Unreal Engine
News, coverage and analysis tracking Unreal Engine across the outlets.
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Valve Shoots Self in Foot Over AI Stance as Epic Doubles Down
Valve and Epic Games have contrasting approaches to artificial intelligence in game development. Valve maintains a hands-off policy for Steam, focusing on discovery rather than policing AI tools, while Epic Games is actively integrating AI into Unreal Engine development and its own production processes, viewing it as a tool to accelerate development and improve efficiency.
"We are more concerned about the risks of moving too slowly": Epic get more specific about genAI use in Unreal Engine and Fortnite development
Epic Games is actively integrating generative AI into the development of Unreal Engine and Fortnite, according to executive vice president Marcus Wassmer. Tools like Claude Code and Codex are being used to eliminate bugs, compress shaders, and refactor code, significantly speeding up development cycles. Epic prioritizes rapid adoption of AI over skepticism, aiming to maintain a competitive edge in the industry.
GameMaker's GMRT runtime will soon be free for all developers
GameMaker, owned by Opera, will make its GMRT runtime free for all developers starting January 1, 2027, removing the need for professional licenses to ship games on PC, mobile, and browser platforms. This move aims to increase accessibility for indie game development. The announcement comes amidst industry-wide shifts in game engine business models, with competitors like Unity and Epic Games also exploring new features and pricing strategies.
Epic AI MegaJam Sparks Backlash Over AI Direction
Epic Games' announcement of its AI MegaJam, which encourages developers to use AI extensively in game creation, has sparked significant backlash from the development community. Critics argue that Epic is misrepresenting the capabilities of AI and disrespecting the established practices of game jams and rapid prototyping. The event, despite initially requiring AI use, now lists it as optional but still promotes AI-assisted development heavily.
Epic Games claims its new "vibe coded" launcher runs 46% faster than Steam from cold start to store page
Epic Games has released a beta version of its new launcher, claiming it is 46% faster than Steam from a cold start to the store page. The company stated that AI was used as a tool in its development process to improve efficiency and speed up the rewrite of the codebase. This move follows reports of Epic shifting to an 'AI-first' production model, leading to delays in a Disney collaboration.
Epic throws shade at Steam, admits to vibe-coding the new Epic Games Launcher with AI "to be faster than the other guy"
Epic Games has developed a new version of its PC launcher using generative AI, aiming to make it faster than Valve's Steam platform. While acknowledging potential bugs, Epic is encouraging user feedback. This move is part of a broader company push towards an "AI first" development pipeline, which may also influence Unreal Engine.
Epic Games Confirmes AI Embracing as New Norm
Epic Games is undergoing a significant organizational shift to "maximum AI acceleration," according to CEO Tim Sweeney. The company aims to leverage AI to enable its developers to create more and better content, with similar benefits intended for studios using Unreal Engine. This move includes an "AI-first" development model for some projects, potentially involving AI-generated code and artwork, though Epic emphasizes human oversight.
Epic Games undergoes "huge pivot" for "maximum AI acceleration" amid reports of Disney shooter delay…
Epic Games is reportedly delaying a Disney extraction shooter to pivot towards AI-accelerated development, instructing teams to use generative AI for art and code. CEO Tim Sweeney confirmed a "huge pivot" to maximize AI acceleration across the company, aiming to enable developers to build more and better content using Unreal Engine. This shift has drawn criticism, especially following recent layoffs.
Tim Sweeney says Epic Games 'aims to survive AI revolution' with AI pivot
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney announced a significant pivot towards artificial intelligence, aiming to "survive the AI revolution" by retooling developers for "maximum AI acceleration." The company intends to leverage AI to enable teams using Unreal Engine to create more and better content faster. This move aligns with broader industry trends, as companies like Google and Netflix are also integrating generative AI into their operations.
Google and Unity unveil gen-AI game-making platforms, and demonstrate one of them with depressingly rubbish "dream game" Space Corridor
Google and Unity have announced new generative AI platforms, Playground and Unity Spark respectively, aimed at simplifying game creation through text prompts. While Playground is positioned as an entry-level tool, Unity Spark integrates with the existing Unity engine for more complex development. The announcement has been met with skepticism from some game developers who view these tools as potentially lowering the quality and creativity of game development.
