Epic Games has released a preview of its rebuilt Epic Games Store client for Windows and Mac, and for the first time the software includes support for Linux, according to Gamereactor Norge. The company says the new client reaches the store page from a cold start 46 percent faster than Steam, and that its own launch time has been cut in half, though the client remains in a testing phase.
The preview can be downloaded from Epic's own websites. Epic expects the number of users to grow gradually as it collects feedback and fixes bugs.
Why it matters
The comparison puts performance and startup time at the center of the competition between the storefronts that PC players use to buy and launch games. Epic is making speed the headline claim in a market where Steam has long been the default destination for PC game purchases, and where users often keep several launchers installed at once.
The addition of Linux support also matters for a segment of PC players that has historically been served by workarounds rather than official clients. Epic is separately working to upgrade Easy Anti-Cheat so that Fortnite can run on Linux, and to help other multiplayer titles make the move to the platform, though the company has not announced when that work will be finished.
A ground-up rebuild, with AI in the toolchain
Martin Keely, who leads the Epic Games Store as its general manager, told PC Gamer that his team built both the store and the client itself on an entirely new architecture. Rather than reusing older code, the team chose to start from scratch, he said.
Keely also said AI tools were used to write and review new features in a different technology stack. Epic has described the project officially as AI-assisted development, framing it as part of a broader push that chief executive Tim Sweeney has characterized as maximum AI acceleration across the whole company.
That framing places the store rebuild inside a wider debate about how game companies use generative and coding tools in production software, a subject that draws scrutiny from developers and players alike.
What the new client changes for users
According to Gamereactor Norge, the redesigned interface includes an updated library view. It also lets users add shortcuts for games installed through Steam and other platforms, a feature that acknowledges how many players split their libraries across multiple services.
Epic says the technical improvements have been verified by an outside third party. PC Gamer had not independently tested the client at the time it reported the news, so the performance figures currently rest on Epic's own claims and that external verification rather than on independent measurement.
The client is still in preview, which means features and performance can change before a full release. Epic's stated plan is to gather feedback and correct errors as more people try it, which explains why it expects adoption to build slowly rather than arrive all at once.
Speed as the battleground
Startup time and responsiveness have become active areas of work for more than one company in PC gaming. Gamereactor Norge notes that other players have also been addressing speed and latency, including Steam streaming technology intended to reduce delay.
For Epic, the pitch is straightforward: a store that opens quickly and a library that can gather games from elsewhere. Whether that is enough to shift habits depends on how the preview performs once it is in more hands, and on how quickly the remaining rough edges are smoothed out.
Users who want to try the preview can download it from Epic's sites now. The next things to watch are independent benchmarks of the cold-start claims, progress on Easy Anti-Cheat support for Fortnite on Linux, and when Epic moves the client out of preview.
