The Latest Glyph Update Promises "A Faster, Lighter Experience"

Trion Worlds' Glyph client received a new update today and it is promising "a faster, lighter experience." According to Trion, the client was taking up far too much memory previously. It used to use an average of 200 MB of RAM in the background, but could use upwards of 400 MB at times. As of today's update, the client will now use less than 50 MB.

The primary reason that the client uses so much less memory now is that Trion removed all browser functionality from it. Trion explains the decision as follows.

We’ve decided to drop the browser functionality in Glyph, which caused a heavier load to systems. Web browsers are complicated things that require constant updating to keep on top of performance, standards, and security. We don’t think that a web framework belongs in Glyph. Without the browser, it’s running much lighter! We can now focus on letting people play with less “stuff” hanging around in the background while a game is running.

It should be noted that the removal of browser functionality does not only affect those who played directly through the Glyph client. Those playing through Steam will also see an increase in performance, as the Steam versions of Trion's games also launch through the Glyph client.