Which one is your favorite PC launcher and or how would you improve them?

[ShinUltramanJ]

-Steam is far and away the best. It would be nice to have a classic option as I preferred the old style.

- Uplay is great . I love the Club aspect of using points acquired from playing Ubi games to unlock small bonuses cosmetics. Customer service was good to me the one time I've needed them.

- GoG is solid all around. Like Steam they offer user reviews and community discussion which is important if you want to know how a game runs before you buy it. I'm not really as crazy about 2.0 as I thought I'd be. Having almost my entire library in one spot is a bit crazy. But it's not like I can just launch these games without opening another launcher. So really GoG 2.0 is an extra launcher to open your other launchers. I'd rather just open the launcher I need to use.

Origin is fine. They offer refunds which is a plus and customer service was great the one time I contacted them. No frills really- I don't use it unless I'm playing an EA game.

Battlenet is on par with Origin for me. Solid but nothing special.

Xbox/Windows is okay. On par with Origin from my experience. Not really any frills, and the store could be handled better. I'd especially like to see all of the mobile trash removed from the standard PC games.

Rockstar...No point in having this but I'm forced. Junk tier.

Bethesda another for the junk tier. They don't even offer 2FA. Probably the worst launcher of all.

Epic's improves a teensy weensy bit, bit still has a long way to go. Minimalist look because there's nothing to offer. If I want to learn about a game sold by Epic I have to exit the store and search elsewhere. Otherwise it's nice that they mimic Steam's refund policy as I've used it 2-3 times now.

 

[SixelAlexiS]

Steam because it has Family Share!
Every PC store should have that...

 

[Specht]

I prefer EGS because it's super light weight.
Steam is a bloated behemoth.

 

[fourfourfun]

Less on the launcher, more on the games.

At no point in launching a game should a splash window for graphics configuration pop up. This should all be done in the game itself.

Absolutely hate that. Anything which means I have to reach for a keyboard or a touchpad, just hate it.

I only used Steam anyway, as I didn't want to get multiple launchers or faff around setting up a consolidating launcher. In theory, I should have loved BPM on Steam, but it was just a further layer of interacting via Windows to get to where I want to be. My idea world would be booting up and immediately being presented with something like the Switch Ui - most recently played games from left to right, grid button if I want to go browse, hide shop and all other stuff away. Absolutely less is more. Experience should be turn on PC, pick up controller, click on most recent game, be playing most recent game. Nothing in-between.

 

[MaLDo]

My bet is steam with some improvements:

- you can type some letters and the library will go to the game that start with that. This worked before the update

- autohotkey integration on some way. I'm tired of hide steam game and create custom link for a game I already have in steam because I need to add some previous scripts (hiding mouse cursor, change desktop resolution, run some key to mouse middleware, map saves folder to a RAM disk, integration with other launchers that require clicks or typing or whatever). There are so much possibilities with it.

- a Big Screen Mode that is updated with all the new assets of new library. I want to navigate with controller no matter the mode too.

 

[Skyfireblaze]

My "favorite" launcher is Steam and I wish it would improve by adding a system-level driver for Steam Input so you don't have to actually start everything through Steam for it to work even at the expense of individual profiles and probably full theming support for the new UI and BigPicture.

 

[GrrImAFridge]

Less on the launcher, more on the games.

At no point in launching a game should a splash window for graphics configuration pop up. This should all be done in the game itself.

Absolutely hate that. Anything which means I have to reach for a keyboard or a touchpad, just hate it.

I only used Steam anyway, as I didn't want to get multiple launchers or faff around setting up a consolidating launcher. In theory, I should have loved BPM on Steam, but it was just a further layer of interacting via Windows to get to where I want to be. My idea world would be booting up and immediately being presented with something like the Switch Ui - most recently played games from left to right, grid button if I want to go browse, hide shop and all other stuff away. Absolutely less is more. Experience should be turn on PC, pick up controller, click on most recent game, be playing most recent game. Nothing in-between.

