Epic Games releases new game launcher built with AI-assisted "vibe coding"
Game company Epic Games has released a redesigned Epic Games Store launcher that it says was built through "vibe coding". Engadget notes the announcement's tone clashes with the company's large layoffs earlier this year.
Epic Games, the video game developer and publisher that runs the Epic Games Store (EGS), has released a new version of its store launcher. In its announcement, the company says it built the program using "vibe coding", meaning programming with the help of artificial intelligence. Technology outlet Engadget reports that the wording has drawn criticism given the company's recent staffing decisions.
What the new version offers
Epic claims the new launcher is faster and more responsive than the previous one and has a new look. The company says it can start up faster than rival platform Steam, made by Valve. Games already installed on a computer through Steam can also be accessed from the new launcher's interface. For the first time, Epic's launcher is also available on Linux.
In its own testing, the Engadget author found the new version noticeably less clunky than its predecessor. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney had himself called the old launcher "clunky" last year in an interview with podcaster Lex Fridman.
Context: layoffs and the AI pivot
The announcement came a day after Sweeney wrote on the social network X that Epic is undergoing a major pivot toward AI, moving developers around to retool their work. He said the aim is not to do the same work with fewer people, but to let everyone build more and better products and to bring benefits to teams using the Unreal game engine.
In March this year, Epic carried out sweeping layoffs that cut 1,000 jobs. By Engadget's estimate, that means the company reduced its headcount by a quarter from the 4,000 employees who remained after an earlier round of layoffs in 2023.
Criticism
The Engadget author says the new launcher does not resolve EGS's long-standing identity problem: it has no feature that isn't already available on Steam or GOG. The author writes that, personally, they would rather not support a company so eager to replace its employees with AI.
