Unreal Engine

[Justintime9]

This summer I'm planning on going to a camp that teaches video game creation, and after a bit of examination, I found this class: http://www.internaldrive.com/3d-video-g ... /index.htm Now, I was only planning on doing Video game design 1, but my mom called them, and described how I know a bit of blender, and flash, and he said I'd be good for video game design 2... now, I only had one concern, and I think you guys can help me... it mentions using unreal engine, and I'm not really into games like Unreal tournament, and Gears of war... is Unreal engine just a program similar to blender, or an engine used in cirtain modeling programs? What exactly is it? is it like, only good for games like unreal tournament?

[andylegate]

When most people in the modding community say "Unreal" they mean the editor. It's a 3D graphics program that can be custom made for certain games. Here is a screen shot of the Unreal editor for Rainbow 6: Ravenshield:

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This editor is a dream to use. Just about everything is point and click. Want doors that actually swing open? Be able to say they are locked or unlocked? Put in the different sounds for the door? IE: opening, closing, knocking, etc, etc.. Think about all the scripting we have to do for our Ages. In Unreal, it's almost always point and click, like in this example:

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There are other editors out there that are like the Unreal editor, but go about different things, like GTK Radiant, which is what is used for games like Call of Duty, Medal of Honor and Castle Wolfenstien:

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Considering you've been learning Blender and trying to do Age Creation, you should find using any of these editors a snap.

One word of warning though Justin........after playing around with these, even though they are for games that are FPS's, you'll really wish that we had a tool like this for Age Creation. You might want to take a lap top with you, and keep your Blender skills honed while there.

[Justintime9]

lol, well, It's just a week, and I won't be staying overnight, so I should be able to get on blender bettween classes and, do you think that Unreal engine is good for making surreal, mystlike games, or just undetailed, uncreative FPS? that's one of my main concerns... I don't want to work with it if it's too FPSish... and do you think using this can carry over to blender at all? or is it so different, it probably won't help me get better at blender at all?

[andylegate]

Justin.....never turn down the chance to learn new and different stuff. Everything you learn, you my find a use for down the road, or something that will help you even now.

Ever wonder why I've started from scratch back in November but was able to learn how to use Blender quite quickly? From spending several years making the "undetailed" and "uncreative" maps for FPS games as you put it.

Don't fall into the pit that I've seen so many people fall into:

"FPS games suck. They are undetailed and uncreative!"

Okay, well while exploring was not exactly in the back of the mind of the game creators for those games, the players of those games DO demand HIGH detail.....and they don't want the same old boring thing time and time again. They want new and better maps that are more and more creative.

Do you like Abstract Paintings? I don't. I'm more of a Norman Rockwell kind of guy.
But my preferance doesn't mean that I think Abstract Paintings are uncreative. If you think about it, you could turn the tables around: Abstract HAS to be more creative than paintings by Norman Rockwell since he was simply painting the real world.....

But that's not true either......both are creative. One just has a different vision than the other.

One thing that I prided myself in the FPS maps I made was the attention to detail. Okay, so your average game player when they load up my map from a server more than likely doesn't have time to look at the neat faded WWII poster I put on the wall of the building I made.....he's too busy dodging bullets and grenades......
But because I put that faded poster their, and gave the building a lot more detail, the gamer actually feels that he or she is really there.

So while you might hate those games, do realize that the tools for those games can teach you a LOT. Some need scripting too. While we don't see to many exploding walls in Uru, learning how to script and exploder in an FPS game, will make you understand scripting for Python and ALC a bit better. Not a lot. But just a bit.

So don't knock it. You could find yourself in a well paid job helping design the next Uru game. But you could also find that same job helping with a FPS game, and still doing Uru on the side.

It's up to you: keep your mind open so that you learn and get better.

Or keep your mind closed and judgemental and end up ignorant of how to do things......

[Justintime9]

Well, on a side note, "close minded" and "judgmental" isn't always bad, for example, it's good to be close minded to evil, and open minded to good,(many liberals call conservatives judgmental for speaking out against evil) but anyway, just wanted to clear that up (I often get a knee jerk reaction to those words)

but anyway, i think I didn't phrase the thing about FPS correctly, I was simply wondering if unreal engine's graphics are good, or if they're unrealistic and uncreative. Is Unreal's graphics at least as good as URU's? or is it relative, like, you can make high detail, or low detailed according to your skill?

O, and what is similar to blender about it, and what is different? is it at all the same as blender?

[Aloys]

Unreal Engine is one of the best (if not the best) engine available. It is far better than Plasma, and it is very easy to use. And you can use it to do pretty much any kind of game, a FPS, or an adventure game like Uru; it's up to you.

[andylegate]

What is simular is having to make meshes for your buildings, terrains, rocks, etc, etc. You can use ingame made things, but that get's boring after a while. You want to be known for making a good "map", then you make your own stuff.

These editors can use any resolution texture from low to very high. It's the compiler that will determine what you see in the game.

Lighting is BIG time important. Here's why. In these editors, after you've built all your stuff and textured everything, and have put in your lights, you compile the map. Most of them are bsp compiled. The compiler will give you errors for a multitude of things. You can't just have your meshes intersect. You have to make the faces meet. Also, if you put in lights (which you'll HAVE to do to light the map), you need to have the lights totally inclosed, or have a skybox made. The Skybox MUST have beveled edges to prevent light leaks.
Now I know that sounds funny, but it's true. The compiler calculates where your light is falling too. That's why in these editors I can put in a wall, and a light and have the wall cast a shadow! The compiler will calculate that (where as in Age Creation we have to make our own shadows). However, if the compiler goes to calculate the light, and it keeps going out into the Void and never falls on a surface, you'll get an error. It can't calculate infinity.

How real and how detailed? Again, its up to the person's skill that is using it. You can put in your own textures that you made, build your own stuff. So how good it looks is up to you.

The reason that these tend to be easier to use than Blender is because the interface is easier to navigate than blender.

[Justintime9]

ah, I see thx, I guess I'll take the class then!

[Aloys]

A week will be short to learn everything, but it should give you a good overview of the whole process. And more important: it should be fun!

[Justintime9]

awesome