Epic's Linux launcher is in preview, Fortnite is promised

Epic Games has done something Linux gamers have been asking for since roughly forever: it shipped a native Linux version of its launcher, and it says Fortnite will follow. The catch is a long one. Fortnite has no release date, the launcher is a rough preview, and the anti-cheat that will guard the game demands a locked-down system that plenty of Linux setups don’t have today.

Epic published two posts on 14 October 2026: a launcher announcement from the Epic Games Store team and a technical write-up from the Epic Online Services team about rebuilding Easy Anti-Cheat for Linux. Taken together, they’re the clearest commitment Epic has made to the platform.

What Epic actually announced

The new Epic Games Launcher is a ground-up rebuild, available as a preview for Windows, macOS and, for the first time, Linux. Epic is open about how it was made: the announcement says the team “vibe coded” it, and Epic Games Store head Martin Keely told The Verge that AI agents wrote and reviewed much of the code under human guidance, as heise reported.

You sign in with your existing Epic account, and purchases, installed games, cloud saves and progress carry over. The old launcher stays available alongside the preview. Here’s the Linux side of the announcement in one place.

Item	Detail
Announced	14 October 2026
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux (Linux is new)
Officially supported distros	Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or newer, Fedora 43 or newer, Debian 12 or newer
Minimum Linux hardware	64-bit x86 CPU, 4GB RAM, 2GB free storage
Packaging	AppImage (download, mark executable, run)
Windows-only games	One-time compatibility download, uses GE-Proton
Anti-cheat	EAC Linux v2, rebuilt from the existing Linux implementation
Fortnite on Linux	Confirmed, no date

The Proton detail comes from GamingOnLinux, whose tester tried a Windows game on Fedora KDE. The launcher prompted for a one-time download, installed GE-Proton into a local directory, and the game ran without fuss. Windows-only titles may still need that compatibility layer, so a native launcher doesn’t mean every store game becomes a native Linux game.

The anti-cheat is the real story

Easy Anti-Cheat has supported native Linux games since 2014 and Windows games running through Wine or Proton since 2021. But it has been opt-in, and many developers never switched it on. Fortnite is the most famous example, which is why it has stayed off Linux.

Epic’s fix is EAC Linux v2. According to VideoCardz, it uses eBPF to spot cheating without installing a dedicated kernel driver, and a systemd service runs only while a protected game is active. In exchange, the system itself has to be trustworthy. The requirements, as summarised by Accountshark, are a signed kernel and modules, TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, measured boot, kernel lockdown in integrity mode, kexec disabled and the BPF LSM. Non-handheld machines also need IOMMU.

That list favours mainstream distributions. Epic’s recognised signing keys already cover Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian, openSUSE and Universal Blue, which means Bazzite. Custom kernels and unsigned modules could be a problem, and OMG! Ubuntu notes that add-on modules such as NVIDIA’s GPU drivers must also be signed by a reputable party.

The Steam Deck is the obvious omission. Epic says the Deck doesn’t currently support the features EAC Linux v2 needs, and it’s talking to Valve with no confirmed timeline. Fortnite will be the first live pilot, and Epic says the improvements will later be offered to other developers.

The contrast with Ubisoft is hard to miss. The company recently stopped For Honor from being playable on Linux and the Steam Deck, saying it couldn’t meaningfully deploy protection there, as It’s FOSS points out. Epic is betting that leaning on security features distributions already ship is a better answer than giving up.

How fast is it, really?

Speed is Epic’s headline. The company published numbers from testing by Keywords Studios, a firm Epic commissioned: a cold start in 5.47 seconds against 10.07 seconds for Steam, and a background-to-library switch in 0.36 seconds against 0.42. Epic also claims the library loads 30 times faster than in the old launcher and that the store opens 3 times faster than Steam.

The method deserves a caveat. The tests averaged five runs on each of 13 machines, with the 3 lowest-end systems left out of the averages, according to VideoCardz. And Valve issued a Steam client update on 13 October with startup improvements, a day before Epic’s announcement. A clip from one X user, reported by TechPowerUp, shows the current Steam client starting in 5.23 seconds, though that’s one person’s machine rather than a controlled benchmark.

