Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has released statements defending the video game company’s Unreal Engine 5. In a recent interview with This is Game, Sweeney addressed criticism of several games that were made with Unreal Engine 5.
TipRanks Black Friday Sale
- Claim 60% off TipRanks Premium for the data-backed insights and research tools you need to invest with confidence.
- Subscribe to TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks and see our data in action through our high-performing model portfolio - now also 60% off
Sweeney said, “The main cause is the order of development. Many studios build for top-tier hardware first and leave optimization and low-spec testing for the end. Ideally, optimization should begin early—before full content build-out.”
While it may appear that Sweeney is just defending his company’s product, the CEO’s argument holds water. Epic Games’ Fortnite runs in the Unreal Engine 5 and has few optimization issues. Other major games, such as Riot Games’ Valorant, have also made the switch to Unreal Engine 5 with little to no issues. The problem comes when poor optimization of a major title, such as Konami’s (JP:9766) Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, leaves the final product in an unsatisfactory state.
What This Means for Epic Games
While Unreal Engine 5 has gained a bad name among gamers, it isn’t the engine’s fault. Sweeney’s defense places criticism at the feet of game developers, and could help shift the tone of consumers. Even if it doesn’t, many large gaming companies still plan to switch to Unreal Engine 5. For example, Microsoft’s (MSFT) Halo Studios has revealed plans to develop future titles in the Halo series in the engine.
How to Invest In Epic Games
Epic Games isn’t a publicly traded company, meaning investors can’t take a direct stake in it. However, there are a few public companies that hold large stakes in Epic Games, including Tencent (TCEHY), Disney (DIS), and PlayStation parent company Sony (SONY).
Of those three companies, analysts favor Disney and Sony, with consensus Strong Buy ratings and upside potentials of 16.17% and 11.67%, respectively. The analysts’ consensus for Tencent is Moderate Buy with a possible 1.28% upside.
