Tim Sweeney has stepped in to address the criticism directly via
This is Game, later translated by
Clawsomegamer. He explained that many developers build with high-end hardware in mind first, leaving optimization for lower-spec machines until the end of production:
"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."
According to Sweeney, Epic is working on solutions to make that process easier.
"We’re doing two things: strengthening engine support with more automated optimization across devices, and expanding developer education so ‘optimize early’ becomes standard practice. If needed, our engineers can step in."