Click to shrink...

BPM isn't all that different: it defaults to the Library button when you load it, regardless of where you were in the desktop client, and your first set of options after entering are your three most recent games. Valve is working on a redesign, though, which will presumably be more streamlined.

 

[Chettlar]

Less on the launcher, more on the games.

At no point in launching a game should a splash window for graphics configuration pop up. This should all be done in the game itself.

Absolutely hate that. Anything which means I have to reach for a keyboard or a touchpad, just hate it.

I only used Steam anyway, as I didn't want to get multiple launchers or faff around setting up a consolidating launcher. In theory, I should have loved BPM on Steam, but it was just a further layer of interacting via Windows to get to where I want to be. My idea world would be booting up and immediately being presented with something like the Switch Ui - most recently played games from left to right, grid button if I want to go browse, hide shop and all other stuff away. Absolutely less is more. Experience should be turn on PC, pick up controller, click on most recent game, be playing most recent game. Nothing in-between.

Click to shrink...

This is good for if you accidentally do something that screws up your graphics for whatever reason. But yeah it should be something someone has to go purposely open up.

 

[Deleted member 16452]

BPM isn't all that different. It defaults to the Library button when you load it, regardless of where you were in the desktop client, and your first set of options after entering are your three most recent games. That said, a redesign in the works, so presumably it'll be even more streamlined soon enough.

Click to shrink...

A full redesign? That's awesome if so.

 

[Deleted member 20831]

I thought about it but then we miss out on the context of peoples experiences!

Click to shrink...

All right, then the best PC launcher for me are any which support the following
- Client supporting auto login
- Game shortcuts directly on the desktops

When I boot onto the desktop, I'd want to start the game I recent played by just double clicking on the icon.

 

[GrrImAFridge]

A full redesign? That's awesome if so.

Click to shrink...

Yeah:

Yes, indeed. According to them, they're working on a calendar for games (to introduce scheduled updates, livestreams or special XP weekends, for a specific title), a new interface for Big Picture Mode and a better implementation for Steam Reviews.

Click to shrink...

 

[Deleted member 16452]

Yeah:

Click to shrink...

Hyyyype as hell

 

[Javier23]

Steam. I mean, I don't really use anything else unless I have to in order to play sth specific, and then it's never an MP game so it's temporary. Still getting used to the new design, so I can't say much about it yet, but I do find some things about it pretty neat, and I wouldn't go back to the old design. I would really, really like to have an option to order my library by user reviews though.

That said, if I could go DRM-free for literally every game, GOG style, and not use any launchers at all, I could be very tempted.

 

[Kromeo]

I mostly use steam just for convenience but I don't use 99% of features, I've had no problem with Origin when I've used it

 

[Swenhir]

Steam, because it is a fully-fledged platform and not a launcher :).

 

[FarZa17]

I mainly use Steam because all my games are there but I still can't say I like it overall because the launcher sometimes still buggy, with random crash and become unresponsive, UI sometimes froze on screen like achievement notification stuck at the bottom screen, it takes time to load it when launched, and can be a bit slow too for some reason; it's not because my PC problem or underpowered. So, these kind of problems still need to fix to this day.

Epic Launcher while still kinda new and completely lacking, at least it launches faster than Steam and other launchers I have like Origin and Uplay, and I can access quickly and play easily the games I installed on EGS with no problem.

 

[Deleted member 31873]

The one that's on Linux.

 

[Deleted member 29682]

The one that's on Linux.

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Aren't there a few?

 

[ghostcrew]

I'll always choose GOG if a game is available there. I like DRM free and I like that the launcher is super light.

Saying that, my biggest library is obviously Steam (about 750 games) so that's the one that sees the most time used on my computer.

 

[Deleted member 16452]

The one that's on Linux.

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Hope more Linux support is added across the board yea.

Steam, because it is a fully-fledged platform and not a launcher :).

