The video game store Epic Games, which debuted in 2018, continues to grow by becoming popular among users. Perhaps the biggest reason for this is the free games that the platform gives every week. With this drum from Epic, gamers can buy all kinds of games without paying any money.
The game giant shared some important data about last year, including the games it gave for free today. Accordingly, in 2022, Epic Games Store PC users searched 36 million from the previous year and reached 230 million and recorded a serious growth. It was also stated that the number of monthly active users is 68 million, and 626 new PC games have been added to the store. On the other hand, the data about free games was also remarkable.
99 different games were distributed for free, players received a total of 700 million free games
Epic distributed 99 games worth $2,240 in total to its users for free throughout 2022. In addition, it was stated that 700 million games in total were received by players for free last year.
It was also reported that 70 out of 99 games broke the record for the number of simultaneous users on the platform. It was also added that small free games were bought between 6 and 7 million, while the big ones found between 20 and 25 million.
Epic Games Store will continue to distribute free games through 2023
Epic Games also announced that it will continue to give free games every week throughout 2023. Company executive Steve Allison also told The Verge that their goal is to give at least one big game each month.
In other weeks, small games will be given to users. Epic says it makes these games for free to highlight teams or developers it respects, as well as describe them as hidden gems.
Epic Games was initially giving away free games every two weeks. But in 2019 that changed to happen every week. We now see one or two free games of different genres on the Epic Games Store every Thursday. You can access this week’s free game from our content below.
Epic also announced the most featured games and spending in 2022
When we look at the game side, we see that there are free-to-play games at the top. These include productions such as Genshin Impact, Rocket League, Fortnite. Tiny Tina’s Wonderland and GTA V are the only paid games in the top ranks.
When we go down the list, we see games such as Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, Red Dead Redemption 2, Cyberpunk 2077, Dying Light 2 and Sifu.
Apart from these, it was stated that players spent 355 million dollars on third-party games with an increase of 18% last year, while it was reported that Epic’s expenditure on its own games was 820 million dollars. This revealed a 2% decrease in spending compared to 2021.
Big plans for 2023
Finally, Epic Games Store shared details about what awaits us in 2023. The company launched its previously tested feature that allows anyone to add their own games to the store today. With this innovation, it is aimed that independent developers will add their games to the platform and Epic’s game catalog will grow significantly.
Apart from these, it also plans to offer subscription services from third-party publishers. This shows that services such as EA Play, Ubisoft Plus and even Xbox Game Pass can be offered for sale through the Epic Games Store. Of course, it should be noted that there are no details on this issue, and we do not know which services will come.
You can click here to see the full review of the Epic Games Store for 2022.