather in the Fortnite and Unreal Engine maker’s cap. Epic has already struck a few exclusive deals with smaller developers to bring their games exclusively to the Epic Games Store, such as Supergiant’s Hades and the final episodes of Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead: The Final Season. But wooing Ubisoft away from Steam to Epic’s store is further evidence that the PC marketplace is becoming more like a console war for exclusive content deals.

“We entrust Epic to deliver a smooth journey for our fans, from preordering the game and enjoying our Beta to the launch of Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 on March 15,” Ubisoft’s Chris Early, vice president of partnerships, said in a press release. “Epic continues to disrupt the videogame [sic] industry, and their third party digital distribution model is the latest example, and something Ubisoft wants to support.”

Epic launched its digital game store in December, touting a more favorable royalty rate for developers than Steam: 88 percent of revenue will go to developers, with Epic Games taking the remaining 12 percent. Steam’s revenue split, meanwhile, starts with 30 percent of revenue going to Valve. As games make more money on Steam, the revenue split increases in the developer’s favor, but it still doesn’t match what Epic is offering. And while Valve provides broader, more mature tools and services to developers on Steam, it’s clear that Epic’s attempt to undercut Valve is more attractive to some game makers.

In addition to PC, Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 is also coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.