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I guesss well just have to agree to disagree here,
as I see it as a storefront first and foremost and just like the othersI hope it keeps getting improved )

 

[Swenhir]

I guesss well just have to agree to disagree here,
as I see it as a storefront first and foremost and just like the others and I hope it keeps getting improved )

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The list of features offered by Steam is ridiculously long and its offering clearly defines it as a platform, so indeed we'll have to agree to disagree :).

 

[Deleted member 16452]

The list of features offered by Steam is ridiculously long and its offering clearly defines it as a platform, so indeed we'll have to agree to disagree :).

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Yea and I see the merit in that argument I really do.

I personally just think PC is the platform and the rest are just launchers with some being way better than others like Steam.

 

[Bosch]

Steam >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> everything

 

[tatwo]

Origin is ok but I hate that it doesn't work like normal Windows window. You can't use windows key+arrow keys to move it around and it doesn't snap to side of the screen.

 

[EloKa]

Branding the Xbox and Steam ecosystems as launchers is a really dumb take.

 

[sirap]

Steam, it's a full-fledged platform for me and it offers features that aren't even available on consoles, let alone lesser storefronts like EGS. Steam input alone has made it the default choice for someone with disabilities like me.

 

[Deleted member 16452]

Branding the Xbox and Steam ecosystem as launchers is a really dumb take.

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im sorry if it's inaccurate I see them as just an app I open to launch or buy games so I called them launchers.

 

[Software Update]

I don't see how any argument that comes out of this topic wouldn't be considered platform warring. It seems like a bad idea.

 

[Pargon]

Steam, because it actually enhances the PC gaming experience rather than detracting from it.
All of these other companies joining in and creating their own launchers have only made things worse, since most of them use DRM that requires games to be launched via it rather than started directly.

I picked up Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair back when Epic were giving it away for free, and I still haven't been able to play it, thanks to their DRM. I get this error every time I try to play it, which then closes the game automatically.

What could Steam Improve? Probably a lot, but obvious things off the top of my head would be:

• UWP integration - particularly for the Big Picture Mode overlay/controller support.
• Automatic integration of third-party games and services. They should never have allowed games to launch other launchers.
• Update the Big Picture interface. It's fine, but looks dated and presents too many options to the user up-front, making it more complicated than it needs to be. It needs the option to set up a playlist of custom background music too (just for the launcher, not playing over games). Kill the startup animation, launch directly into the "recent" section of the library.
• Better family sharing controls. Let me whitelist the games I want to share instead of merging my entire unfiltered library with the accounts I'm sharing it with.
• More search operators for smart collections. It needs OR and NOT operators, instead of everything being AND.

Less on the launcher, more on the games.
At no point in launching a game should a splash window for graphics configuration pop up. This should all be done in the game itself.
Absolutely hate that. Anything which means I have to reach for a keyboard or a touchpad, just hate it.

Click to shrink...

If you have Steam Input enabled these can be set via your controller.

I prefer EGS because it's super light weight.
Steam is a bloated behemoth.

Click to shrink...

You should try running EGS on an older PC. It's the slowest of all of these launchers by far.
It slows the entire system down to a crawl and I have to force it to low priority, and to not run on all cores.
It's bare-bones, not lightweight.

It also has no library management tools whatsoever, which is a problem already even if you only picked up all of the free games they released this year.

Yea and I see the merit in that argument I really do.
I personally just think PC is the platform and the rest are just launchers with some being way better than others like Steam.

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Do you consider "Windows" or "macOS" to be platforms, or is that not low enough level for you?
Because Valve have Steam OS, and are actively working to port games to that platform - which is completely different from what everyone else is doing with their launchers.

 

[ssnick37]

Steam is my favorite and I would improve it by leaving the backend exactly the same but making it look nicer with a focus on how it looks on PC, not on a mobile phone.

Fuck these huge tiles they force you to live with now.

Rest is great.

