A few days ago Chapter 4 of Fortnite and with it a new season. In addition to new characters and mechanics, the use of the Unreal Engine 5 graphics engine was introduced. With which the new map and characters look amazing on next generation consoles and PC.
We had a chance to chat with Nick Penwarden from Epic Games, who told us about what’s new in the graphics engine. As well as some of the challenges involved in developing and implementing it. Here what he shared with us.
Fortnite was the ideal testing ground for Unreal Engine 5.1
The graphics engine that was implemented in Fortnite Chapter 4 is the Unreal Engine 5.1. According to Nick Penwarden the idea arose as a way of testing. Since the battle royale was a perfect setting to check their progress in the different fields they were implementing.
With Unreal Engine 5.1 they implement well-known tools like Nanite, Lumen and Worl Partition. Those that together manage to make the title look better than ever. In addition to what has been done here, it can be used to include it in other games in the future. Specifically those of console who want to run at 60 FPS
One of the elements to test was a dynamic lighting of the game world with Lumen. Fortnite is quite dynamic with different moving elements. So it was a perfect case to implement it. At this time, Nick showed us an image that showed the big difference in terms of lighting in closed spaces.
The light in Chapter 4, on next-gen consoles, looks warmer. Not to mention that it has bounces more similar to how light behaves in reality. Which gives more richness and depth to the interiors. Although the exteriors are not far behind either. They even implemented a tool known as local exposure. This shows the difference in light between an interior space and an exterior one with impressive results.
Nanite offers an enormous amount of detail to the geometry
Of course Fortnite it is full of objects, from houses and trees to weapons and chests. So Nick Penwarden and his team wanted to apply Nanite, an Unreal Engine 5.1 goodness that manages to deliver more detailed objects. Which applies to almost all battle royale surfaces.
To demonstrate this he showed us an image of a castle wall before and after Unreal Engine 5.1. In the before image, the wall looks quite flat, but with the use of Nanite this changes completely. Since it even seems that each brick is different and has its own unique imperfections.
As for the natural environments, players can now see the leaves and branches blowing in the wind. An element that is quite noticeable in the forests of Fortnite. Not to mention, it really stands out when it comes to using the new shock hammer.
With the trees you can also see the joint use of Nanite along with Lumen. Since in Chapter 4 of Fortnite the trees emit different shadows. This depending on how light is going down through its leaves. So you might want to pay attention to it in your next games.
We owe the new island of Fortnite to the World Partition System of Unreal Engine 5.1
Finally Nick Penwarden told us about the World Partition System. This is a system that allows several different environments to be rendered at the same time. That is why the new Fortnite island is so divided in terms of its different scenarios.
On one side we have a quarry, on another area we have forests, on another, castles, and finally an area full of ice. All these scenarios manage to coexist in harmony thanks to the World Partition System. And the creators of this map did it precisely to highlight the power of this tool.
These improvements are exclusive to the new generation of consoles.
Unreal Engine 5.1 enhancements are something exclusive to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PCs running Windows 10 or higher. On this last platform, Nick Penwarden assured that there will be many ways in which players can get more out of it. Since they will be able to alter some characteristics to get the full potential if they have very powerful machines.
Although these improvements are exclusive to next-generation consoles, this does not mean that Fortnite will disappear from the rest. For the moment Epic Games will continue to support the consoles of the past. However, they will continue to improve the visual aspect as the chapters progress with Unreal Engine 5. Of course, there is the possibility that eventually most players will already make the generational leap.
So now you know some of the hard work that went into improving Chapter 4 of Fortnite. If you have a chance to play it with these improvements, we recommend that you do so. Since Epic Games’ battle royale hadn’t looked as cool as it does now. Have you already tried it?
Don’t stop following us on Google news. You can also go to our discord to talk about games and other topics.
#Fortnite #news #Unreal #Engine #brings #Chapter #EarthGamer