Epic unveils a refresh of its Epic Games Launcher for PC in preview, saying that the new version is "vibe coded" and "way faster", and now supports Linux (Jay Peters/The Verge)
Epic is making a big push into AI-assisted development, and that approach includes its work on the new, faster launcher.
Epic Games has released a preview version of its refreshed PC games launcher, which has been rebuilt from the ground up using a new tech stack. According to IGN, the launcher features a rewritten shell and store architecture, including the download manager, library, and social panels. The company describes the development process as being "vibe coded" and part of a broader push into AI-assisted development. The Verge reports that CEO Tim Sweeney has announced a pivot to retool the company for maximum AI acceleration.
The new version focuses on speed, with Epic claiming the launcher boots from cold in 5.47 seconds. IGN notes this is 46% faster than Steam, while re-opening from the system tray takes 0.36 seconds, which is 14% faster than Steam. The preview version is currently in the early stages of development and is considered light on features.
The refresh also introduces support for Linux. PC Gamer reports that Epic intends to launch Fortnite on Linux once it has rebuilt Easy Anti-Cheat to support the move. Once the new version of the software works with a sufficient number of distro maintainers, Epic plans to bring Fortnite to Linux via the launcher and make these improvements available to other developers.
Brief written by urgent.news from Techmeme, PC Gamer, IGN, The Verge — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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