Unreal Game Builder

Option B: Copy Starter Template

# Copy the starter template to your projects folder
cp -r templates/starter-app ~/UnrealProjects/MyGame
cd ~/UnrealProjects/MyGame

# Rename project (update .uproject and source files)
# Then generate project files

Step 3: Generate Project Files

# Windows
"C:\Program Files\Epic Games\UE_5.5\Engine\Binaries\DotNET\UnrealBuildTool\UnrealBuildTool.exe" \
  -projectfiles -project="MyGame.uproject" -game -rocket -progress

# macOS
/Users/Shared/Epic\ Games/UE_5.5/Engine/Build/BatchFiles/Mac/GenerateProjectFiles.sh \
  -project="MyGame.uproject"

Step 4: Build and Run

# Open in Visual Studio (Windows) or Xcode (macOS)
# Set configuration to "Development Editor"
# Build (F7 or Cmd+B)
# Run (F5 or Cmd+R)

Step 5: Start Developing

1. Open the project in Unreal Editor
2. Navigate to Content Browser
3. Create your first Blueprint or C++ class
4. Test in Play-In-Editor (PIE) mode

Platform Overview

What is Unreal Engine 5?

Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) is Epic Games' state-of-the-art game engine for creating photorealistic games, virtual production, architectural visualization, and interactive experiences. Key features include:

• Nanite: Virtualized geometry for film-quality assets in real-time
• Lumen: Fully dynamic global illumination and reflections
• Niagara: Next-generation VFX and particle system
• Chaos Physics: Advanced physics and destruction system
• MetaHuman: Photorealistic digital humans
• World Partition: Automatic level streaming for open worlds
• Enhanced Input: Modern input system with runtime rebinding
• Gameplay Ability System (GAS): Data-driven abilities framework

Current Version: 5.5 (Stable) / 5.7 (Latest)

Version 5.5 Features (December 2024 Stable):

• MegaLights for many dynamic light sources
• Substrate material system (Beta)
• Enhanced animation authoring
• Improved Sequencer interface
• Mobile game development enhancements

Version 5.7 Features (Latest):

• Further Nanite and Lumen optimizations
• Virtual Production improvements
• Enhanced XR support
• PCG (Procedural Content Generation) updates

Official Documentation

• Main Documentation: https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/unreal-engine/unreal-engine-5-7-documentation
• Getting Started: https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/unreal-engine/get-started
• C++ Programming: https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/unreal-engine/programming-with-cplusplus-in-unreal-engine
• Blueprint Visual Scripting: https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/unreal-engine/blueprints-visual-scripting-in-unreal-engine

Phase 1: Requirements Gathering

Before starting development, gather the following information:

1.1 Game Design Questions

## Game Concept Questionnaire

### Genre & Gameplay
- What genre is your game? (FPS, RPG, Platformer, Strategy, etc.)
- Is it single-player, multiplayer, or both?
- What is the camera perspective? (First-person, Third-person, Top-down, Side-scroller)
- What are the core gameplay mechanics?

### Target Platforms
- Primary platform? (PC, Console, Mobile)
- Which consoles? (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch)
- Mobile platforms? (iOS, Android)
- VR/XR support needed?

### Visual Style
- Art style? (Photorealistic, Stylized, Pixel art)
- Will you use Nanite for high-poly meshes?
- Will you use Lumen for dynamic lighting?
- Target frame rate? (30 FPS, 60 FPS, 120 FPS)

### Technical Requirements
- Expected world size? (Small levels, Open world)
- Multiplayer architecture? (Dedicated server, Listen server, P2P)
- Expected player count? (Single, Co-op 2-4, MMO 100+)
- Save system requirements?

1.2 Team Structure Assessment

## Team Capabilities

### Programming
- [ ] C++ developers available
- [ ] Blueprint-only development
- [ ] Mixed C++/Blueprint approach

### Art & Assets
- [ ] 3D artists for custom assets
- [ ] Using Marketplace assets
- [ ] Outsourcing art production

### Audio
- [ ] In-house audio designer
- [ ] Licensed audio assets
- [ ] Third-party audio middleware (Wwise, FMOD)

1.3 Hardware Requirements

Development Machine Requirements:

Phase 2: Platform Setup & Authentication

2.1 Installing Unreal Engine

Step 1: Install Epic Games Launcher

# Download from: https://www.unrealengine.com/download
# Windows: Run EpicInstaller-x.x.x.msi
# macOS: Mount and install from .dmg

Step 2: Install Unreal Engine

1. Open Epic Games Launcher
2. Navigate to "Unreal Engine" tab
3. Click "Install Engine"
4. Select version (5.5+ recommended)
5. Choose install location
6. Select components:
   • Starter Content
   • Templates and Feature Packs
   • Engine Source (optional, for source builds)

Step 3: Install Visual Studio (Windows)

# Download Visual Studio 2022 Community
# https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/

# Required Workloads:
# - Desktop development with C++
# - Game development with C++

# Required Components:
# - MSVC v143 build tools
# - Windows 10/11 SDK
# - C++ profiling tools

Step 4: Install Xcode (macOS)

