Epic Games admits its PC launcher “sucks” and promises major speed upgrades

by

Epic Games acknowledges that its PC launcher isn’t performing as well as it should and has announced significant improvements are coming. These updates will include faster performance and new social features, as part of a larger effort to improve all of Epic Games’ services.

Epic Games recently released its yearly report for the Epic Games Store, revealing increased spending from players and a drop in time spent playing Fortnite. Along with these figures, Epic announced upcoming improvements to its launcher, including faster speeds, new features for community engagement, and a shared library of games accessible on both computers and mobile devices.

Epic Games Store’s VP and GM, Steven Allison, recently told Eurogamer that he was very direct about the current challenges facing the platform.

Epic admits launcher problems and promises faster performance

Allison reported significant progress last year and anticipates even greater achievements this year, particularly regarding the core issues. She frankly stated that the current launch system is performing poorly, describing it as very slow.

He explained the launcher frequently contacts Epic’s servers while users browse, which can cause lag depending on their internet speed. He pointed out this feels slow, especially when compared to platforms like Steam that don’t have the same issue.

Allison says Epic started a major overhaul of the launcher’s core systems in November 2025. They anticipate noticeable speed boosts starting in May or June, with the full update planned for release during the summer.

Honestly, we’re aiming for a point where playing feels good – really smooth and quick. We want people to be genuinely surprised and say, ‘Wow, this is actually way better than I expected!’ That’s what we’re shooting for, and that would be a huge win for the team.

Epic isn’t just focused on making its store faster; it’s also adding features that have been absent for a while. Allison admitted that Epic’s platform doesn’t currently have the same social features as other storefronts.

Epic Games is adding several social features to its platform, including community areas, customizable avatars, personal profiles, private messaging, and voice and text chat that work across different games. They aim to launch these features starting in May. Later in the year, around autumn, Epic will also introduce a central library for games, along with tools to manage it, and region-specific storefronts. The Epic Games Store will become available on iPhones in Japan this March and in Brazil this June.

Epic plans to introduce features similar to online forums later this year, which they describe as a way to create more community discussion.

Allison explained the delay in releasing tools for players by saying that building a large marketplace connecting both players and developers is complicated. The company initially prioritized building systems for developers first.

Epic focused on creating tools that let creators publish games themselves and making it easier for studios to start using the platform – a process that involved almost three years of development. They also continued to offer developers an 88% share of the revenue their games generate.

“We didn’t intentionally overlook it,” Allison explained. “But we really needed to move away from the time-consuming, hands-on process of setting up key accounts. We invested almost three years in creating self-publishing tools, and that became our engineering team’s main priority.”

Allison also recognized that the store had received criticism from gamers, including strong complaints on social media.

He acknowledged the criticism as valid and explained that Epic Games is now focusing most of its development efforts on improvements players will directly experience.

We’re addressing the major areas where we’ve received valid criticism, and we’re committed to making the necessary improvements. It simply requires focused effort and dedication.

Read More

2026-02-04 20:19