Unleashing the Power of Unreal Engine 5 in “Alpha Point” | GDC 2021
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- The Coalition: A First-Party Microsoft Game Studio
- The Legacy of Gears of War and Unreal Engine
- Expanding with Xbox Game Studios
- Gears of War on Xbox 360: A Visual and Technical Showcase
- The Coalition and the Next Generation of Consoles
- Pushing the Boundaries with Gears 4 and Gears 5
- Looking Towards the Future with Unreal Engine 5
- Optimizing Unreal Engine 5 for Generation 9
- The Alpha Point UE5 Demo: Unlocking Artist Potential
- High Polygon Modeling and Texturing Workflows
- The New Base Material and Texture Pipeline
- Creating and Modifying Engine in UE5
- Performance and Memory Considerations with Nanite
- The Power of Lumen in Gears 4 and Gears 5
- Virtual Shadow Maps for Real-Time Shadows
- Temporal Super Resolution and Upscaling Techniques
- Performance and Visual Quality with TSR
- Real-Time Reflections with Lumen
- Innovations in Decals and Detail Mapping
- Paintable Volume Fog and Atmospherics
- Layered Materials and Material Layer Painting
- Leveraging Virtual Textures for Higher Resolution
- Tiling Grounds and Walls with Nanite
- GPU Performance and Optimizations
- Memory Usage and Optimization Strategies
- Conclusions and Excitement for the Future
Highlights:
- The Coalition's partnership with Xbox Game Studios and Unreal Engine
- The legacy of Gears of War and its impact on the industry
- The transition to Unreal Engine 5 and the future of Gears of War
- The Alpha Point UE5 Demo and its showcase of artist potential
- High polygon modeling and texturing workflows for next-gen graphics
- Performance considerations and optimizations with Nanite and Lumen
- The benefits of virtual shadow maps and temporal super resolution
- Real-time reflections, decals, and volumetric effects in UE5
- Leveraging virtual textures and tiling techniques for efficiency
- GPU performance and memory usage on Xbox Series X and S
Article
Introduction
In the world of gaming, few franchises have had as much impact as Gears of War. Developed by The Coalition, a first-party Microsoft game studio, Gears of War has become synonymous with cutting-edge graphics and technical innovation. From its early beginnings on the Xbox 360 to its evolution on the latest generation of consoles, Gears of War has consistently pushed the boundaries of what is possible in terms of visuals and gameplay.
In this article, we will Delve into the world of The Coalition and explore the Journey of Gears of War from its early days to the present. We will also take a closer look at the technologies and game engines that have made Gears of War a visual and technical showcase, including the Unreal Engine and its latest iteration, Unreal Engine 5.
The Coalition: A First-Party Microsoft Game Studio
The Coalition is a first-party Microsoft game studio that has been responsible for developing and maintaining the Gears of War franchise since 2014. As part of Xbox Game Studios, The Coalition has had the opportunity to work alongside some of the greatest game developers and game franchises in the industry.
With the recent acquisition of Bethesda Studios, The Coalition is now a part of an even larger family of game developers and has access to even more incredible franchises and talented individuals. This collaboration has allowed The Coalition to Continue pushing the boundaries of what is possible in gaming and Create industry-defining experiences.
The Legacy of Gears of War and Unreal Engine
Gears of War has a long history with the Unreal Engine, known for its visual and technical capabilities. The partnership between Gears of War and Unreal Engine dates back to the Xbox 360 era when Epic Games, the creator of the Unreal Engine, utilized the power of the Xbox 360 to deliver a visual showcase that was beyond anything anyone had seen at the time. This partnership continued with the transition to the next generation of consoles, with Gears of War coming internally to Microsoft and The Coalition being given the opportunity to shepherd the franchise onto the new consoles with the power of Unreal Engine 4.
Gears of War on Unreal Engine 4 was a significant milestone for The Coalition and allowed them to continue the legacy of Gears of War as a visual and technical showcase. The enhanced graphical capabilities and features of Unreal Engine 4, coupled with the power of the Xbox One, Xbox One S, and Xbox One X, enabled The Coalition to push the game to new visual standards. With features such as 60 frames per Second, HDR, and cross-platform play, Gears of War on Unreal Engine 4 set a new standard for visual fidelity and gameplay.
