The Epic Games Store is not very good. This is not a controversial thing to say, I’m fairly certain, as the lack of features available within it feels a bit odd also eight years into the thing existing. Sure, there’s some free games every now and then (like Citizen Sleeper, right now), but there’s a lot of basic things missing. But it seems much of that, including simple things like patch notes, will be coming within the next 12 months.

Over on the EpicGamesPC subreddit, a series of photos from a talk Epic held regarding the storefront’s future shows off the kinds of things you can expect from it over the next year. A roadmap of sorts outlines what you can expect when, with smaller things like pre-registration for free-to-play games, patch notes, a private beta for the next version of the launcher, improved storefront navigation, and whatever the hell “Fortnite Chunked Installation” is (I’m assuming that it lets you download only certain parts of the battle royale) coming up first.

Epic Games Store roadmap for 2026 and more screenshots of launcher rebuild
by
u/ImAnthlon in
EpicGamesPC

To see this content please enable targeting cookies.

Manage cookie settings

Speaking of that revamped storefront, a couple images of that were shown off, with some captions explaining that home pages will be personalised per user, highlighting games that match an individual’s “interests and playstyle.” Sounds pretty basic! Game pages will apparently be more detailed too, with again some tailoring done for each user to “show what’s relevant to them based on where they are in the game.”

In the up next section of the roadmap, there’s also a mention of user written reviews, the absence of which is a commonly levied criticism against the storefront, alongside supposed discovery improvements, and the launch of the next version of the storefront. A look at user profiles was also shown off, which shows things like games a person owns, what they’ve been playing recently, achievements. Once again, literally nothing unique to be found here.

It is quite odd that Epic have been taking so long to add such basic elements of a digital storefront. But then, they did lay off over 1000 employees earlier this year, so, it doesn’t really seem like they know how to run a team very well. At least Unreal Engine 6 will incorporate generative AI! I definitely feel good about that! Please, oh god please, read the sarcasm here.

Source link

If you loaded up Forza Horizon 6 expecting a relaxing, scenic cruise through the neon-drenched streets of Japan, you are in for an incredibly rude awakening. The open roads are currently being held hostage by a mythical digital terror. A single AI Drivatar has risen to absolute legendary status over the last week, establishing himself as the undisputed boogeyman of the community.

His name is bowie knife99, and he drives with the moral compass of a localized natural disaster.

The Birth of an Automotive Anarchist

Forza’s Drivatar system is designed to record player telemetry, logging how people brake, drift, and corner to create AI clones that mimic real human behavior in offline races. Usually, this means you get to race against a bot version of your best friend or a popular creator.

In the case of bowie knife99, the system apparently captured the driving habits of a complete maniac. Nobody knows who actually owns the private account behind the profile, but their AI counterpart is currently hunting players down across Expert and Pro difficulties like a cold, calculating machine.

AI is usually pretty… Lame. But Bowie knife99 goes completely out of his way to ruin lives. He will execute deliberate PIT maneuvers on the straightaways, divebomb into hairpin turns with zero intention of braking, and physically ram players off mountain cliffs just to steal a position. He has even been spotted obliterating people in drag races while driving a literal tricycle, completely defying the laws of physics just to deliver a psychological beating.

A Global State of Panic

The unhinged clips of his vehicular rampages have gone massively viral, turning the driver into a community meme on par with Elden Ring’s legendary “Let Me Solo Her.” The panic has spilled so far out of the game that corporate brands and major franchises are actively trembling in his presence.

The official Xbox social accounts kicked off the corporate roasting, wishing a happy holiday to everyone except the tire-shredding menace. Shortly after, the official Battlefield account offered to lend players a rocket launcher to handle their racing problem, while Halo implied that even the Master Chief wants no part of that grid.

The corporate solidarity only got funnier from there. Walmart Canada announced a preemptive, fictional ban of bowie knife99 from all physical retail locations, noting that customers already have enough stress worrying about running into their exes without having to check the parking lot for an aggressive virtual racer. Major League Baseball even weighed in, offering their condolences to drivers who thought they had a race in the bag until the unhinged Drivatar materialized in their rearview mirrors.

Hunting the Hunter

The terror has reached a point where players are forming organized digital militias. Grudge matches are popping up across Reddit and social media as racers actively boot up the game with the sole mission of finding bowie knife99 and giving him a taste of his own medicine.

The problem? The monster appears to be completely invincible. Players attempting to ram him into the barriers are discovering that his car seemingly possesses its own localized gravity field, often causing the attacker to bounce off his fenders and fly straight into a tire wall while he continues his perfect racing line.

Until the real player behind the profile finally stands up, we are stuck sharing the asphalt with a phantom. Check your mirrors, practice your defensive driving, and if you see a car approaching at a completely unsustainable speed, just let him have the corner.

Source link