Skip to content

Game updates

Wuthering Waves Moves to an Official Launcher on Steam in Version 3.8

· 2 min read · ModsDrop

Official image from Wuthering Waves
Image: official, via Steam.

Kuro Games announced on Steam on 5 November 2026 that Wuthering Waves is changing how the game gets installed and updated on that platform. Starting with the Version 3.8 update maintenance, Steam will stop handling the game client directly and hand that job over to the Official Launcher instead.

Tiered downloads and pre-download

The main reason behind the switch is storage. Right now the game ships as one big resource package, but future versions will split that into three tiers: UHD, HD and SD, based on graphics quality, models and other assets. Players will be able to pick whichever tier matches their device and free space instead of downloading everything.

Once the Official Launcher is live on Steam, it will also support pre-download for upcoming versions. That feature kicks in starting with Version 4.0, so players will be able to grab the next update’s files ahead of time instead of waiting for release day to start downloading.

How to update without breaking anything

Kuro laid out a specific order to avoid file conflicts or failed downloads. First, completely uninstall the current game package through Steam. Once Version 3.8 maintenance begins, redownload and install the new Official Launcher through Steam. From there, open the launcher and choose the resource tier that fits your setup.

Account data and progress are tied to your account, not your local files, so uninstalling the old client won’t touch any of that. If you run into login failures, payment errors or missing map assets after the switch, the first thing to check is whether the old package was fully removed before installing the launcher.

What this means for anyone running mods

Wuthering Waves has a modding scene built around resource packs and texture or model swaps that sit inside the game’s local files, so a client replacement like this is worth treating carefully. Wiping the old package and installing a new launcher structure means any manually placed mod files are very likely to be removed along with it, since that’s what typically happens when a game’s file layout changes this much.

Back up any mod files, configs or presets you’re using before you uninstall anything. Once the new launcher and the tiered downloads are in place, check whether the mods you use still match the new file structure before dropping them back in, since a different resource tier (UHD, HD or SD) could mean different file paths or asset names than what a mod was built for. If a mod hasn’t been updated for the new setup yet, it’s safer to hold off installing it until you’ve confirmed it still works.

Based on the developer's announcement on Steam, 5 November 2026.

More Wuthering Waves →

← All news