Epic Games Buys ArtStation for Some Reason

If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s for the big fish to get bigger. That’s why Microsoft, Sony, and EA buy studios left and right, adding more talent and IP to their portfolios so they can get even richer and expand their audiences even further. But sometimes getting bigger doesn’t mean buying the competition — sometimes it means buying something adjacent to the competition.

In this case, it means Epic Games bought Artstation.
 

“Today, we’re thrilled to announce that ArtStation is joining the Epic Games family. Together, we’ll accelerate the development and growth of the creator community worldwide. This partnership underscores both Epic’s and ArtStation’s mission to empower creators with the tools and platforms to thrive. You can read the announcement at the Epic Games Newsroom.”

ArtStation is basically the place for professional artists to promote their work and create their portfolios — think of it as the Linkedin for visual creatives in the entertainment industry. And while that pedigree is important, it’s a little unclear what Epic Games has to gain from the purchase. Apparently, the plan is to use the site to enhance the Unreal Engine, which is the not-so-secret ingredient in Epic Game’s continued domination in the video game industry, but they have assured their audience that the purchase should have no impact on day-to-day use of the site — in fact, things are just straight-up getting better for users:
 

"As of today, we’re massively increasing the earning potential of sellers on the ArtStation Marketplace. We’re dropping our standard fees from 30% to only 12%. For Pro members, the fee reduces from 20% to 8% and 5% for self-promoted sales. See our Earnings Calculator for more details on the new ArtStation Marketplace fees."

Epic Games is certainly making waves as of late. I can only hope that these means are for valiant ends… even if that does strike me as unrealistic.

Ah well. What’s done is done.