Bethesda formalizes the disappearance of its Bethesda.net Launcher distribution platform. But don’t panic: you will find your games on Steam.
A video game platform will soon disappear, and it is certainly not the most popular on the market. In a press release published on February 22, Bethesda formalized the disappearance of Bethesda.net Launcher. It will no longer be possible to launch a game acquired this way from May. Of course, only PC players are affected.
If Bethesda.net Launcher is about to breathe its last, all your purchases will not be lost. The company will launch, in April, a migration process to Steam, where its games are already available. ” Migrating to Steam includes your game library, as well as your wallet — meaning you won’t lose anything from your Bethesda.net account “, can we read.
Bethesda closes its own game store
Transferring Bethesda.net Launcher to Steam may affect saves. Some will make the trip automatically, others will need to be re-entered manually. ” We will have more information on manually transferring savegames very soon. “says Bethesda. For the moment, only the progression of a title is noted as non-transferable: the shooting game Wolfenstein: Youngblood. In contrast, “ virtual currency, expansions and cosmetic items will be transferred automatically. In case anyone is wondering: migrating to the PlayStation or Xbox ecosystems won’t be possible.
Another fear lifted: we can start the migration process whenever we want from April. ” You won’t lose access to your Bethesda.net library in May, just the ability to play through the Launcher “says Bethesda. In fact, your Bethesda.net account will continue to exist and be required for certain services.
A point concerns this sudden decision: why Bethesda, owned by Microsoft since 2020, chose Steam rather than the Microsoft Store? For obvious reasons of popularity. Valve’s platform is mainly used by PC players. Not to mention that the Bethesda games are already there. For a smooth and smooth transition, you could hardly do better.
What was this Launcher for? To keep a share of independence from Steam, especially in terms of revenue recovered at 100%. Bethesda is now ready to make a cross on this margin to facilitate the life of its community.