Unreal Engine 5.2 - Next-Gen Graphics Tech Demo | State of Unreal 2023 | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

Unreal Engine showcases new features, including foliage rendering, physics simulation, real-time fluid simulation, and introduces substrate material framework and procedural content generation tools.

Key Insights

• 👶 Unreal Engine's new features enhance foliage rendering, physics simulation, and real-time fluid simulation, providing more realistic and immersive environments.
• 🤩 Nanite technology enables rendering highly detailed models in real-time, as demonstrated with the R1T truck model from Rivian.
• 👻 The substrate material framework allows artists to create complex materials with different shading models, enhancing visual quality in cinematics and film.
• 🤗 Procedural content generation tools offer flexibility, determinism, and enable artists to quickly create diverse and customizable environments, working in synergy with hand-built content.
• 🫰 The demonstrated content showcases the scalability of Unreal Engine, with a 4km x 4km environment that combines hand-built and procedural elements.
• 🧑‍🎨 Unreal Engine aims to provide artists with the freedom to create expressive and detailed materials, while still maintaining comparable performance to current shading models.
• 🛟 The collaboration with Rivian exemplifies the versatility of Unreal Engine, serving industries beyond gaming, such as automotive visualization and instrument cluster development.

Transcript

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Questions & Answers

Q: What features did Unreal Engine add to support foliage rendering?

Unreal Engine added physics simulation for rocks, bending leaves, and real-time fluid simulation. They also collaborated with Rivian to simulate the suspension and motor sounds of the R1T truck.

Q: How does substrate improve the materials in Unreal Engine?

Substrate is a new material framework that allows artists to create realistic materials with iridescence, refraction, and reflections. It enables layering and composition of materials with different shading models, resulting in highly detailed and expressive visuals.

Q: What are the benefits of the procedural content generation tools in Unreal Engine?

The procedural content generation tools empower artists to quickly create larger play spaces and make sweeping changes to environments. They are flexible, deterministic, and allow for iterative game design, offering customizable and artist-driven solutions.

Q: What are the system requirements for running the demonstrated content in the Unreal Editor?

The demonstrated content runs in real-time on a developer machine with an Intel 13900k CPU and Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU. These specifications ensure smooth performance and rendering capabilities.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Unreal Engine added new features to support foliage rendering in Fortnite Chapter 4, including physics simulation, real-time fluid simulation, and immersive sounds.

• The engine collaborated with Rivian to create a realistic 3D visualization of the R1T truck using nanite, lumen, and substrate material framework.

• The demonstration explores procedural content generation tools that empower artists to create dynamic and customizable environments.