Epic to refund Kickstarter pledges over Shenmue 3 PC exclusivity

Shenmue 3 is going to be a timed Epic Games Store exclusive, and that has caused a few issues for some as the game was Kickstarted back in 2015, at which time backers on PC were promised Steam codes at launch.

However, that's not going to happen following the announcement of the Epic exclusivity deal, although refunds will be made to Kickstarter backers unhappy at the prospect of having to play the game via Epic's platform.

Developer YS Net had confirmed that refunds would be available, but now Epic has gone one further and in the process has set a new precedent - the company will cover refunds for all Kickstarter backers unhappy with the change of platform.

"Epic is funding the cost of all Kickstarter refunds resulting from Shenmue III's move to the Epic Games store, so that refunds won't reduce Ys Net's development funding," Epic's Tim Sweeney wrote on Twitter.

Sweeney later added that Epic would "coordinate with colleagues at the other stores to ensure key availability, or guarantee refunds at announcement time."

Epic has come under fire from some for its policies regarding exclusivity deals, but as we reported the other day, Sweeney believes that exclusives are the only way to break Valve's near monopoly over the PC space.