Conan Exiles Enhanced (May 2026): What Changed and Server Setup Notes
Conan Exiles Enhanced launched on Steam in early May 2026, bringing a long-awaited Unreal Engine 5 upgrade to the game's foundations. The Enhanced version is a free upgrade for existing Conan Exiles owners and replaces the original 2018 client. This guide covers what changed, what server admins need to update, and how to spin up dedicated hosting for the new version.
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What's actually different in Enhanced
Enhanced is a substantial technical refresh, not a content expansion. The notable changes:
- Unreal Engine 5 — the renderer moved from UE4 to UE5. Lumen lighting, Nanite-style geometry batching, and the new world-partition system all show up in higher-density biomes (Sepermeru, Black Galleon area, Isle of Siptah's central tower).
- Higher minimum server specs — UE5 dedicated servers use more RAM and CPU than the UE4 build. Plan for ~50% headroom over your previous Conan setup.
- Visual overhaul — better lighting, improved water and fog, redrawn animation skinning. The Exiled Lands maps look noticeably newer.
- No platform expansion — Enhanced ships on Steam only. No Epic Games Store version. No Xbox or PlayStation update tied to this release.
- Saves carry over — your existing Exiled Lands and Isle of Siptah worlds load directly into Enhanced. No migration tool needed for single-player or self-hosted servers.
- Mods need recompilation — Workshop mods built for the UE4 build need to be republished against the UE5 SDK. Most of the heavily-maintained mods (Pippi, Hosav's Custom UI, Better Thralls) shipped Enhanced-compatible updates within the first week.
Server admin checklist for the Enhanced release
| Item | Action |
|---|---|
| Backup the world | Before launching the Enhanced server, snapshot your existing world files. Saves carry over but having a rollback is cheap insurance. |
| Update SteamCMD app | The dedicated server app ID hasn't changed, but the build branch is updated. Run +app_update 443030 validate to pull the Enhanced build. |
| Update RAM allocation | If you're hosting your own, bump RAM by ~50%. A vanilla 30-slot server now wants 12 GB minimum (was 8 GB on UE4 build). |
| Re-test mod stack | Each mod in your modlist.txt needs a UE5-compatible release. Some abandoned mods may not get one. Audit before launch day. |
| Notify clients | Tell your players to update their Steam client to Enhanced before logging in. Old UE4 clients cannot connect to Enhanced servers. |
| Check ServerSettings.ini | Most settings carry over. A few new perf-related settings exist for Lumen and Nanite. Sane defaults work; tune later. |
Updated server requirements (Enhanced vs original)
| Tier | Original (UE4) RAM | Enhanced (UE5) RAM | CPU notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-slot vanilla | 4 GB | 6 GB | 4 modern cores acceptable |
| 30-slot vanilla | 8 GB | 12 GB | 6 modern cores recommended |
| 70-slot vanilla | 12 GB | 16 GB | 8 modern cores recommended |
| 30-slot heavy mods | 12 GB | 18 GB | 6+ cores, NVMe critical |
| 70-slot heavy mods | 20 GB | 28 GB | 8+ cores, NVMe critical |
Mod compatibility status (May 2026)
Sample of the popular mods and their Enhanced-compatibility status as of the launch week:
- Pippi — Enhanced update shipped within 48 hours of launch. Fully compatible.
- Hosav's Custom UI — Enhanced update available; some hotbar tweaks reset on first load.
- Better Thralls — Enhanced update shipped same week. Combat AI behaves the same as before.
- Age of Calamitous — Enhanced version released; the size of the mod meant a full UE5 recompile pass that took the team about a week.
- Less Building Restrictions — Enhanced compatible. No changes needed.
- Devious Desires — Enhanced compatible (the mod chain dependencies were updated together).
- Emberlight — Enhanced compatible; some recipe icons re-rendered for the new UI.
The full Best Mods 2026 list reflects the post-Enhanced state of the mod ecosystem.
Common Questions
Is Enhanced a separate game I have to buy?
No. Enhanced is a free upgrade that replaces the original Conan Exiles client on Steam. If you owned Conan Exiles before May 2026, you have Enhanced automatically. Same Steam page, same library entry.
Can I still run the old UE4 build?
Funcom did not provide a "stay on old version" branch. The Enhanced update replaces the previous build outright. If you have UE4-only mods that haven't been updated, you're effectively waiting for them to ship Enhanced versions.
Do my saves work with Enhanced?
Yes. Singleplayer saves and self-hosted dedicated server worlds load directly into Enhanced without migration. Modded worlds need the relevant mods to have an Enhanced-compatible release first.
Are Enhanced and original servers compatible?
No, the original UE4 client cannot connect to an Enhanced (UE5) server, and vice versa. Since Funcom replaced the build outright, this isn't a real concern in practice — everyone moves to Enhanced together.
Is Conan Exiles Enhanced on Xbox or PlayStation?
Not at launch. The May 2026 Enhanced release is Steam-only. Console editions remain on the previous build until Funcom announces an update. Crossplay status with the old console builds is therefore broken until that happens. See our Is Conan Exiles cross-platform? guide for the broader platform picture.
Do I need to wipe my server for Enhanced?
No. The world data format is unchanged. Wipe only if you specifically want a fresh start to celebrate the relaunch (some PvP communities do this for the marketing moment).
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