Tim Sweeney Says Steam's High Fees Keep Free-To-Play Games Away, Critics Push Back
Sweeney's latest salvo in the long-running commission debate reopens the question of whether Valve's fee structure actually costs it revenue, but the counterexamples and Epic's own financial troubles weaken his case.
Reporting from 1 sources: Automaton.
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney posted on July 1 that Steam's 30% base commission deters major free-to-play titles like Genshin Impact from launching there. He argued lower fees would attract those companies and increase Steam's revenue. Critics pointed to Epic's own layoffs and noted that many such games already exist on Steam.
Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, posted on X on July 1 that Steam's high commission fees are why companies like miHoYo, Riot Games, and Epic itself keep their free-to-play live-service games off the platform. Steam's base commission is 30%, with reductions to 25% above $10 million in revenue and 20% above $50 million. The Epic Games Store charges no commission until $1 million in annual revenue per title, then 12%. Sweeney argued that by lowering fees and being more open, Steam could attract those companies and generate more revenue overall.
Critics were quick to push back. Some noted that many free-to-play games, including several from the companies Sweeney cited, are already on Steam. Others pointed to Epic's March 2026 layoffs of over 1,000 employees, attributed to declining Fortnite engagement, questioning the sustainability of Epic's own model. Sweeney has made similar claims before, including at the State of Unreal 2026 keynote in June, where he called for a 'Team Open' coalition against closed platforms.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.