Expanding with Xbox Game Studios
Over the years, Xbox Game Studios has expanded its portfolio by acquiring talented developers and iconic game franchises. One of the most significant acquisitions in recent times is the addition of Bethesda Studios to Xbox Game Studios. This acquisition brings with it a wealth of incredible franchises and game developers that will now be able to collaborate with The Coalition.
The collaboration between The Coalition and Bethesda Studios is an exciting prospect for fans of both companies. It opens the door to future collaborations and the potential for new and innovative experiences in the Gears of War Universe. With the resources and expertise of Xbox Game Studios and the talented developers at The Coalition, the future looks bright for Gears of War and its fans.
Gears of War on Xbox 360: A Visual and Technical Showcase
Gears of War's early days on the Xbox 360 were a testament to the power of the Unreal Engine and the technical capabilities of the console. The game utilized Unreal Engine 3 to deliver a visual and technical showcase that wowed players and set a new standard for graphics in console gaming.
The combination of the Unreal Engine's capabilities and the power of the Xbox 360 allowed Epic Games to demonstrate the full potential of the engine and deliver an experience that was visually stunning and technically impressive. The game's graphics, lighting, and effects were unparalleled at the time, and the gameplay mechanics, such as the cover system and the cooperative gameplay, added a new layer of depth to the third-person shooter genre.
Gears of War on the Xbox 360 was not only a visual and technical showcase but also a "killer app" for the console. It became one of the must-have titles for Xbox 360 owners and helped solidify the console's position as a powerhouse in the gaming industry.
The Coalition and the Next Generation of Consoles
With the transition to the next generation of consoles, The Coalition had the opportunity to take Gears of War to new heights. The introduction of the Xbox One, Xbox One S, and Xbox One X brought with it enhanced graphical capabilities and features that allowed The Coalition to deliver an even more visually stunning and technically impressive experience.
Gears of War 4 on Unreal Engine 4 was a significant milestone for The Coalition and the franchise. The game showcased the full power of the Xbox One, Xbox One S, and Xbox One X, delivering a 60 frames per second experience with HDR and new graphical features. The game also marked the return of Gears of War to Windows, with cross-platform play enabling players on different platforms to challenge each other.
Gears of War 5, the latest iteration of the franchise, continued the tradition of pushing the hardware and the capabilities of Unreal Engine 4. The game leveraged the latest innovations in Unreal Engine 4 and added native support for the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. With features such as 120 frames per second in multiplayer, 4K HDR rendering, and new graphical enhancements like variable-rate shading and screen space global illumination, Gears of War 5 raised the bar for visual fidelity and gameplay in the series.
Looking Towards the Future with Unreal Engine 5
In the ever-evolving landscape of game development, staying at the forefront of technology is crucial. The Coalition recently announced its partnership with Epic Games to explore the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 for future projects. Unreal Engine 5 is poised to be a game-changer in terms of visual fidelity and technological advancements, and The Coalition is excited to be part of the journey.
Unreal Engine 5 offers a foundation for a new generation of games at The Coalition. The studio aims to optimize the engine and ensure it is fully compatible with the next-generation Xbox consoles, including Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. This optimization process involves closely collaborating with Epic Games to provide feedback, test the engine's capabilities, and ensure it meets the specific needs of The Coalition's internal titles.
While it is still early in the process, The Coalition has already seen promising results with Unreal Engine 5. The studio is impressed with the visual potential and the empowering capabilities the engine offers to their artists and workflow. However, it is important to remember that Unreal Engine 5 is still in its early stages, and there is still much more to explore and optimize.
Optimizing Unreal Engine 5 for Generation 9
As The Coalition looks towards the future, optimizing Unreal Engine 5 for Generation 9 (referring to the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S) is a priority. This optimization process involves several steps to ensure the engine is fully optimized for Xbox and Microsoft platforms and meets the specific needs of The Coalition's internal titles.
