For most players and developers, Steam is the defacto leader when it comes to PC marketplaces. The service has continued to expand and grow after its launch back in 2003 and remains the largest digital distribution platform available, which is a big reason why it is so appealing for game makers. The pandemic has also proven to be a boon for Steam which broke multiple records for concurrent users due to people being stuck at home.

However, the service is starting to see more and more competitors attempting to grab a bigger piece of the pie, including Epic Games which offers monthly free games to users in addition to its own sales events. Microsoft, while does feature games on Steam, also has its own Store front players can utilize to sync up their profile, achievements, Game Pass, and more Xbox Live related features. Now, Microsoft is looking to increase its PC presence and putting even more pressure on Steam with its latest announcement.

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Matt Booty, the head of Xbox Game Studios, made a number of PC-centric announcements in a new blog post earlier today. In an effort to help game developers find success on Microsoft platforms, Microsoft announced updates to its Store terms for PC developers. Starting on August 1, developer revenue share is increasing by 18% going from 70% to 88%. This change has no strings attached and simply means that developers will be earning more based on overall sales.

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For Microsoft, this means the company will be making less from every game sale and half of what Valve currently takes in. Valve has continued to use the 70/30 split, a fact that Microsoft is hoping will make releasing on its own PC Store more appealing for game makers. In fact, this move mirrors what Epic Games has done with revenue sharing on its own online store when it first launched, allowing developers to make more money for individual game sales compared to its competitors.

Revenue Share is currently a hot topic for developers. A recent GDC survey revealed that only 3% of developers currently think the 70/30 split on digital storefronts is justified. This number is actually down from the already low 6% approval from 2020, with recent changes from Apple, Google, and Epic Games largely spearheading this drive for change. While Steam does provide a discount if a game is making tens of millions, it'll be interesting to see how or if Valve responds considering that most of its competitors are now making sweeping revenue changes.

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Source: Xbox News Wire