# Install from Mac App Store or:
xcode-select --install

# Accept license
sudo xcodebuild -license accept

2.2 Epic Games Account Setup

1. Create account at https://www.unrealengine.com/
2. Accept Unreal Engine EULA
3. Link GitHub account (for engine source access)
4. Configure two-factor authentication

2.3 Source Control Setup

Git with Git LFS (Recommended):

# Initialize Git repository
git init

# Install and configure Git LFS
git lfs install

# Create .gitattributes for UE5 binary files
cat > .gitattributes << 'EOF'
*.uasset filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.umap filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.png filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.jpg filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.wav filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.mp3 filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
*.fbx filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
EOF

# Track LFS files
git lfs track "*.uasset" "*.umap"

Perforce (Enterprise):

• Recommended for large teams (50+ people)
• Better binary file handling
• Stream-based workflows

Phase 3: Project Scaffolding

3.1 Project Templates

Unreal Engine provides several project templates:

3.2 Creating a C++ Project

# Generate project from template
# Using the Engine's command line tools

# Windows
"C:\Program Files\Epic Games\UE_5.5\Engine\Binaries\Win64\UnrealEditor-Cmd.exe" \
  -run=CreateProject \
  -ProjectName="MyGame" \
  -ProjectDir="C:\Projects\MyGame" \
  -Template="/Script/GameProjectGeneration.GameProjectTemplate_ThirdPerson" \
  -ProjectType="CPP"

3.3 Project Structure

MyGame/
├── Config/
│   ├── DefaultEngine.ini      # Engine settings (rendering, physics)
│   ├── DefaultGame.ini        # Game settings (project info, packaging)
│   ├── DefaultInput.ini       # Input mappings
│   ├── DefaultEditor.ini      # Editor preferences
│   └── DefaultGameplayTags.ini # Gameplay tags
├── Content/
│   ├── Abilities/             # GAS abilities and effects
│   ├── Animations/            # Animation assets
│   ├── Audio/                 # Sound effects and music
│   ├── Blueprints/            # Blueprint classes
│   ├── Characters/            # Character assets
│   ├── Effects/               # Niagara and materials
│   ├── Environments/          # Level assets
│   ├── Input/                 # Input actions and contexts
│   ├── Maps/                  # Level files
│   ├── Materials/             # Material instances
│   ├── Meshes/                # Static meshes
│   ├── Textures/              # Texture assets
│   └── UI/                    # UMG widgets
├── Source/
│   └── MyGame/
│       ├── MyGame.Build.cs    # Module build rules
│       ├── MyGame.Target.cs   # Game target config
│       ├── MyGameEditor.Target.cs # Editor target config
│       ├── Public/            # Header files
│       │   ├── MyGame.h
│       │   ├── Characters/
│       │   ├── Abilities/
│       │   ├── Controllers/
│       │   └── Subsystems/
│       └── Private/           # Implementation files
│           └── ...
├── Plugins/                   # Project plugins
├── MyGame.uproject           # Project file
└── .gitignore

3.4 Module Configuration

MyGame.Build.cs:

using UnrealBuildTool;

public class MyGame : ModuleRules
{
    public MyGame(ReadOnlyTargetRules Target) : base(Target)
    {
        PCHUsage = PCHUsageMode.UseExplicitOrSharedPCHs;

        // Core dependencies
        PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "Core",
            "CoreUObject",
            "Engine",
            "InputCore",
            "EnhancedInput",
            "UMG",
            "Slate",
            "SlateCore"
        });

        // Gameplay Ability System
        PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "GameplayAbilities",
            "GameplayTags",
            "GameplayTasks"
        });

        // AI
        PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "AIModule",
            "NavigationSystem"
        });

        // Visual Effects
        PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "Niagara"
        });

        // Networking (if multiplayer)
        PublicDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "NetCore",
            "OnlineSubsystem",
            "OnlineSubsystemUtils"
        });

        // Private dependencies
        PrivateDependencyModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] {
            "AnimGraphRuntime"
        });

        // Enable IWYU
        bEnforceIWYU = true;
    }
}

3.5 Target Configuration

MyGame.Target.cs:

using UnrealBuildTool;
using System.Collections.Generic;

public class MyGameTarget : TargetRules
{
    public MyGameTarget(TargetInfo Target) : base(Target)
    {
        Type = TargetType.Game;
        DefaultBuildSettings = BuildSettingsVersion.V5;
        IncludeOrderVersion = EngineIncludeOrderVersion.Unreal5_5;

        ExtraModuleNames.AddRange(new string[] { "MyGame" });

        // Build optimizations
        bUseLoggingInShipping = false;
        bUseChecksInShipping = false;
        bUseUnityBuild = true;

        // Enable Iris for advanced optimizations (optional)
        // bUseIris = true;
    }
}

Phase 4: Core Features Implementation

4.1 Character System

Base Character Class:

// MyGameCharacter.h
#pragma once

#include "CoreMinimal.h"
#include "GameFramework/Character.h"
#include "AbilitySystemInterface.h"
#include "MyGameCharacter.generated.h"

class UAbilitySystemComponent;
class UMyGameAttributeSet;
class USpringArmComponent;
class UCameraComponent;

UCLASS()
class MYGAME_API AMyGameCharacter : public ACharacter, public IAbilitySystemInterface
{
    GENERATED_BODY()