Catch up on the big news from Unreal Fest Seattle 2024
October 1, 2024
The Unreal Fest Seattle keynote just wrapped, where we celebrated our developer and creator ecosystem and the amazing things you’re building with Unreal Engine and Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN). Our goal is to put the same powerful tech we use to create games like Fortnite into your hands so we can all build the future of entertainment and interactive experiences together.
We also dropped some big news in the opening session: there are new Unreal Engine royalty rate savings when you ship eligible titles on the Epic Games Store on supported platforms; Unreal Engine 5.5 Preview 1 is now out and ready for you to explore; and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have burst from the sewers of NYC straight into Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN).
Read on for everything you need to know
We also dropped some big news in the opening session: there are new Unreal Engine royalty rate savings when you ship eligible titles on the Epic Games Store on supported platforms; Unreal Engine 5.5 Preview 1 is now out and ready for you to explore; and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have burst from the sewers of NYC straight into Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN).
Read on for everything you need to know
Introducing ‘Launch Everywhere with Epic’
With the huge pressure on margins across the game business, we’re improving our engine and store terms further to help you reach bigger audiences with more developer-friendly terms.
On January 1, 2025 we are introducing ‘Launch Everywhere with Epic’. Through this program we are offering a royalty rate reduction from 5% to 3.5% on all platforms and stores for eligible Unreal Engine games published on the Epic Games Store from 2025 onwards. You are eligible for this rate reduction if you ship your game on the Epic Games Store before or at the same time you release it on other stores on corresponding platforms you support (PC, Mac, Android, and in the future, iOS). This is inclusive of games participating in Epic First Run.
The royalty reduction will apply for all platforms and stores where you offer your games, including consoles. The royalty rate will revert to 5% if you offer your Unreal Engine game on another PC or Android store and do not offer it on the Epic Games Store for the corresponding platform.
To benefit when the program launches, you'll need to agree to the now updated Unreal Engine EULA.
We are temporarily waiving the requirement that you simultaneously ship your iOS games on the Epic Games Store on iPhones or iPads to receive the royalty rate reduction. This is because Apple currently imposes a commercially prohibitive ‘Core Technology Fee' on apps that ship on stores that compete with their store. If this changes, we will give licensees a minimum of four months notice.
More details on the royalty reduction will be shared ahead of January 1 so developers will have ample time to plan.
In other Epic Games Store news, Studio Wildcard revealed ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition, developed by Grove Street Games, will be coming to the Epic Games Store later this year on Android and iOS in the EU.
The royalty reduction will apply for all platforms and stores where you offer your games, including consoles. The royalty rate will revert to 5% if you offer your Unreal Engine game on another PC or Android store and do not offer it on the Epic Games Store for the corresponding platform.
To benefit when the program launches, you'll need to agree to the now updated Unreal Engine EULA.
We are temporarily waiving the requirement that you simultaneously ship your iOS games on the Epic Games Store on iPhones or iPads to receive the royalty rate reduction. This is because Apple currently imposes a commercially prohibitive ‘Core Technology Fee' on apps that ship on stores that compete with their store. If this changes, we will give licensees a minimum of four months notice.
More details on the royalty reduction will be shared ahead of January 1 so developers will have ample time to plan.
In other Epic Games Store news, Studio Wildcard revealed ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition, developed by Grove Street Games, will be coming to the Epic Games Store later this year on Android and iOS in the EU.
Unreal Engine 5.5 Preview 1 is out
In addition to introducing improved terms so you can keep more revenue, we’ve been busy working on tech to help you push the boundaries of high-fidelity 3D experiences and AAA-caliber content.
Unreal Engine 5.5 is another milestone on that journey, and we announced that Preview 1 is now available, with the full release coming out next month.
During today’s opening session, we gave a live demonstration of a new Experimental feature: MegaLights, which enables you to use orders of magnitude more lights than ever before—all movable, dynamic, with realistic area shadows and the ability to light volumetric fog. In the demo, our intrepid hero Echo navigated a scene illuminated by over 1,000 shadow-casting lights in real time running on PlayStation 5.
Unreal Engine 5.5 is another milestone on that journey, and we announced that Preview 1 is now available, with the full release coming out next month.
During today’s opening session, we gave a live demonstration of a new Experimental feature: MegaLights, which enables you to use orders of magnitude more lights than ever before—all movable, dynamic, with realistic area shadows and the ability to light volumetric fog. In the demo, our intrepid hero Echo navigated a scene illuminated by over 1,000 shadow-casting lights in real time running on PlayStation 5.
