Fall Guys now free on Epic but de-listed from Steam

Last month it was announced that Fall Guys (opens in new tab) would be going free-to-play today (opens in new tab), June 21, as well as coming to the Epic Games Store. Squirrelled-away at the bottom of the press release was the minor detail that it would also be disappearing from Steam: Although those who already own a Steam copy will continue to receive the same updates as Epic Store players.

It has come to pass, and you can now download Fall Guys for free on EGS (opens in new tab). It's also making its debut on several consoles, which I mention because the game now has cross-play and cross-progression across all platforms (opens in new tab). So if you enjoy the game, and it's a lot of fun in small doses, there's likely to be be a huge crowd of people trying it out for the next few weeks.

The F2P relaunch comes alongside a reset for its seasons, new in-game currency (Show-Bucks) and a new progression system. The new 'Season 1' is appropriately named Free For All, and features a giant arena with new events and locations.

Existing players have received a 'Legacy Pack' which includes the first season pass and a bunch of cosmetics. Even so, a lot of players are grousing about a formerly premium game going free-to-play. Which they're entitled to do but, considering this was sold for $20 (released August 20, 2020), the flipside is that the influx of new players will keep Fall Guys going for a much longer time.

This pricing change always felt inevitable after developer Mediatonic's acquisition by Epic Games, which also made Rocket League freemium after acquiring developer Psyonix in 2019. Fall Guys was never really built as a live service game but, ever since it met with success, has been building out a kind of Fortnite-lite bunch of cosmetic options and brand crossovers. Such cruft I only ever find slightly irritating as a player, but it's the way things are, and will keep Fall Guys in magic beans for years to come.