Launcher V2 will go through a private beta before a public release.
After an Epic Games executive admitted Eurogamer that its launcher sucked earlier this year, the company reportedly revealed that it was working on a “basic rebuild” of its launcher that will be much faster than the existing version. In a presentation given at Unreal Fest, parts of which were posted on
Epic said in its presentation that “every developer in this room and every gamer we’ve met has experienced challenges with the current launcher.” Players have even gone to great lengths to access their claimed free games on the Epic Games Store through Steam to avoid the launcher’s slow and clunky design. As shown in the roadmap from Epic’s presentation, Launcher V2 will first have a private beta, before seeing a possible public release. Epic didn’t detail exact dates for the new launcher, but said in a February press release that it was “rebuilding the underlying architecture of the Epic Games Store launcher and plans to make improvements this summer.”
Beyond the launcher improvements, Epic revealed during Unreal Fest that it would be adding a few more changes to its showcase. The slides shared by LuKaOnIndeed mentioned priorities like in-store patch notes, player reviews, quick-access categories, and a custom homepage.