UE 5.5 also brings exciting rendering improvements: Nanite can now render Skeletal Meshes incredibly fast (currently an Experimental feature) and Path Tracer is Production-Ready. Path Tracer is already being used in feature films, including Piece by Piece, the Unreal Engine-animated biography of Pharrell Williams’ life that opens in theaters on October 11.
Animation authoring tools are more robust and easier to use in 5.5, with a Production-Ready Skeletal Editor, enhanced Deformers, and the addition of much-requested features like TimeWarp curves and Animation Layers. Virtual production tools have made big steps forward with Production-Ready SMPTE 2110 integration for in-camera VFX (ICVFX), multi-camera support, and inner frustum splitting.
We showcased many of these engine updates with a real-time demonstration of BMW’s new 5-Series. This true digital twin is made up of over 20,000 pieces that were imported into Unreal via the Datasmith CAD importer and visualized in rich detail using the Substrate material authoring system.
To support high-end games on mobile, UE 5.5 brings new features that include Mobile Preview functionality, enabling you to match device visuals and ensure players are getting the best possible experience for their device’s capabilities.
What’s more, with Fortnite now available on Android globally and iOS in Europe, we’ve been able to further optimize UE’s mobile performance and memory; battle-testing these capabilities on a game of Fortnite’s scale helps us improve the engine for all UE mobile game developers.
With 850,000 devs now actively using Unreal Engine to build projects each month, your community is continuing to grow and thrive. Check out the Epic Developer Community for learning resources and help with your projects.
Animation authoring tools are more robust and easier to use in 5.5, with a Production-Ready Skeletal Editor, enhanced Deformers, and the addition of much-requested features like TimeWarp curves and Animation Layers. Virtual production tools have made big steps forward with Production-Ready SMPTE 2110 integration for in-camera VFX (ICVFX), multi-camera support, and inner frustum splitting.
We showcased many of these engine updates with a real-time demonstration of BMW’s new 5-Series. This true digital twin is made up of over 20,000 pieces that were imported into Unreal via the Datasmith CAD importer and visualized in rich detail using the Substrate material authoring system.
To support high-end games on mobile, UE 5.5 brings new features that include Mobile Preview functionality, enabling you to match device visuals and ensure players are getting the best possible experience for their device’s capabilities.
What’s more, with Fortnite now available on Android globally and iOS in Europe, we’ve been able to further optimize UE’s mobile performance and memory; battle-testing these capabilities on a game of Fortnite’s scale helps us improve the engine for all UE mobile game developers.
With 850,000 devs now actively using Unreal Engine to build projects each month, your community is continuing to grow and thrive. Check out the Epic Developer Community for learning resources and help with your projects.
Fab Publishing Portal Open for All
We know you need more than an engine to build amazing games and experiences, which is why we’re launching Fab: our new universal marketplace designed to bring you everything you need to build real-time 3D experiences in a single destination.
Launching in mid-October, Fab will unify the Unreal Engine Marketplace, Sketchfab Store, ArtStation Marketplace, and Quixel.com to offer you a one-stop shop to discover, share, buy, and sell digital assets on a 88/12 revenue share that puts creators first.
We opened up the Fab Publishing Portal on September 17 so Unreal Engine Marketplace sellers could begin migrating their content to Fab. As of today, Sketchfab sellers can now migrate their licensable content to Fab and anyone can sign up to be a seller and begin uploading their content to the Publishing Portal.
Launching in mid-October, Fab will unify the Unreal Engine Marketplace, Sketchfab Store, ArtStation Marketplace, and Quixel.com to offer you a one-stop shop to discover, share, buy, and sell digital assets on a 88/12 revenue share that puts creators first.
We opened up the Fab Publishing Portal on September 17 so Unreal Engine Marketplace sellers could begin migrating their content to Fab. As of today, Sketchfab sellers can now migrate their licensable content to Fab and anyone can sign up to be a seller and begin uploading their content to the Publishing Portal.
First-Person Camera Mode and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles tools land in UEFN
We also shared some exciting announcements for Fortnite creators. The Fortnite ecosystem continues to grow with over 134,000 islands published with UEFN and $479 million dollars paid out to creators since launch in March 2023.
