Epic Games, maker of the massively popular game development tool Unreal Engine 3, showed off a demo reel at GDC that features the changes being made to one of the industry’s most popular engines.
First up, the video announces some interesting things in terms of platform support. It says that Unreal Engine 3 now supports Wii U, PlayStation Vita, Android and Flash on top of the other platforms it’s been seen on for a few years now.
For those wondering about Wii U support, there’s a small clip in the video that shows Aliens: Colonial Marines running on Unreal Engine 3 presumably on the Wii U. I’m not convinced since the Wii U demo clip showed at last year’s E3 was made up of gameplay footage created on the PS3 or Xbox 360.
PC gamers are going to love the improvements made to UE3 that take advantage of Direct X 11. The changes include hair that’s run through MSAA to provide realistic detail alongside the usual DX11 improvements – tessellation and displacement.
The demo reel goes into the changes they’re bringing to mobile which is essentially the advanced lighting and shadows that console games have enjoyed for a few years now.
It’s an impressive look at what is already an impressive engine. I may give UE3 a lot of flack for inspiring a kind of dull creativity in developers, but that’s not the fault of the engine. Looking at this video, it’s obvious that compelling (and colorful) experiences can be made with the engine. Heck, it even gives CryENGINE 3 a run for its money in this state.
Check out the video and let us know what you think. Whether you’re a gamer, developer or both, there’s something here for you.