The optimization process includes analyzing performance and memory utilization, identifying areas for improvement and efficiency, and fine-tuning various aspects of the engine to achieve the best possible performance and visual fidelity. This process is a collaborative effort between The Coalition and Epic Games, as both teams work together to tweak and optimize the engine for Generation 9.
While it is still early in the optimization process, The Coalition is excited about the potential of Unreal Engine 5 and the opportunities it presents for creating even more visually stunning and technically impressive games on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. The studio is working closely with Epic Games to ensure that the engine is fully optimized for the next generation of consoles and that it meets the high standards set by The Coalition and its fans.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo: Unlocking Artist Potential
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo, titled "Unlocking Artist Potential," showcases the power and capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 and highlights the creative possibilities it offers to artists. The demo, presented by Colin Penty, the Studio Technical Art Director at The Coalition, showcases a new base material and texture pipeline, as well as the implementation of convolution bloom and a visual FX G-Buffer with Niagara Read-back.
The demo focuses on high polygon modeling and texturing workflows and explores the ability to modify the engine and gauge its flexibility. It also serves as a platform to evaluate the performance and memory utilization of Unreal Engine 5, particularly in relation to the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo is a testament to the immense potential of Unreal Engine 5 and its ability to empower artists and push the boundaries of visual fidelity. It provides a glimpse into the future of game development and showcases the possibilities available to developers and artists working with the engine.
High Polygon Modeling and Texturing Workflows
One of the key aspects of the Alpha Point UE5 Demo is the focus on high polygon modeling and texturing workflows. This involves creating detailed and intricate models with a high number of polygons and applying high-resolution textures to these models.
The demo highlights the time-consuming nature of high polygon modeling and the need for upfront planning and Attention to detail. It emphasizes the importance of reusing assets, creating kitbashable components, and using concept art to guide the modeling process. It also emphasizes the significance of Scale and the challenges of correcting scale issues after the fact.
In terms of texturing workflows, the demo showcases the use of Substance, Photoshop, and Mixer to create base textures. It also emphasizes the importance of baking out unique maps such as AO, cavity, and curvature maps to add further detail to the models.
Overall, the demo demonstrates the complexity and intricacy involved in high polygon modeling and texturing workflows. It highlights the need for careful planning, attention to detail, and the use of specialized tools to achieve the desired level of quality and realism in game assets.
The New Base Material and Texture Pipeline
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo introduces a new base material and texture pipeline, which provides an enhanced and streamlined workflow for creating materials and textures in Unreal Engine 5.
The new pipeline allows for up to four material layers and provides the ability to change the Blend mode per layer. It also incorporates clear naming conventions and guidelines to ensure consistency and ease of use. The pipeline leverages both per-layer and macro detail functions to create complex and visually stunning materials.
In terms of texture creation, the demo showcases the use of the TCTextureToolkit, a custom tool that streamlines the process of managing textures and materials. The TCTextureToolkit allows for easy setup of texture references, metadata, and interfaces and automatically interfaces with Perforce for version control.
The new base material and texture pipeline introduced in the Alpha Point UE5 Demo represents a significant advancement in material and texture creation workflows. It provides artists with a powerful set of tools and features to create high-quality and visually stunning materials and textures in Unreal Engine 5.
Creating and Modifying Engine in UE5
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo also explores the ability to create and modify the engine in Unreal Engine 5. This involves making changes to the engine's source code and gauging its flexibility and performance.
The demo showcases two specific modifications made to the engine for the purposes of the demo. Firstly, convolution bloom was added specifically for Xbox and optimized to reduce its performance impact. This addition allowed for enhanced visual effects and improved image quality.
Secondly, a visual FX G-Buffer with Niagara read-back was implemented to provide additional visual effects capabilities. The G-Buffer allowed for the creation of custom visual effects data and its consumption in Niagara, further enhancing the runtime capabilities of the engine.
The ability to create and modify the engine in Unreal Engine 5 opens up a world of possibilities for developers and artists. It allows for the creation of unique and custom features, optimizations, and visual effects that can take games to new heights of visual fidelity and immersion.