After leaving Epic Games last month, its former 'Unreal evangelist' is now building his own game engine
Former Epic Games "Unreal evangelist" Sjoerd De Jong has co-founded a new company, Immens Engine, to develop a game engine intended as an alternative to Unreal Engine and Unity. De Jong believes the dominance of existing engines has led to stagnation and aims to create a modern engine from the ground up, with a particular focus on accommodating AI integration. The team also includes former Epic technical director Arjan Brussee.
Report contradicts Microsoft's statements that id Software hasn't been shoved onto Unreal from id Tech: 'It's most likely going to end up in the in the trash can'
A report contradicts Microsoft's statements regarding id Software's engine development, suggesting that the id Tech engine is likely to be abandoned following significant layoffs. An id Software worker claims that the removal of key personnel responsible for maintaining id Tech makes it improbable for the studio to develop future games using it, despite Microsoft's assurances that the engine is still actively supported.
EVE Online studio Fenris follows through on yearslong promise to make its in-house game engine fully open source
Fenris Creations, the studio behind EVE Online, has fully open-sourced its in-house Carbon Engine, making its repositories available on GitHub. This move fulfills a long-standing promise and contrasts with the industry trend towards proprietary engines like Unreal Engine. The engine powers EVE Online and EVE Frontier, while Fenris's new FPS project, EVE Vanguard, uses Unreal Engine.
Jobs roundup: July 2026 | Chris Chung joins Neowiz as head of global business group
Several key personnel changes have occurred across the gaming industry. Chris Chung joins Neowiz as head of global business group, Dylan Beale is the new studio head at Larian Guildford, and Jonnie Bryant becomes communications director at Team17. Other notable moves include Robert Henrysson stepping down as CEO of Supermassive Games and Nicholas Penwarden departing Epic Games after 15 years.
Senior Unreal Engine engineer Nicholas Penwarden leaves Epic Games after 15 years
Nicholas Penwarden, an Engineering Fellow at Epic Games, has departed the company after a 15-year tenure. Penwarden, who began his career at Epic in 2011 as a senior engine programmer for Unreal Engine, announced his exit via a LinkedIn post.
Former Unreal Engine 'evangelist' and level design legend Sjoerd De Jong leaves Epic Games
Sjoerd De Jong, a prominent Unreal Engine expert and former lead evangelist at Epic Games, has departed the company after 12 years. De Jong, who has a history with Unreal Engine dating back to his teenage years modding the original game, cited a desire to move forward in the ever-changing games industry as his reason for leaving.
Epic's Unreal Engine Rolls Out Major Update, Lumen Lite Mode Now Available For Switch 2
Epic Games has released Unreal Engine 5.8, introducing a new 'Lumen Lite' mode for its dynamic global illumination system. This feature is designed to significantly reduce GPU costs, making it viable for platforms like the Nintendo Switch 2, where it can enable 60 fps performance. The update also includes optimizations for Nanite and is the last major planned update for Unreal Engine 5 before work shifts to Unreal Engine 6.
Unreal Engine 5.8 launches with improved terrain and vegetation tools, a Lumen Lite option for faster global illumination, and for the times we now live in, an open standard plugin for LLM systems
Unreal Engine 5.8 has been released, introducing experimental features like Mesh Terrain and Procedural Vegetation Editor, alongside a production-ready MegaLights system and a faster Lumen Lite option for global illumination. The update also includes an experimental plugin for Large Language Models (LLMs), allowing for AI integration in asset creation and development tasks. Epic Games highlights that Lumen Lite is optimized for platforms like the Nintendo Switch, potentially enabling 60fps performance.
Morning Mobilization
Arm Holdings has developed new technology enabling the use of Unreal Engine's MegaLights on mobile devices. Separately, a teardown of the 'Trump Phone' revealed it to be an HTC U24 Pro.
The Hidden Long-Term Costs of Choosing the Wrong Game Engine
Choosing the right game engine is a critical long-term business decision with significant cost implications throughout a game's lifecycle, not just a technical one. Proprietary and niche engines often lead to higher costs in talent acquisition, platform compatibility, and post-launch support compared to widely adopted commercial engines like Unreal Engine, which benefit from larger talent pools and established tooling.
