Fortnite maker Epic Games has rolled out a brand new publishing label.
The firm is releasing new titles from Control and Max Payne maker Remedy Entertainment, as well as Inside and Limbo studio Playdead and Gen Design, best known for PlayStation 4-exclusive The Last Guardian. That last outfit was set up by Team Ico vet Fumito Ueda.
The scheme sees developers keeping 100 per cent of IP rights as well as "full creative control". Epic is handling all development costs, from salaries, via administrative expenses such as QA and localisation as well as the publishing side of things. Once Epic's money has been recouped, it's a 50/50 split between the Fortnite giant and the developer.
“We’re building the publishing model we always wanted for ourselves when we worked with publishers,” Epic founder and CEO Tim Sweeney (pictured) said.
Head of Epic publishing Hector Sanchez added: "Gen Design, Remedy, and Playdead are among the most innovative and talented studios in the industry, with strong visions for their next games. They will have full creative control, while Epic will provide a solid foundation of project funding and services.”
You may remember Remedy announced yesterday that it had signed a deal with "a major publisher" for two upcoming projects. That's Epic, likely off the back of the success of Control which was an Epic Games Store exclusive on PC thanks to a $10.5m to the parent company of 505 Games, Digital Bros.
Epic expanded from being a game developer and engine firm at the end of 2018 with the launch of the Epic Games Store. We caught up with Sweeney at GDC 2019 to discuss the firm's platform strategy more.