Game development on Unreal engine 4

Unreal Engine 4 is a versatile and affordable game engine from Epic Games. It includes many mechanisms, a systematic set of tools and editors for the production of powerful projects with photorealistic graphics. With it, you can develop 2D and 3D games for most popular platforms.

UE4 supports two programming languages ​​at once:

• C++. A general-purpose language with static data types that is highly portable. It gives the developer the ability to manually manage hardware resources, making it ideal for developing high-load projects.

• Blueprints. A visual language that allows you to build game logic using interconnected blocks. In fact, Blueprints makes it possible to create a game without writing a single line of code, however, in large projects, its capabilities are mainly used for rapid prototyping and testing of new ideas.

The Unreal Engine 4 store has a lot of assets and plugins for both languages, which has a positive effect on the speed of production.

Unreal Engine 4 was primarily created for first-person shooters, but has evolved over time and become one of the most used technologies in game development, especially when it comes to AAA-class projects. Today, it is used to create games of any genre, including shooters, fighting games, racing and action / RPG.

Here are some popular Unreal Engine 4 games:

• Tekken 7;
• Mortal Kombat 11;
• Batman: Arkham Asylum
• Gears of War 4;
• Dishonored.

In recent years, UE4 has become something of a standard in the development of large projects with big budgets, however, at the same time, it is also great for creating indie games. Consider the main advantages of the engine that make it so versatile.

Exceptional Graphics

High-quality graphics have long been the hallmark of most AAA-class games. It gives players the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in the virtual world to fully enjoy the exciting gameplay.

To create photorealistic graphics, UE4 uses real-time HD rendering, path tracing, complex lighting, virtual texturing, and many other tools. It is important that the improved visual effects do not affect the performance of the project.

Unreal Engine 4 is also equipped with tools for working with VR projects and augmented reality.

Multiplatform development

On Unreal Engine 4, you can create game projects for most popular platforms:

• iOS;
• Android;
• PC on Windows, macOS, Linux;
• PlayStation, XBox and Nintendo Switch consoles.

At the same time, unlike most other game engines, porting and deploying software from one platform to another does not require additional resources from developers.

Cost of use

Since 2015, the Unreal engine has become shareware. This means that until the game begins to bring the publisher more than $ 1 million in profit per year, all the tools of the engine can be used without any fee. After reaching this limit, you will have to transfer royalties in the amount of 5% of income to Epic Games.

Powerful set of tools

The Unreal engine contains a large and convenient set of tools with which you can solve almost any technical problem. Open world building assets, cinematic lighting, visual scripting, animation mesh, material execution, object physics, AI, performance, and memory optimization are all available to developers when building a UE4 game.

Open source

Epic Games provides developers with access to the full source code of Unreal engine 4, so that the functionality of the engine is constantly improved and developed. In addition, by using existing core function code blocks, studios can significantly speed up the release of a new project, and save a lot of budget.

Despite the simplicity and availability of UE4 tools, developing games on this engine is a laborious and complex process that can stretch from months to several years of intensive work. The entire production process can be divided into several key stages:

• Planning. The format of the future game, its main functions, characters, scenario and target audience are determined.
• Preparation for development. At this step, the project timeline and budget are estimated, technical documentation is created, and a development team is formed that will directly deal with the development: designers, animators, screenwriters, programmers, voice actors, and testers. Also at the pre-production stage, the first prototypes of the environment and game characters are made and approved.
• Production. The most time-consuming stage, during which the project turns from an idea into a real game.

• Testing. Before getting into the hands of the end user, the project is carefully checked by play-testers. They identify all possible technical bugs and determine the degree of satisfaction with the gameplay in order to provide players with a flawless gaming experience after release.
• Launch. A tested and ready-to-release game is placed in app markets, depending on the chosen platform, for example, on the Play Market and the App Store, if a mobile project was created.
• Support and development. No matter how brilliant the game is, in order for it to be profitable in the long run, you need to constantly maintain the interest of gamers. There are many tools for this: creating new levels, additional characters, skins or events. All this is added to the game after the release through updates.

Use the capabilities of the innovative game engine Unreal engine 4 to the maximum, thanks to the rich experience of AVADA MEDIA specialists. We can bring to life a project of any genre and any complexity. To find out more, contact us by filling out the feedback form.