Unreal game development is the process of creating games based on the Unreal Engine (UE), a game engine launched and maintained by the American company Epic Games. The first project created on this engine was released in 1998. Since then, various UE versions have been used in a huge number of popular games, including Deus Ex, Splinter Cell, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, Lineage II, Brothers in Arms, as well as in the famous series Unreal Tournament by Epic Games.
The most recent UE version is Unreal Engine 5 (UE5). It provides developers with various tools and options to create realistic game projects. Compared to other Unreal Engines, UE5 is enhanced with new technologies and features such as Lumen and Nanite, which makes Unreal game development as useful and effective as possible.
This article describes the main features of Unreal Engine 5 and the possibilities it opens up for modern developers. Try to carefully study the material and determine whether this game engine is worth your attention.
Key Unreal Engine 5 Features You Need to Know
UE5 is based on two well-known programming languages, C++ and Blueprints, which can be used in parallel. That is, code written in Blueprints can be converted to C ++ and vice versa, which creates great convenience when working on large-scale projects.
As a result, Unreal Engine 5 can be successfully used to develop games for many operating systems and platforms (Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Mac OS X, Linux), as well as consoles (PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, Xbox 360, Nintendo GameCube).
In addition, the engine is based on a modular system of dependent components and, therefore, supports a wide range of rendering systems (Direct3D, Pixomatic, OpenGL), audio playback (EAX, DirectSound3D, OpenAL), speech-to-text tools, speech detection/recognition, network modules, and input devices.
All elements of the Unreal Engine 5 are represented as objects with a set of characteristics and a class that defines the available characteristics. Among the main classes and objects, the following can be distinguished:
- An actor is a base class that contains all the objects that are related to the game process and have spatial coordinates;
- A pawn is a physical model of an AI-controlled object or player;
- World, game level is an object that characterizes general properties of space where all actors are located. It may also contain gameplay options such as the game mode the level is intended for;
- The surface is the main element of the binary space partitioning;
- Node count is the number of nodes on the screen or in the game space. It directly affects the performance when rendering a scene.
As we can see, UE5 contains everything needed to solve the tasks associated with game development and allows professionals to focus on creating unique functionality rather than writing basic functions. This greatly improves the overall quality of games and their speed to market.
Top 3 Unique UE5 Tools Worth Considering
Unreal Engine 5 has incorporated all the positive characteristics of Unreal Engine 4 and received several innovative solutions. Here are the top 3 tools that make UE5 so popular in the modern game development market:
- Nanite. This tool allows developers to generate detailed models with a large number of polygons while maintaining high performance;
- Lumen. This UE5 technology is a real-time global illumination that can automatically adapt to changes in the scene, creating a more realistic atmosphere;
- Megascans. It provides developers quick access to unique resources that can be used in a project either unmodified or combined to arrange completely new original objects.
Each of the above tools is widely used in the UE5 development process, allowing developers to realize their creative ideas and create exciting games with different object detailing levels.
UE5 Game Development Stages
Unreal Engine 5 game development process involves several stages. The following paragraphs briefly describe the main ones.
Preparation for Development
Preparing for development is the first stage of work. The task of this stage is to develop the concept of the game, the design of the main characters, choose means for the implementation of the project, create a prototype of the game, prepare a plan according to which the project will be created, and coordinate this plan with the customer. When all administrative issues are resolved, the game enters the development stage.
Development
This is a key stage of game creation. The developers are engaged in the implementation of the previously created plan. However, the original game plan is subject to change. Sometimes these changes happen very often, up to daily adjustments.
Release
The release phase of a game begins after creation, testing, and bug fixing. The game publisher usually enhances interest in this event because the main goal is to make a profit.
Support
The release of the game is not the last stage in development. After entering the market, the developers of the UE5 game provide constant support, conduct regular updates, and improve the functionality of the project.
Thus, Unreal game development is not an easy task. However, highly qualified specialists effectively cope with the task and turn even the most complex and original customer ideas into reality.
Conclusion
Unreal Engine 5 is a highly efficient development tool for creating a variety of projects, including large-scale 3D projects and virtual reality applications. This engine can be used to create games and applications on various platforms, from personal computers and consoles to mobile devices and web applications with HTML markup. Try it and enjoy the benefits!
