Earlier this year, it was announced that the PC version of The Division 2 would not release through Steam, with Ubisoft instead focusing on the Epic Games Store and Uplay as its preferred distribution platforms. However, it appears that the company has gone one step further, as there is now indication that keys for the upcoming title will be disappearing from third-party sites.
As posted by a user on ResetEra, Gamesplanet, a UK-based site that sells keys for games, has announced that Ubisoft will not be allowing any third-party sites to offer The Division 2 after its official launch on March 15. This means that PC players will only be able to purchase the title through the Epic Games Store and Uplay at that time. Gamesplanet has also indicated that the same will be true for any additional game content, such as season passes and extensions.
While Gamesplanet will be able to honor purchases made prior to the March 15 cutoff, it is stated that all further support requests will need to be directed toward Ubisoft. This is due to the fact that Gamesplanet will not have any further keys to offer to players that encounter problems.
Since the arrival of the Epic Games Store at the end of last year, the Fortnite developer has been active in pursuing exclusive releases for the platform. This has sparked an ongoing discussion within the community, with some players suggesting that exclusivity is not a competitive tactic that has the interests of consumers in mind.
This conversation reached its peak in January when it was announced that the PC version of Metro Exodus was being pulled from Steam, only two weeks before its release, in favor of an Epic Games Store exclusive launch. This led to some notable backlash from fans, ultimately prompting an official response from the game’s publisher.
So too, many fans appear frustrated with the decision to remove The Division 2 from third-party sites — frustration that is reflected in the aforementioned ResetEra post. Indeed it seems that Epic has no intention in deviating from its goal of exclusive releases, or semi-exclusive in this instance, which is leaving some players wondering how to buy PC games moving forward.