 

[Deleted member 16452]

Steam, because it actually enhances the PC gaming experience rather than detracting from it.
All of these other companies joining in and creating their own launchers have only made things worse, since most of them use DRM that requires games to be launched via it rather than started directly.

I picked up Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair back when Epic were giving it away for free, and I still haven't been able to play it, thanks to their DRM. I get this error every time I try to play it, which then closes the game automatically.

What could Steam Improve? Probably a lot, but obvious things off the top of my head would be:

• UWP integration - particularly for the Big Picture Mode overlay/controller support.
• Automatic integration of third-party games and services. They should never have allowed games to launch other launchers.
• Update the Big Picture interface. It's fine, but looks dated and presents too many options to the user up-front, making it more complicated than it needs to be. It needs the option to set up a playlist of custom background music too (just for the launcher, not playing over games). Kill the startup animation, launch directly into the "recent" section of the library.
• Better family sharing controls. Let me whitelist the games I want to share instead of merging my entire unfiltered library with the accounts I'm sharing it with.
• More search operators for smart collections. It needs OR and NOT operators, instead of everything being AND.

If you have Steam Input enabled these can be set via your controller.


You should try running EGS on an older PC. It's the slowest of all of these launchers by far.
It slows the entire system down to a crawl and I have to force it to low priority, and to not run on all cores.
It's bare-bones, not lightweight.

It also has no library management tools whatsoever, which is a problem already even if you only picked up all of the free games they released this year.


Do you consider "Windows" or "macOS" to be platforms, or is that not low enough level for you?
Because Valve have Steam OS, and are actively working to port games to that platform - which is completely different from what everyone else is doing with their launchers.

Click to shrink...

Hmm, Mac and Windows has a good argument for separating them as platforms.

 

[fourfourfun]

If you have Steam Input enabled these can be set via your controller.

Click to shrink...

If I dive back into PC gaming, I will check this out. Although I prefer everything to be done in game.

 

[Pargon]

Hmm, Mac and Windows has a good argument for separating them as platforms.

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The question was not "should they be platforms?"
Steam is a platform already, not just a launcher.

Has Xbox ceased to be a platform now that the games are available on Windows, and not just Xbox devices?
Will PlayStation?

 

[fourfourfun]

BPM isn't all that different: it defaults to the Library button when you load it, regardless of where you were in the desktop client, and your first set of options after entering are your three most recent games. Valve is working on a redesign, though, which will presumably be more streamlined.

Click to shrink...

I did like BPM when I used it. I needed to put in the effort to make my PC boot and just jump straight to that I suppose. My PC was effectively used for either games or VLC/Browser Media. The latter has been replaced by a fire stick, so I'd just need a PC that jumps straight into gaming.

 

[Shake Appeal]

It's Steam. It's bloated and has a bunch of, like, abandoned or half-baked features lying around. But it's homey.

I would improve it by giving a much larger share of money to developers.

 

[BeI]

I've got many ideas to improve Steam:

1. Universal library. Galaxy has the right idea of linking your launcher accounts in one place for convenience. Steam could go a step further and force Steam overlay, input, etc into games from other launchers to get more out of your games by launching them through Steam instead.

2. Rivatuner-style fps cap built into the overlay so that you can easily manage per-game fps caps with a m+kb or controller.

3. Revamped BPM UI that feels more like a "console UI".

4. SteamOS 3.0 with that universal library built-in so you can use Proton to easily run games from any PC launcher.

5. Mods separated from the workshop into a dedicated "Mods" button on every game's library page, which you can use to search for mods for that game, and also manage installed ones with a built-in mini mod manager similar to the Nexus one.

6. Mod integration with Nexus mods and ModDB so thst nearly the entirety of modding a game can be done straight through Steam, and making modding as easy as clicking a single button to install to the correct folder.

 

[eonden]

It's not true

Click to shrink...

It absolutely is. Devs have to set the apps so that they can be modified but most dont, making it so that you cannot add mods on them (or modify any file tbh). Xbox beta app is just the same old Microsoft Store on that regard.

