UnrealEd

UnrealEd ( Unreal Editor , or UEd in summary) is a Logiciel allowing the creation of chart of play ( map in English) for the plays of the series '' Unreal '', and of the plays based on the engine UnrealEngine , such Deus Ex . Epic Games was among the first developers to include an editor of levels free in their plays. This license the creation of many communities of model making and the creation of a vast quantity of charts for the plays including UnrealEd . Moreover, the play incorporates a Langage of script, UnrealScript , which makes it possible to the modellers to parameterize the levels beyond model making (development of automatisms, modification of the properties of decorations and the weapons, etc). This software thus makes it possible to increase the longevity of the plays with which it is delivered, since communities the complete ones constantly with new charts.

This software is free (with obligation of purchase of the play) and represents a reference as regards Level design . Platform common to a great number of projects, it federates a great community of creators of charts. Indeed, the system of creation of the charts of play became a base with all the editors of level of play FPS ( First Persson Shooter or Jeu of subjective shooting) also called “Doom-like” or “Quake-like”. The engine dUnrealEd allows the creation of levels high level of polygons, the integration of scripts and animated sequences of type Machinima thanks to the Matinée tool, and makes it possible to compile the levels in a few minutes (less than one half an hour for very large charts).

Versions

UnrealEd underwent several updates because of many the opus of the '' series Unreal '', which resulted in a multitude of versions. Unreal was delivered with UnrealEd 1.0, which proposed many functionalities of edition for the time. However, this version suffered from many bugs, in particular during the compilation of the charts.

Unreal Tournament was delivered with UnrealEd 1.0, but the new version UnrealEd 2.0 was added later with a corrective . The graphical interface of the software lost colors, the buttons raising from now on a dull coloring green. New functionalities were added (such as research tools and new the 2D Shape Editor ) and its largely improved stability, although some crashes unexplainable still remained.

Unreal Tournament 2003 was delivered with UnrealEd 3, a very stable version of the software. The graphical interface is identical to that of the previous model.

The future versions of UnrealEd will ensure a upward compatibility complete with the charts created for the previous models.

UnrealEd was also adapted for other plays, such Deus Ex . That means that in addition to the versions based on the series Unreal , UnrealEd exists in specific versions to each play based on the UnrealEngine . Certain editors decided to distribute them also the software with their play, in the form of SDK.

Interface

The user interface of UnrealEd presents a vertical bar of buttons, a horizontal bar of menus, an interface in line of order and four views of the chart. The left vertical bar makes it possible to model the chart, the menus of top make it possible to configure the properties of the chart and the line of order makes it possible to carry out instructions nonavailable on the two bars.

The four sights post representations of the chart. Each sight can post the chart according to a different mode:

seen telegraphic in prospect,
seen telegraphic projected in plan (X, there or Z),
seen in made normal,
seen in made normal with assumption of responsibility of the light effects,
posting of the zones,
posting of the BSP,
posting of the types of texture (each texture is replaced by a primary color; allows to see the occurrences and repetitions).

Operation

UnrealEd rests on the concept of the brushes . The brushes can be primitive forms (cubic, spheres and cones), predefined forms (a such portion of staircase) or personalized forms (resulting from the fusion of several primitive forms). It should be noted that a primitive form is segmented on several surfaces, which means that sphere will be never but one polyhedron. By the means of operations CGS ( CSG in English), complex modelings can be realized by adding, withdrawing and intersecting brushes . The brushes additive can be solid, semi-solid (not cutting BSP) or not-solids (used for the gates and certain decorations), which varies the possibilities of construction.

UnrealEd regards the environment 3D as a mass without limits. To create space, brushes must be withdrawn (excavated) of the mass. Reciprocally, the addition of a brush (embossing) makes it possible to fill the holes. A chart is built starting from brushes added and withdrawn. Thus, to create a building, it is initially necessary to withdraw a cube for the external environment, to add a cube for the building, then to withdraw from all parts which compose it, before adding all its components (offices, chairs, doors, lamps,…). UnrealEd is thus an editor based on the subtraction, unlike the editors based on the addition, such Quake and Quake II . However, each type of editor has his own advantages and disadvantages.

The brushes can be still declined in three varieties: the static brushes , which form the environment 3D, the dynamic brushes and the brushes of gate. A dynamic brush is by definition a brush whose position according to the three axes (X, there, Z) is variable. Such a brush is named mover , and is employed for the dynamic elevators, doors, mechanisms or any other application requiring a rotation and/or translatory movement. It can be also used to parameterize certain sound events, when the function (the actor) dedicated is not able to do it. A brush of gate, called Zone Portal , makes it possible “to cut out” a chart to specify the zones with the particular physical properties: weak gravity outside a spaceship, liquid zone for the swimming pools, propulsion for the strong drafts, fog, snow, etc In this manner, a large variety of natural environments (or unrealistic persons) can beings created.

Once finished modeling, the brushes are compiled according to a tree BSP, for returned textures and the detection of the collisions. Unfortunately, more one chart is complex and more it is inclined with errors BSP, which causes errors of posting and calculation of collisions. There exist several forms of errors BSP, of which most current are the “holes BSP” and the effects “ HoM ”. In the case of “holes BSP”, the cutting of a zone is too strong and a partition can be “forgotten” by the engine; the player can is to see through a piece of wall or ceiling, to pass through the hole, to be blocked by an invisible obstacle, to die without reason when it goes above or to see an effect HoM . An effect HoM (of English Hall off Mirrors ) occurs at the time of an error BSP, and no texture is posted on the partition. When an image (frame) must be posted with the screen, it is superimposed on the preceding one. However, when an effect HoM is generated, no image can be superimposed since there is no texture, which causes the posting of the preceding frames. For this reason the static meshes were introduced into the UnrealEngine 2 , of decorations of which the process of posting is independent of architecture BSP.

The static meshes are precalculated forms, created with software like Maya or 3D Studio max and imported in the charts. These forms make it possible to decorate the environment easily, without passing by the intersection of a multitude of brushes (what thus makes it possible to reduce the risk of error BSP). A static mesh also has the characteristic to be charged in memory only in one specimen, even if it is present in several specimens in the chart, from where a considerable profit of memory. It should be noted that Unreal Tournament 3 will be exclusively made up of static meshes .

According to an false idea, generally widespread, to build complex structures starting from a multitude small static meshes (rather than in only one piece) makes it possible to gain in memory. Actually, this practice leads to a greater consumption of memory, since more polygons must be drawn, which means more calculations and of setting in memory of images by frame.

Use of UnrealEd in architecture

With an aim of testing projects of buildings, architects adopted UnrealEd . That enables them to build models and to test their ideas. By presenting these virtual models to the public, of the improvements answering waitings can be added before passing to real construction. A problem persists however: that of the conversion of the size of the elements coming from software such AutoCAD and 3D Studio max.

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