Epic Games Store: New function in the style of Discord is pending

Epic Games Store

There are many good reasons to visit the Epic Games Store. In addition to the weekly free versions, there are also some exclusive games that can only be bought in this online shop - at least for a certain period of time. But with regard to the "social features" there is definitely still some room for improvement. Epic Games knows this very well and wants to improve this step by step in the foreseeable future. This includes a new system that is somewhat reminiscent of Discord and is currently under development.

As can be read on the official blog, this is a so-called group system that you can contact with your friends can stay, even if you are not in the same game or even on different platforms. This applies to both text and voice chat, so that you have various options for communication. It should be possible to join or leave an existing group at any time - and in a flash. Here is an overview of the most important features of the new system:

Group window

The group system that awaits you soon will have an "active group window". This is a separate window for the group in which you are currently active. In this window there are a number of options available to you to communicate and play with your friends and teammates. Share your latest highlights to get your friends to enjoy a game with you, or start a match with just a few friends in the group while you can keep talking to the whole group.

Quick entry and exit

The group does not have a single "owner". So if a friend needs to go offline, the rest of the group will move on. In the window, each group member can determine his own audio and video options. You can also invite other players and create closed groups.

The group continues in the game

The new group window also shows the group directly in the game. While you are playing, you can show and hide a simplified view of the group with the members and their respective status.

When exactly this feature can be expected in the Epic Games Store has not yet been determined. For the next month, however, it seems to be out of the question, as the introduction of player cards and an improved search are on the agenda in March.

Source: Epic Games

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Epic Games Store lines up new social features including a party system

Over the last couple of years, Valve has responded to Epic's Game Store threat by filling in some of Steam's missing features around game recommendations and social connections. Now Epic is going to try and catch up on the social side in 2021, whether or not the areas where it's focusing are the ones gamers use the most.

In a blog post the Epic Games Store team revealed plans for a party system that includes Discord-style voice and text chat, as well as extending inside game experiences to let you know what your party members are up to. Meanwhile, the existing 'Whispers' DM system is going away because people apparently weren't using it. 

While the party system is due in the 'future,' changes that should arrive this month include Player Cards in the social panel that make it easy to figure out who someone, search, do not disturb and more. These features probably aren't enough to make anyone choose the Epic store over Steam, but they could it make it a little more sticky once someone makes the jump part-time. If that's not what you're looking for from Epic, keep an eye on their Trello board to see what else is on the works, like Achievements (that's been on the list for a while) and wishlist improvements.

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