Performance and Memory Considerations with Nanite
Nanite is a groundbreaking technology introduced in Unreal Engine 5 that allows for the rendering of massive amounts of geometry with unprecedented detail and fidelity. It represents a paradigm shift in game development, enabling artists to create incredibly detailed environments and assets without worrying about performance or polygon budgets.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo explores the performance and memory considerations associated with Nanite and provides insights into how to optimize its usage for maximum efficiency.
The demo emphasizes the consistency and predictability of Nanite's performance, regardless of scene complexity. It highlights how Nanite achieves this by dynamically streaming geometry Based on on-screen visibility, resulting in optimal performance and minimal memory usage.
In terms of memory considerations, the demo showcases a memory overview of the scene and provides details on the static meshes and their memory usage. It demonstrates that while Nanite does utilize memory resources, its memory footprint is relatively small compared to the overall scene.
The demo also identifies potential optimizations for Nanite, such as LOD settings and texture resolution management, to further improve performance and memory usage.
The Power of Lumen in Gears 4 and Gears 5
Lumen is a revolutionary real-time global illumination system introduced in Unreal Engine 5. It allows for accurate and dynamic lighting and shadows, resulting in more realistic and immersive environments.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo highlights the power of Lumen in the Context of Gears 4 and Gears 5. It showcases the realism and visual quality that Lumen brings to these games, such as dynamic shadowing, self-reflections, and improved lighting fidelity.
The demo also explores the performance and visual quality trade-offs associated with using Lumen. It provides insights into optimizations and enhancements that can be made to improve Lumen's performance on both Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Overall, Lumen represents a significant step forward in real-time lighting technology and has the potential to revolutionize the way games are visually rendered. Its inclusion in Unreal Engine 5 further enhances the artistic capabilities of developers and allows for the creation of more immersive and visually stunning experiences.
Virtual Shadow Maps for Real-Time Shadows
Virtual shadow maps are a feature in Unreal Engine 5 that enable the rendering of real-time shadows with high precision and detail. They allow for the accurate representation of shadowing in a scene, adding depth and realism to the visuals.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo highlights the power of virtual shadow maps by showcasing their impact on shadow rendering in the environment. It demonstrates the real-time updates and the fidelity of the shadowing, creating a more immersive and believable world.
The demo also touches upon performance considerations associated with virtual shadow maps, particularly in relation to the size and number of shadow casters. It emphasizes the need for optimization techniques to ensure smooth performance and memory utilization.
Virtual shadow maps are a valuable addition to Unreal Engine 5 and provide developers with a powerful tool for enhancing the visual quality and realism of their games. By accurately rendering real-time shadows, virtual shadow maps contribute to the overall immersion and visual fidelity of the environment.
Temporal Super Resolution and Upscaling Techniques
Temporal super resolution (TSR) is a technique used in Unreal Engine 5 to enhance the visual quality of a scene by leveraging temporal information and upscaling techniques. TSR works by analyzing the previous frames and generating a higher-resolution output based on the accumulated information.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo explores the use of TSR and its impact on performance and visual quality. It showcases the benefits of TSR in delivering higher-resolution visuals and overcoming the limitations of lower input resolutions.
The demo also highlights the performance considerations associated with TSR, including its impact on GPU performance and the need for optimization to achieve optimal results. It provides insights into potential optimizations and enhancements that can be made to further improve TSR performance on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
TSR is a valuable technique for game developers, as it allows for the creation of visually stunning experiences without sacrificing performance. By leveraging temporal information and upscaling techniques, TSR enables developers to achieve higher-resolution visuals and enhance the overall visual quality of their games.
Real-Time Reflections with Lumen
One of the standout features of Unreal Engine 5 is its real-time reflection system, powered by Lumen. This system allows for the rendering of accurate and dynamic reflections in real-time, enhancing the visual fidelity and realism of the environment.
The Alpha Point UE5 Demo showcases the power of real-time reflections with Lumen by demonstrating their impact on the visuals. It highlights the quality and realism of the reflections, showing how they contribute to the overall immersion and visual fidelity of the scene.
The demo also touches upon performance considerations associated with real-time reflections, such as the variable cost dependent on the size on screen and the performance impact during camera cuts. It discusses optimization techniques and potential enhancements that can be made to improve