After years of being the thing that made launching your favorite 2K games an exercise in patience, the 2K Launcher has finally been sent to the big task manager in the sky. Gamers around the globe can now rejoice as they are finally free from the system resource hog that haunted them like a clingy ex who just wouldn’t move out.
The removal process, dubbed the “Complete Sunset,” has officially concluded. It’s the gaming equivalent of throwing a going-away party for a coworker no one liked. As of November 25, any remnants of the 2K Launcher have been eradicated from your Steam and Epic libraries. Well, mostly. A charming little memento named 2kLauncherRemoved.txt was left behind—just in case you were getting nostalgic for the glory days of waiting five minutes for Civilization VI to boot.
Naturally, the text file is completely unnecessary. Like the launcher itself, it serves no purpose other than reminding you of what you’ve endured. Feel free to delete it, unless you want a keepsake of gaming history’s least-beloved middleman.
What’s Changed? (Hint: Less Launcher, More Game)
In a twist no one saw coming, clicking “Play” now actually starts the game. The Bioshock series, Marvel’s Midnight Suns, and The Quarry are just a few of the titles now liberated from the clutches of launcher tyranny. Meanwhile, the Mafia Trilogy remains the oddball—its “definitive edition” still requiring its own unique workaround. Apparently, the Mafia doesn’t take orders from just anybody, not even 2K.
As for Civilization VI, the launcher was removed earlier this year. Now, the game starts directly… unless you want to mess with DirectX versions. If so, good luck navigating the new maze of Steam launch options that somehow feels like a lovingly crafted homage to the Byzantine Empire.
XCOM and Mods: A Love Story Rewritten
XCOM 2 and Chimera Squad enthusiasts can breathe easy. The modding scene survived the purge, albeit with some caveats. On Steam Decks, mods are now a thing of beauty—assuming you can decipher the articles explaining how to use them. Good luck, commander. Remember, the fate of humanity depends on your ability to navigate poorly written FAQs.
A New Era of Gaming?
The 2K Launcher is gone, but the trauma lingers. Some gamers are left with phantom pain, compulsively trying to bypass a launcher that no longer exists. Others are still finding mysterious bugs that are apparently not the launcher’s fault—proof that sometimes, the real problem was the friends we made along the way.
In the end, the 2K Launcher’s removal is a win for gamers, a win for common sense, and a win for CPUs everywhere. Pour one out for yet another little launcher that couldn’t—but just a little. We’ve got games to play, directly, as nature intended.