Cold-start time to store (lower is better)

Read the chart as a marketing claim with an asterisk. A 0.06-second difference when restoring from the tray isn’t something anyone will feel, and the cold-start gap may be mostly an artefact of an older Steam build.

How it compares with the alternatives

Until now, Linux players have reached the Epic Games Store through third-party tools. Heroic Games Launcher is an open-source alternative built on the command-line client Legendary, and Lutris can run the Windows launcher through Wine, as Yahoo Tech summarises. Both integrate Wine or Proton to run games from your Epic library.

Option	Native Linux client	Official Epic support	Fortnite path
New Epic Games Launcher (preview)	Yes	Yes, 3 distros	Planned via EAC Linux v2
Heroic Games Launcher	Yes (third party)	No	None announced
Lutris with Wine	Yes (runs Windows launcher through Wine)	No	None announced

Epic’s preview can’t match the older tools on features yet. Heise quotes Epic describing the first release as a speedboat rather than a yacht, and TechPowerUp says Epic advises competitive Fortnite and Rocket League players to stay on the current launcher during the preview. A shopping cart is in; the rest of the feature set is basic.

Reception and rough edges

The internet hasn’t been kind. OMG! Ubuntu reports that some Linux users have hit a fleet of issues, including being unable to download Unreal Engine inside the app. The “vibe coded” label gave critics an easy target, particularly for software that handles payment details.

Some of that scepticism looks fair, and some looks like the usual reaction to anything AI-adjacent. The FPS Review argues that a native client from the second-largest PC storefront removes one of the last reasons to route Epic games through Heroic or Lutris, which matters more than a few seconds of startup time. Whether that holds depends on the preview maturing.

Price and availability

The preview is available now. Epic hasn’t published a price for the launcher in anything I found, and you simply download it and sign in with an Epic account. Ubuntu users can grab the AppImage, mark it executable and double-click, and OMG! Ubuntu says it runs on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or later.

Fortnite itself has no Linux release date. Epic’s stated condition is that EAC Linux v2 works with a critical mass of distribution maintainers, and Epic told The Verge it has no timeline.

Also this week

KeePassXC 2.8 arrives with Wayland auto-type

The open-source password manager shipped 2.8.0 on 21 October, a month after the beta. The big changes are a move from Qt 5 to Qt 6, auto-type on Wayland through XDG Desktop Portals, and fingerprint-style quick unlock via Polkit on Linux. It also adds remote database sync through external tools and configurable keyboard shortcuts.

It’s the first version with native ARM64 builds for Windows plus an experimental AArch64 AppImage, per LWN. Linuxiac notes the release fixes 5 vulnerabilities affecting 2.7.x and earlier, which is reason enough to update.

Windows 11 tests a tidier File Explorer right-click menu

Microsoft is rolling out a redesigned File Explorer context menu to Windows Insiders in the Beta channel, in build 26220.9757. The design cuts top-level clutter, keeps common actions within reach and adds a Settings page where you control what shows up. Microsoft says it’s still refining the menu with Insider feedback.

What this means for you

If you’re a Linux gamer on Ubuntu, Fedora or Debian, try the preview with a spare account session and don’t rely on it yet. Keep Heroic or Lutris installed until the launcher stops dropping features and downloads, and don’t swap over if you play competitive Fortnite or Rocket League on Windows.

If you want Fortnite on Linux eventually, check your setup now. Confirm Secure Boot is on, that you have TPM 2.0 and that your kernel comes from a distribution Epic recognises. If you run NVIDIA’s proprietary drivers, make sure the modules are signed through your distribution’s normal route.

Steam Deck owners should wait. Epic has said the Deck lacks the required features, and a deal with Valve has no date. Custom-kernel users are in the same position: you’ll probably need to go back to a stock signed kernel for protected games.

For everyone else, KeePassXC 2.8 is worth updating to, especially if you’re on Wayland and have been copying passwords by hand. Grab it from the project’s own website rather than an old distro package, since the security fixes apply to older versions.

Epic’s Linux launcher is in preview, Fortnite is promised