It’s been a rough couple weeks for Metro Exodus. The game quickly went from an highly anticipated title to becoming a game thousands were ready to boycott.
The fault though, lies in the hands of those behind the game.
Recently, one of Metro Exodus’s developers took to a forum site claiming that if Metro Exodus underperformed on PC, the next Metro title would not release on PC.
This statement infuriated fans who were already upset at the game’s decision to switch its launch platform from Steam to the Epic Games Store last minute. The post also made claims that those willing to boycott didn’t care about Metro in the first place, and that people were just looking for a place to “pour out their bile.”
Since the incident, Metro developer 4A Games has made a statement regarding the posts.
“The recent decision to move Metro Exodus from Steam to the Epic Game Store was made by Koch Media / Deep Silver alone.
The recent comments made by a member of the 4A Games development team do not reflect Deep Silver’s or 4A Games’ view on the future of the franchise. They do reflect the hurt and disappointment of a passionate individual who has seen what was previously nothing but positive goodwill towards his work turn to controversy due to a business decision he had no control over. We respectfully ask that any and all valid feedback over this decision is directed at Koch Media / Deep Silver, and not the developers at 4A Games.
The future release strategy of the Metro series lies with Koch Media / Deep Silver. Our decision to partner with Epic Games was based on the goal of investing in the future of the series and our development partner at 4A Games. We have every intention of continuing this franchise, and a PC version will always be at the heart of our plans.”
The post details the fact that the 4A Games and the individual who made the posts had nothing to do with the switch from Steam to Epic Games Store.
The post is clearly attempting to separate the developers from the issue at hand, and in fairness, it does seem that 4A Games was just a bystander in the decision to switch platforms.
If 4A Games did indeed have nothing to do with the switch, it’s easy to sympathize with the developers in this situation. Countless hours have went into crafting the world of Metro Exodus, and due to some shady business decisions by higher ups, the game is now becoming a martyr for PC gamers that want to show greedy publishers that making these kind of decisions won’t go unnoticed.