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Life is Strange and Vampyr developer Dontnod has confirmed it is partnering with Epic to make its next game, Twin Mirror, yet another year-long timed PC exclusive on Epic Game Store. In a press statement, the studio also confirmed the release had been pushed back, explaining that “in order to optimize the gaming experience and capitalize on Twin Mirror’s success potential, Dontnod Entertainment has decided to extend the development phase and reschedule release for 2020”.
The French developer also announced it acquired the rights to Twin Mirror, which we assume belonged to publisher Bandai Namco until now, in order to “strengthen its intellectual property portfolio.” Bandai Namco will still be publishing the title on PS4 and Xbox One, as well as handling the marketing and distribution.
Oskar Guilbert, chairman and CEO of Dontnod said: “In line with our development strategy and thanks to our partnership with Epic Games, Dontnod now majority holds an additional key asset. We are delighted to partner with Epic Games and present Twin Mirror to the vast gamer community on its Epic Games store.
“The conditions of this partnership along with the support of Shibuya Productions reinforce the game’s potential. This strategic operation demonstrates our ability to leverage new market trends in our favour. The video game industry is currently undergoing major transformation and now offers a major competitive advantage to content creators such as Dontnod.”
Epic has recently announced a slew of exclusive titles for Epic Game Store from partners as wide-ranging as Take-Two’s Private Division, Quantic Dream, Remedy, and 505 Games.
Following the success of The Division 2, Ubisoft has committed to launching more new titles, and back catalogue titles, on the store, too, continuing its partnership where titles are exclusive to UPlay and Epic Game Store. Some of those back catalogue titles have also been promised as part of the free games programme.
The most startling inclusion in the list of true exclusives are PC releases of Quantic Dream’s last three games: Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, and Detroit: Become Human, all of which are coming to PC for the first time via Epic’s store. Mobius also confirmed last month that its Fig-funded space exploration game, Outer Wilds, will be a PC exclusive for Epic Games Store, much to the disappointment of many backers, and just this week, Shenmue III crowdfunders also learned that the eagerly-awaited sequel would also be a timed EGS exclusive on PC.
