Mediatonic (under the label of Tonic Games), the makers of the hit battle royale game Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, have been acquired by Epic Games. Tonic Games joins a slew of what were previously independent development studios that have joined with Epic Games in the last few years. Fall Guys fits with the trend of large hit multiplayer games leading to a quick acquisition by Epic, such as with Rocket League before this. So far these have led to few changes to the core gameplay of the major games, but changes to how the games are offered to players and supported by the developer.
“For Fall Guys fans, your gameplay isn’t changing and Epic will continue to invest in making the game a great experience for players across platforms,” reads the announcement from Epic. “Your favorite colorful beans will still stumble through the chaos on PC, PlayStation, and soon Nintendo Switch and Xbox.”
What is very likely to change, based on previous acquisitions like this, is that Fall Guys could be going free-to-play in the near future. This is what happened with Rocket League, developed by Psyonix and bought by Epic in May of 2019. Soon after that the game was set to transition to a free-to-play model with Epic Games Store exclusivity on PC, for new players only.
Currently Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout retails for $19.99 and isn’t even offered on the Epic Games Store at this time. That will all possibly change in the future, with an Epic Games Store launch and eventual shift to free-to-play, but this is only speculation. As the official FAQ states in regards to going free-to-play, “Nothing to announce right now!. Furthermore it says “Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout will remain purchasable on Steam and PlayStation. If you own the game on these platforms, you’ll still be able to play it from there and will receive future updates. We are also still planning to bring Fall Guys to Nintendo Switch and Xbox.”
What is certain is that Mediatonic will be getting more support thanks to Epic ownership, which could translate to even better support for Fall Guys and its community. “At Tonic Games Group we often say that ‘everyone deserves a game that feels like it was made for them.’ With Epic, we feel like we have found a home that was made for us,” said Dave Bailey, Tonic Games Group Co-Founder and CEO. “They share our mission to build and support games that have a positive impact, empower others and stand the test of time and we couldn’t be more excited to be joining forces with their team.”
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is currently available on PS4, PS5, and PC with a release planned later this year for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.
