New Epic Launcher loads 30x faster
Epic Games has just unveiled a preview of a completely refreshed Epic Games Launcher, signaling a massive overhaul of the platform that aims to put speed and customization at the forefront. This isn’t just a cosmetic update; it’s a complete rebuild of the core technology, leveraging artificial intelligence and what the company calls “vibe coding” to create a fundamentally new experience.
Martin Keely, vice president and general manager of the Epic Games Store, explained that the entire launcher was rebuilt from the ground up. This involved rewriting the entire tech stack, including the download manager, library system, and the application itself, alongside the new store architecture. Features like discoverability and product detail pages were completely redone to maximize efficiency and user satisfaction.
The immediate focus of this ambitious project was raw performance. Epic claims that this initial phase of the rebuild delivers dramatic speed improvements. The new launcher boots from a cold start in just 5.47 seconds, which is reportedly 46% faster than its predecessor, Steam. Furthermore, reopening the application from the system tray is lightning fast, taking only 0.36 seconds, marking a 14% speed advantage over Steam.
This speed boost isn’t just about startup time; it extends to daily use. Keely noted that the library now loads 30 times faster than in the previous version, drastically cutting down wait times for players browsing their game collections. The new architecture also keeps the launcher lean, maintaining a small footprint of only 300MB to ensure smooth operation across a wide range of hardware.
Beyond blistering speed, the new launcher introduces much-needed quality-of-life enhancements. Users now have greater control over their interface, with a new top bar that can be customized to display preferred tabs, and the library can be filtered using various categories, making navigation intuitive and personalized.
The scope of the update also includes ambitious cross-platform expansion. The new launcher natively supports Windows and MacOS, and for the first time, it officially supports Linux. While Fortnite is not yet available on Linux, Epic is actively working to rebuild its Easy Anti-Cheat system to bring the game to the platform, promising that this integration will eventually be seamless via the new launcher.
Looking ahead, the team is focused on making the platform not just faster, but smarter. The next phase of development centers on revolutionizing game discovery. Epic aims to create a more social environment where players can easily recommend games to one another, deepening the merchandising components to ensure that the right games are relevant to each player.
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