 

[Firebricks]

Steam is so stupidly far ahead of any platform on PC its not even funny.

 

[arcadepc]

It annoys me that some games refuse to run outside Steam, even if launcher is active. Eg if I just click the exe via a file manager, it does not run. Also disabled Steam overlay because messages became very distracting.

It absolutely is. Devs have to set the apps so that they can be modified but most dont, making it so that you cannot add mods on them (or modify any file tbh). Xbox beta app is just the same old Microsoft Store on that regard.

Click to shrink...

Even if they did allow, installing games on the main hard drive c: partition is not recommended in general and Xbox store installs there by default. Directories get administrator privileges and it becomes more frustrating to delete or modify it, especially on win10

 

[Lobster Roll]

Steam is much more than a launcher, but if it's getting tossed into the conversation, it's the runaway favorite and most feature-rich option available.

 

[CGriffiths86]

Steam is definitely the most functional so I guess I'd go with that. I like the GOG 2.0 launcher, but its still buggy and doesn't show all of my games. For example Burnout Paradise is installed on Origin and it doesn't show and sometimes when games need updates they wont show until updated. Obviously it's still beta and some of the launcher integration requires 3rd party plugins, but its nice to know what all I have especially on services like Twitch Prime where I just activate everything that's free.

 

[TSM]

I don't really have a favorite, but I do end up using Steam the most because that's where the vast majority of my games are.

 

[signal]

PlayOnline!! Improve by supporting it again.

 

[psilocybe]

Steam is my favorite and forums/discussion is a main point. Too many problems had solutions there. This is seriously lacking in other launchers.

I think it needs to look better, it feels dated. It can be the price of having just too many features, so it inevitable to look a bit bloated. The new library didn't help. Also, I have so many games that using the console-like tiles don't really work for me, a plain list is better, despite ugly.

 

[Reckheim]

Steam is my favorite, but I really don't mind any other launchers. Not sure what the big deal is about spending the extra 10 second to open a launcher and launch a game.

 

[MrChillaxx]

Steam is unquestionably and objectively the best "launcher" of them all, because it's not "just a launcher lol" but it's heads and shoulders above even the consoles paywalled garden in terms of features, there really is no argument to be made here.

Uplay is quite good despite the amount of hate it gets, never had a problem.

Gog Galaxy is good aswell especially after the 2.0 but it's kinda basic.

Origin sucks ass, i can't even begin to list all the stupid issues i had in these years and cs is awful. I cannot play my copy of Crysis due to Securom(?) and they straight up refused to help.

EGS is as basic as it gets. It's literally just a forced middleman to launch moneyhatted games. While it's not offensive as a program per se, it's also not something i care for. Maybe in the future if they keep working on it.

I don't see how any argument that comes out of this topic wouldn't be considered platform warring. It seems like a bad idea.

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After this mod's earlier post (wich got locked after becoming a shitshow) i can't really see this as a good faith kind of thread, at all.

 

[King Al B]

Play Online purely for the music and 5+ long updates.

 

[Software Update]

After this mod's earlier post (wich got locked after becoming a shitshow) i can't really see this as a good faith kind of thread, at all.

Click to shrink...

Im glad I'm not the only one who feels this way.

 

[Carlius]

Wtf happened to origin. Shit is so sluggish, slow, annoying, everything about it is trash.

Steam is best, followed by xbox gamepass launcher, uplay, and gog. I dont even bother ranking egs cause that shit just sucks ass

 

[elyetis]

favorite Steam by a large margin, still room for improvement thought :
- tabs
- workshop support for custom logo, banner, artwork
- and/or ability to save on the cloud custom logo, banner, artwork so you have them on all your computer, if you reinstall steam etc..
- improved workshop/download page, like I don't understand why they still don't say which mod it just updated when you are on the download page
- ability to order your library freely, I hate being limited to "sort by"