Entertainmentupdated 1h ago3 min read
Epic Releases Vibe-Coded Launcher Preview, Claims Faster Startup Than Steam With Linux Support
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New Epic Games Launcher preview is faster than Steam. Launcher preview adds Linux support for Windows and Mac.
10 outlets told this the same way.
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Vibe-Coded Launcher Preview
Epic Games released a preview of a completely rebuilt Epic Games Launcher, describing it as “vibe coded” and saying the new app is “way faster and more responsive than the current one.”
Epic also wrote that “programming is hard. So, instead of doing that, we vibe coded a new Epic Games Launcher,” and it framed the change as a new approach to building the launcher.
Martin Keely, Epic Games Store General Manager and VP, told PC Gamer that the team “started from scratch” and used AI as “a tool to write and review new features and new capabilities from the ground up.”
Epic’s speed claims put cold startup at 5.47 seconds versus 10.07 seconds for Valve’s Steam, and Epic said the storefront opens three times faster than Steam.
Epic said the launcher is available in preview for Windows and Mac, and it adds Linux support for the first time, with official support for Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or newer, Fedora 43 or newer, and Debian 12 or newer.
Speed Tests and Platform
Epic said the launcher goes from cold start to the store page a few seconds faster than Steam, and Ars Technica reported that its own testing found the new launcher “goes from a cold start to the store page a few seconds faster than Steam.” Epic also claimed that restoring from the system tray to the Library screen is slightly faster than Steam, and Ars Technica noted the claimed difference of 0.06 seconds in that metric. IGN reported that Epic says the launcher boots from cold in 5.47 seconds, and it also said the system tray reopening takes just .36 seconds, which IGN described as 14% faster than Steam.
IGN quoted Keely saying “The library loads 30 times faster [than in the previous launcher],” and it added that Keely described the launcher as “a small footprint, only 300mb.” PC Gamer said Epic’s preview client is available to download for Windows and Mac, and it said Linux support arrives “for the first time,” with Epic calling the rebuild “vibe coded.”
AI Push and Fortnite
Tim Sweeney told followers on X that Epic has a “huge pivot underway,” moving developers to “retool for maximum AI acceleration,” and he said the aim “isn't to do the same stuff with fewer people.” Martin Keely told IGN that AI was used primarily for code efficiency and architecture rather than visual design, and he said “It hasn't been about the artwork or the design style.” The Verge reported that Keely told it, “We used AI as a tool for this,” and it said Keely described the launcher work as part of Epic’s migration to use AI in new ways.
Epic said it is rebuilding Easy Anti-Cheat so Fortnite can run on Linux, and Epic wrote that “Once it's working with a critical mass of distro maintainers, we'll bring Fortnite to Linux via the Epic Games Launcher.” Epic also said the preview is “light on features,” and it described the launcher as “rebuilt entirely from the ground up,” including a new tech stack and rewrite of the download manager, library, and app itself.