In a significant shift within the gaming landscape, 2K Games has announced the discontinuation of its launcher across all PC titles available on Steam and the Epic Games Store. This move simplifies the gaming experience for players, allowing them to launch their favorite titles directly from these platforms without the intermediary step of a separate launcher.
Streamlined Access to Popular Titles
Among the games benefiting from this change are beloved franchises such as Bioshock Remastered, Bioshock 2 Remastered, Bioshock Infinite, The Quarry, and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. Additionally, players can now enjoy the Mafia Trilogy Definitive Edition and the Civilization series with greater ease. This transition marks a notable departure from the traditional launcher model, which has often been met with mixed reviews from the gaming community.
However, the situation is slightly different for XCOM 2. Given its reliance on mods, players launching the game via a desktop shortcut will find it defaults to the “Play XCOM 2” option. To access alternative launcher types, users will need to initiate the game directly through the Steam Client, ensuring mod compatibility remains intact.
Furthermore, 2K Games has also eliminated the “2K Launcher Beta” associated with Sid Meier’s Civilization V, further streamlining the user experience across its portfolio.
This decision positions 2K Games as a pioneer in the industry, being the first major publisher to completely eliminate its launcher from all PC titles. While other publishers like EA and Ubisoft have begun to experiment with launcher-free releases, it remains uncertain whether they will follow suit with a full-scale removal akin to 2K’s approach.
For PC gamers, this development is undoubtedly welcome news, enhancing accessibility and convenience when diving into the rich worlds crafted by 2K Games.