We’ve been blown away by the incredible experiences you’ve built and are providing more opportunities to expand into new genres—including first-person shooter games. The First-Person Camera Mode device is now available as an Experimental release, so you can try it out today and publish your islands when the feature enters Beta later this year.
We’re also bringing another fan-favorite IP to Fortnite to spark your creativity in developing new types of games. Now, in addition to being able to build Fortnite experiences using LEGO Elements, Fall Guys beans, and Rocket Racing tracks, you can also create your own mean, green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) islands thanks to an exciting new collaboration with Paramount. Creators will be able to use TMNT templates, weapons, devices, Prefabs, Galleries, and bad guy NPCs to build the ultimate classic arcade experience.
To publish your TMNT islands, you’ll need to opt into additional terms and conditions in the Creator Portal; if you’ve already opted into the terms and conditions to publish LEGO® islands, you don’t need to re-sign. You’ll also need to make sure your island adheres to the TMNT Brand and Creator rules. Jump in and start building today—you can publish your TMNT islands starting November 13!
We’ve been blown away by the incredible experiences you’ve built and are providing more opportunities to expand into new genres—including first-person shooter games. The First-Person Camera Mode device is now available as an Experimental release, so you can try it out today and publish your islands when the feature enters Beta later this year.
We’re also bringing another fan-favorite IP to Fortnite to spark your creativity in developing new types of games. Now, in addition to being able to build Fortnite experiences using LEGO Elements, Fall Guys beans, and Rocket Racing tracks, you can also create your own mean, green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) islands thanks to an exciting new collaboration with Paramount. Creators will be able to use TMNT templates, weapons, devices, Prefabs, Galleries, and bad guy NPCs to build the ultimate classic arcade experience.
To publish your TMNT islands, you’ll need to opt into additional terms and conditions in the Creator Portal; if you’ve already opted into the terms and conditions to publish LEGO® islands, you don’t need to re-sign. You’ll also need to make sure your island adheres to the TMNT Brand and Creator rules. Jump in and start building today—you can publish your TMNT islands starting November 13!
More resources come to the Epic Developer Community
Today, we’re expanding our community and launching an all-new Epic for Indies hub with dedicated resources to throw our support behind small and emerging developers with big ambitions.
You can access the new site for independent game developers within the Epic Developer Community to learn about all of the new perks, get to know each other, and share your knowledge and ideas there. In addition to the forum, be sure to check out the learning library with tutorials.
You can access the new site for independent game developers within the Epic Developer Community to learn about all of the new perks, get to know each other, and share your knowledge and ideas there. In addition to the forum, be sure to check out the learning library with tutorials.
Unreal Engine momentum across industries
Unreal Fest is all about spotlighting the mind-blowing experiences built using Unreal Engine and UEFN, and we were joined on stage by some of the most talented technology partners, game developers, and filmmakers out there.
- Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. revealed a new HMI solution that combines the power of Unreal Engine with Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon Cockpit Platform to provide a turnkey, out-of-the-box solution for auto manufacturers to achieve best-in-class in-vehicle user experiences.
- Mainframe Industries Co-Founders Thor Gunnarson and Sulka Haro gave us a new look at Pax Dei, the social sandbox massively multiplayer online game that takes inspiration from medieval Europe.
- Anna Donlon, SVP and Head of Riot Games’ VALORANT Studios, took us through how they moved to Unreal Engine and built new IP from the ground up.
- Directors Tim Miller (Deadpool; Love, Death + Robots) of Blur Studio and Wes Ball (Maze Runner, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) joined our CTO Kim Libreri onstage to talk about where filmmakers are taking real-time technology next.
- Ben Grossmann, CEO of Magnopus, gave an inspiring talk that touched on Metallica’s Fuel Fire Fury Fortnite experience built entirely with UEFN; Karol G’s Fortnite Festival experience; and how his team uses Unreal Engine for virtual production of the Fallout TV series on Prime Video.
See you in Orlando for 2025
We’re so grateful to the developers and creators who are on this journey with us and we love bringing the community together for Unreal Fests around the world.
Next year’s flagship Unreal Fest will take place in Orlando, Florida—so clear your calendars for June 2–5. We’d love to see you there!
Next year’s flagship Unreal Fest will take place in Orlando, Florida—so clear your calendars for June 2–5. We’d love to see you there!
Want to watch Epic sessions from Unreal Fest Seattle?
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