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Epic Games Store Is Getting Native Linux Support: What It Means for Steam Deck

2026-08-17 · News and analysis

Affiliate disclosure: This guide contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Learn more.

After years of Linux users making the Epic Games Store work through community tools, Epic has finally said the thing out loud. A native Linux client is in development.

That is genuinely good news for Steam Deck owners. It is also a much smaller announcement than the headlines suggest, and it is worth being precise about what was and was not said.

Exactly What Epic Said

On 13 August 2026, during an AMA on the Epic Games Store community Discord server, an Epic staff member posting as @onepercentnachos confirmed that native Linux support is coming "soon."

Three qualifiers came with it, and they all matter.

It will not be in the upcoming preview build of the redesigned launcher. There is no release date, no quarter, and no window. And the staffer noted that supporting Linux properly "requires more work than just having a dedicated Linux build," which reads as Epic preparing broader platform integration rather than a straight port of the existing client.

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney separately echoed the confirmation. That is the entire substance of the announcement.

The Context: Launcher V2

This did not come out of nowhere. It sits inside a much bigger project Epic showed off at Unreal Fest in Chicago in June 2026.

The Epic Games Launcher is being rebuilt from the ground up. Epic's internal testing claims the new version cold starts on average 5x faster than the current one, and restores from the system tray around 6.5x faster. The rebuild moves to a framework called Tauri, and the storefront itself is getting a redesign alongside it, with player profiles, user reviews and universal controller support on the roadmap.

Anyone who has waited on the current launcher to open will understand why this is the part Epic led with.

The Linux client is a branch of that work. That is encouraging in one sense, because it means Linux is being designed into the new architecture rather than bolted onto the old one. It is discouraging in another, because Linux is now downstream of a staged rollout that is still working through 2026.

What This Actually Changes on a Steam Deck

Right now, playing Epic games on a Steam Deck means the Heroic Games Launcher, which wraps the Windows Epic client and runs your games through Proton.

Heroic is good. It is well maintained, it is free, it is a couple of clicks to install from Discover, and for a lot of games it just works. Most Deck owners playing Epic titles have been doing it this way for years without much drama.

What it is not is seamless. Here is where the friction actually lives.

Game Mode integration. Getting Epic games into the Steam library and running properly from Game Mode takes extra steps and sometimes extra fiddling with per game Proton versions. A native client would not automatically fix this, but it removes a translation layer from the equation.

Cloud saves. Heroic supports Epic cloud saves, but sync behaviour is one more thing that can go wrong when a Windows client is running inside a compatibility layer.

The weekly free games. This is the underrated one. Epic gives away games every week, and claiming them is the single most common reason a Deck owner opens the Epic Store at all. Doing that through a Proton wrapped launcher is more annoying than it should be for a thirty second task.

Overlay and account features. Anything the launcher does outside of just running the executable is the part most likely to behave oddly under Proton.

A native client makes all four of those less fragile. That is the real value here. It is a reliability improvement, not new capability.

What About Fortnite

The obvious question, and the honest answer is that a Linux launcher probably does not change anything.

Fortnite's absence from Linux and Steam Deck has never been a launcher problem. It is an anti cheat policy decision. Easy Anti-Cheat has supported Proton for years, and enabling it is a switch a developer flips. Epic has chosen not to flip it, on the stated reasoning that Linux's openness makes cheat detection harder to guarantee.

A native storefront client does not touch that decision. If Fortnite comes to Linux, it will be because Epic changed its mind about anti cheat, and that would be its own announcement.

GOG Is Doing the Same Thing

Worth noting because it suggests a pattern rather than a one off.

GOG has its own native Linux storefront in development. Between that and Epic, the two largest Steam alternatives on PC are both building for Linux at the same time, which was not true two years ago.

The reason is not complicated. SteamOS is no longer just the Steam Deck. It is shipping on third party handhelds, Valve has the Steam Machine coming, and the install base has crossed whatever internal threshold makes a native client worth the engineering. Storefronts follow users.

Should You Wait

No. Play your Epic games now.

"Soon" from a platform holder with no date attached, on a feature explicitly excluded from the next preview build, sitting downstream of a staged launcher rollout, is not a thing to plan around. It could be months.

Heroic works today, it is free, and it takes about ten minutes to set up. We wrote the full walkthrough in how to play Epic Games Store games on Steam Deck. When the native client ships, you will be able to switch over in an afternoon, and your installed games will not go anywhere.

If you are shopping for a handheld to run any of this on, SteamOS devices are the ones that benefit most directly.

Check Steam Deck OLED Price on Amazon

What We Are Watching

The next milestone is the preview build of Launcher V2, which Epic has confirmed will not include Linux support. What matters is whether Epic says anything more specific about Linux when that build lands.

After that, the question is scope. A launcher that installs and runs games is the minimum. A launcher with working cloud saves, achievements, overlay and the free game claim flow is the version that actually replaces Heroic.

We will update this page when Epic gives a date.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Epic Games Store coming to Linux?

Yes. Epic confirmed on 13 August 2026, during an AMA on the Epic Games Store community Discord, that a native Linux client is in development and coming "soon." No release date has been given, and it is not included in the next preview build of the redesigned launcher.

When will the Epic Games Store Linux client release?

Epic has not said. The only word given was "soon," with a specific confirmation that it will not appear in the upcoming preview build. It is part of the broader Launcher V2 rebuild that is rolling out in stages through 2026, so treat it as months away rather than weeks.

How do I play Epic Games Store games on Steam Deck right now?

Through the Heroic Games Launcher, which you install from Discover in Desktop Mode. It wraps the Windows Epic client and runs your games through Proton, and it handles installs, cloud saves and adding games to your Steam library. It works well and it is free.

Will Fortnite come to Steam Deck when the Linux client launches?

Almost certainly not. Fortnite's absence is an Easy Anti-Cheat policy decision by Epic, not a launcher limitation. EAC has supported Proton for years and enabling it is a developer choice. A native storefront client does not change that decision.

Why is Epic building a Linux client now?

Because the Linux gaming install base got large enough to justify it. SteamOS has spread beyond the Steam Deck onto third party handhelds, Valve has more hardware coming, and Epic is rebuilding the entire launcher anyway. Designing Linux into a new architecture is far cheaper than retrofitting the old one. GOG is doing the same thing in parallel.

Will a native Epic client be faster than Heroic?

Probably somewhat, but speed is not the main benefit. Epic claims Launcher V2 cold starts about 5x faster than the current launcher and restores from the tray about 6.5x faster. The bigger win on a handheld is reliability, since removing the Proton layer takes out a category of things that can quietly break.

Should I wait for the native client before buying Epic games?

No. There is no date, and Heroic already runs Epic games on Linux and SteamOS well. Games you buy and install now will still be there when the native client arrives, and switching over later is straightforward.