Epic Games Launcher

The Epic Games Launcher has been a hot topic lately. There's been a mix of praise and criticism, especially about some of the company's choices like privacy issues and its limited features. With Fortnite's massive success, it's not shocking that Epic rose to fame quickly, but this also brought along some concerns.

Understanding the Epic Games Store

You can't really talk about the launcher without mentioning the store since they go hand in hand. They both have their ups and downs. In this chat, I want to focus more on what the launcher offers compared to other big platforms out there.

Community Concerns

First off, let’s address what users are worried about. Some people feel that Epic's way of doing business is not fair, especially when it comes to locking games into their platform only. This can be frustrating for gamers who supported those games on other platforms.

EULA and Data Privacy Issues

There has also been chatter about Epic's End User License Agreement (EULA) and worries over data collection. The original agreement gave them quite a bit of freedom with user content, which raised red flags for many.

User Experience

The first look at the launcher is actually pretty solid! The design feels modern and matches the web store nicely. You can shop right in the app without needing to hop onto your browser.

Navigating Your Library

The sidebar makes it easy to get to your library and friends list, plus access Unreal Engine quickly. It’s all laid out pretty well—at least most of it is!

Home Screen Issues

The Home screen could use some work though. Sure, it shows your online friends and has a quick game launcher, but these features are stuck on one side while most space goes to featured games and news updates. And unfortunately, you can't customize this page or choose a different starting view.

Game Organization Challenges

If you’re looking for ways to organize your games better, you might be disappointed. The filtering options are super limited—you can't categorize or hide games from your library either! Plus, adding non-Epic games isn’t an option right now.

Lack of Features

The launcher does keep track of how long you play each game but lacks achievements—a big miss when other platforms offer this feature easily! Even taking screenshots isn’t possible yet.

Friend Interaction Limitations

When it comes to chatting with friends or connecting with others in-game, options are really basic. You can add friends from Steam or Facebook if they’ve linked their accounts—but voice chat? Nope! At least they added an offline mode recently.

The Bottom Line

This all adds up to why many users feel frustrated with Epic’s exclusivity deals; other platforms just seem better equipped overall! While developers might benefit from lower fees here, gamers often feel stuck using this launcher instead of better alternatives.

To give credit where it's due: the Epic Game Launcher has made strides over the past year—but still not enough considering how much money they have backing them up!