If you’re even slightly passionate about the world of video game creation and development, you’ve probably heard of Unreal Engine. The video game engine developed by Epic Games and that has been used for thousands of titles, some of the most successful as Fortnite, Gears of War or Batman: Arkham Asylum, among others, and even a few months ago we learned that the new Halo could use Unreal Engime 5.
And it is that, the world of videogames has not only evolved in recent decades offering us better titles, gaming experiences or powerful graphics sections, but also Its great step forward is due to the approach of professional tools that anyone with minimal knowledge can use to create digital worlds.democratizing the world of entertainment and allowing great ideas to come to light, something that years ago was unthinkable due to the large costs required to launch a game on the market.
Today, professional careers oriented to the world of videogames and digital entertainment are a palpable reality and with more and more followers and real job options. Some focused on digital development and others specifically oriented to the world of video games, specializing in the use of video game development software with even a master’s degree in Unreal Engine, which is undoubtedly a clear commitment to the digital future.
What is Unreal Engine?
Unreal Engine is a video game engine created by the American video game company Epic Games. used to develop video games, animated movies, and interactive or virtual reality-based experiences. The idea of creating a game engine came up in the early 90s, when Tim Sweeney, founder and CEO of Epic Games, was developing a game called ZZT.
Sweeney realized that creating a generic game engine that could be used to develop different types of games would save time and effort in game development. So he started working on a game engine, initially called “Unreal”, which would be used for his next video game project, also called “Unreal”.
Development of the Unreal Engine began in 1995 and was completed in 1998, when the first version of the Unreal engine and game was released. The first version of the Unreal Engine was groundbreaking for its time, allowing for the creation of large, detailed 3D worlds.with advanced visual effects and realistic physics.
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Since then, Unreal Engine has evolved significantly, with regular updates adding new features and improvements. The latest version of the engine, Unreal Engine 5, was announced in May 2020 and was scheduled to be released in 2021.
This engine includes a large number of tools and resources that facilitate the design, creation and development of high-quality projects. Due to this, it has become one of the most popular and used game engines in the industry along with Unity.
What makes Unreal Engine so famous? Its strengths:
As we said before, one of the main reasons why the Unreal Engine has been famous in recent years is because of the democratization of its use, allowing programmers with a minimum of knowledge to easily create their own developments from their own computers.
Some of the strengths of this game engine are the following:
level editor
The level editor allows developers to design worlds with a large number of tools. Being able to create from land, design scenarios, import and place objects and create lighting adapted to the needs of the project.
It has a fairly simple interface to use, for that reason the learning curve becomes comfortable when starting to use this game engine. In addition, the editor is integrated with other tools offered by Unreal Engine such as animation and programming.
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Programming
Unreal Engine uses the C++ programming language, one of the most used languages in the game development industry.
But there are two methods with which to program in this engine: writing code by hand or using the Blueprints visual editor. The latter allows you to create the game code using a system of pre-built blocks and flowcharts. Thanks to this, it makes the programming section more accessible to all developers who are starting out or who do not have extensive experience in this field.
animations
Animations are a fundamental part of a video game. It is for this reason that Unreal offers an animation tool that allows you to create complex animations within the engine itself. for both characters and game objects.
You will be able to import models, create skeletons and add predefined animations or create them by hand from the editor.
Image credits: unrealengine.com
Audio
Unreal has a sound system that allows you to create effects and music for your project. Like the rest of the options, you’ll be able to add sounds and link them to objects, environmental effects and anything else you can think of. You will be able to mix different audios, adjust the volume, tones and effects all within the engine itself.
Graphics
The main or most prominent feature of this engine is the ability to create graphics at an exquisite level. It uses advanced rendering techniques or real-time ray tracing, with which it is capable of creating photorealistic images, adjusting lighting in real time, with pro-processing techniques and much more. In addition, Unreal has its own library, Bridge, where you can find objects and textures to create highly detailed worlds, offering a very advanced physics system.
Compatibility
Another advantage is that Unreal is compatible with multiple platforms, that is, you can create your video game for PC, consoles, mobile phones and much more. This will help you reach a larger audience.
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What do you need to have Unreal Engine?
Surely if you have minimal programming knowledge, you have been bitten by the itch to try this graphics engine to create those video games that you have always had in mind, even You can find dozens of tutorials on YouTube on how to use this program.
The good news is that anyone can get Unreal Engine for free and start working with it, although in order to use the engine optimally, your PC needs to meet some minimum software and hardware requirements. If you are wondering what those requirements are, we will show them to you below.
Hardware Requirements
The following requirements are those that Epic recommends for its proper functioning, but they are not the necessary ones, since it can run with lower specifications, although that will mean lower engine performance.
- Processor: Intel Core i5 2.5 GHz or better / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X 3.5 GHz or better.
- RAM memory: minimum 8GB.
- Graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 or AMD Radeon HD 7870 or better.
- Storage: 100 GB of free hard disk space.
- Operating system: Windows 10 64-bit.
Software Requirements
Unreal Engine: As is evident, in order to use this engine, you must download it from the Epic store completely free.
VisualStudio: The C++ software that you will need to program recommended by Epic Games, although that does not mean that you can use other similar programs.
DirectX: In order to run Unreal you will need to have the latest compatible version of Direct X installed, which you can find on the Microsoft website.
And it is that the best thing that can happen to videogames is that more and more people can reach them, both as players and at the development level, since it’s the only way they will last for many more years and we can enjoy some amazing ideas and worlds that would have been lost had it not been for access to tools like this.
Besides, services like Xbox Game Pass help us to get closer to jewels with less budget but of an exceptional quality that in other circumstances we would not have been able to know.