Unreal Engine: How it Changed Gaming

Chances are many of the games you enjoy today were created using Unreal Engine. First made public in 1998, Epic Games created an engine for their personal use that went on to revolutionize game development.  

The first game utilizing Unreal Engine was a first-person shooter game, but today Unreal Engine is used for first-person shooters, MMORPGs, fighting games, and many more styles. The engine can also develop things like television. 

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The core use of the Unreal Engine is to provide a complete and reliable tool for game developers that will allow for a smooth and realistic approach to both the graphics and design. Up next we’re going to tell you why it’s special.

Unreal Engine: How it Changed Gaming
Image Source: Alienbrain

Licensing and Portability

One major reason why tUnreal Engine has a large impact in today’s gaming world is its portability. Epic Games have made a point to make the engine portable for many different outlets. 

Licensing was the first step to making sure that everyone can tinker around with the engine and find ways to improve it. This free-for-all allowed many to find innovative ways to update the system for their personal needs. 

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Unpolished games became crisper and the high demands for performance were addressed by optimizing the engine. This made the game engine even better for small companies to use to make games.

Lighting

Games made today with the use of Unreal Engine have a very stark difference from old games when it comes to lighting. No one would have thought that lighting could be this impactful to game design years ago. 

In previous years, developers would take a lot of time and effort to design light maps manually. The use of Unreal Engine changed all of that by simply allowing developers to select a light source and the engine would automatically provide the result. 

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This empowered a lot of developers to be more practical in their approach to lighting hence allowing them to focus on more intricate things in the game like plot and characters, and the movement of the storyline. 

Unreal Engine: How it Changed Gaming
Image Source: The Verge

Optimizing Performance and Quality

Unreal Engine has fully optimized both performance and the quality of the video game. Previously, 3D models were rendered down to a minimum to save memory and rendering time especially if they were just in the background. 

The use of Unreal Engine and its new version allows the design to still be in high resolution even when it is in the background or far away. This makes for a greater gaming experience and allows the player to integrate themselves fully into the game.

Accessibility

One of the main reasons why Unreal Engine has gained popularity over the past decade is it’s low entry-level. The platform has proved that low entry-level does not always mean bad quality

It means that people can understand and use the engine even with little knowledge of how programming works. 

Of course, those with knowledge of C++ would be well-suited for the engine but the fact that it is very open for everyone makes it appealing for even newbies to try and have a go at making their own video game.  

Conclusion

The potential for Unreal Engine has always been there since the start. The fact that it is very accessible and the company itself allowed it to be accessible to many means that innovation is bound to happen. 

Since it was first showcased a few decades ago, Unreal Engine has never stopped improving and optimizing its features. It has changed the world of gaming today. 

It is also beginning to be utilized in other industries like medicine and transportation to create simulations that will improve real work.