Level Editor Component Workflow (Tutorial #9)

In this last video, we highlighted everything that we have learned so far. Then we learned that you can make a class BP by creating all the assets within the scene view instead of the class BP view. You just add a new actor, add and set the assets as you want them. Script it how you want. Then you can select the whole thing and save it as a class BP. This converts it to a class BP and you can then take that class BP and create instances of it where ever you want in the scene and even in different scenes.

And that concludes the tutorials for the Unreal Engine "Introduction to Blueprints!"

Adding Construction Script Customization (Tutorial #8)

In this tutorial we learned how to set the Construction script in a Blueprint. What this does is allows us to edit certain things about the Class Blueprint form the editor by setting the nodes to be publicly editable.

Using Inputs to Control a Class Blueprint (Tutorial #7)

In this tutorial, I learned how to add the functionality of allowing a player to press a button on the keyboard to execute a function, and toggling their ability to do that, as well as toggling other things upon entering and exiting the trigger.

Here is a screen shot of the new and improved Blueprint for toggling the light and the help text.

Adding Functionality to Our Class BP (Tutorial #6)

In this video, we added the same functionality to our class BP that we did to the light in the scene earlier. Except, now that we have done this within a class BP, the light source, model, and scripting can all be duplicated in the scene at will without having to redo everything.

Creating a Class Blueprint (Tutorial #3, #4, and #5)

A class Blueprint allows you to duplicate the same objects and functionality and scripts. This is is wonderful because you can create a Blueprint (BP) that does exactly what you want it to on whatever object it is that you want, and then you can click and drag that Class BP from your content browser into the scene and it is ready to go. Essentially it is the same thing as a prefab for Unity, except in UE4 it is much more clean cut and pipelined.

You can create a class BP in many ways, but the most common and straight forward one is to right click in you content browser and select the Blueprint Class option underneath "Create Basic Asset" as shown below.

From there you can make your class BP from within the class BP window. You can add assets to this window and design what game objects you want to make up your class BP. All you fave to do is click and drag the asset into the "Add Component" section, or click on "+ Add Component" and search for one. Here, we imported a lamp model, and a spotlight. we also added a collider, which will act as our trigger volume. This is not shown in the image below.

Delaying a Trigger (Tutorial #2)

The second video showed me how to create an event off of a trigger. A trigger is basically a volume, or a 3D shape, that will detect whenever another object in the scene is overlapping it. The events are called from a reference to that volume with the node names of "OnActorBeginOverlap" and "OnActorEndOverlap." Essentially it is the "OnTriggerEnter" and "OnTriggerExit" functions in Unity. We also learned how to create and use the functionality of a "Delay" node. Here is a image of the improved BluePrints.



Another cool funtionality we explored in this video was that multiple events can call the same function. Here you can see both "OnActorBeginOverlap" and "OnActorEndOverlap" are connected to the same function.

Learning to use the "Delay" node was helpful because it helped represent how Unreal Editor 4 (UE4) could call functions.  In UE3, you could call multiple actions (now known as functions) from the same event. The bad part about this was that there was no way to know what order those actions would happen in. It could activate the actions in a different order each time, and there was no way to control it either.

But in UE4, functions are all called in order from left to right. It is kind of like a daisy-chain way to go from one action to another. It is called Sequential Firing. So all Blueprints in UE4 have to go this way.

Here is a video that shows the result of the light being toggled on an overlap enter or exit, along with a delay before the function is called each time.

Let There Be Light! (Tutorial #1)

In this first tutorial we go over the basics of navigating the scene, adding objects to the scene, and manipulating the transform of objects within the scene. We also made our first Blueprint. The goal of the Blueprint is to simply turn on a light that has been added to the scene at run-time.

First we put a point light into the scene, and then we turn it off by making the lights "Visible" attribute set to false.

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Pretty enlightening stuff.

After that, we created the Blueprint. by having the light selected, we were able to create a reference node to this specific point light. Afterwards, we were able to create a node to toggle the visibility of the light by clicking and dragging off of the reference to the light. The advantage to creating a node this way is that you are only able to create nodes that are legally allowed to execute off of the node it dragged it from. Finally we connected the nodes to toggle the light with the node that executes at the beginning of run-time called "Event BeginPlay."

Here is the Blueprint.




And here is a video of it working!

Learning Something New

Howdy guys,

So I am completely new to the Unreal game engine, I have never used it to program or develop scripts before. The unique thing about unreal is that instead of using typed scripts for programming the game, it uses a mechanic called "Blueprints." Blueprints are a visual based scripting system. They look something like this.



So since I am completely new to this software, game engine, and scripting mechanic, I am going to be doing some basic tutorials just to help me get a hold of the wheel. This next section of post is going to be the highlights from my tutorials so that y'all can see the journey I will make with Unreal. Hopefully my progress will be at-least as successful as a baby going from "Baby's first time sitting up" to "Baby's first steps." Who know's maybe I'll even get to run some day.

EDIT: The Tutorials I am going to be following along are provided by the official Unreal Youtube channel. The link for the first lesson I am doing is below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFXMW_UEDco&list=PLZlv_N0_O1gY35ezlSQn1sWOGfh4C7ewO

Explaining the Device Operator

In this video, I explain how the player is able to interact with any of the objects in the scene that have the ability to be interacted with. This is done using a script with an "Operate" function.

In short, when the player clicks the primary mouse button, a raycast is cast from the center of the screen. If the raycast hits a collider, it creates a reference to that objects transform. it then sends a message to the script attached to the transform with the name of a funtion. In this case its "Operate". When this happens, it executes the function and this is how we interact with objects!

Explaining the Candle Game

In this video, I explain how the candle game manager listens and detects once the puzzle is complete, and how the other scripts of the game add the functionality for it. This puzzle gives you 8 candles, one of which is already lit. The goal of the puzzle is to light all of the candles using the one that you were given. Once all candles are lit, the puzzle is complete.

All in all, the manager listens to each of the wicks for each individual candle and determines if it is lit. If all wicks are lit, it registers that the puzzle is complete. You can light a candle with another one if it is already lit. This is done through detecting collisions and toggling the flame/light particle effect from inactive to active.

Explaining the Skull Game

In this video I explain the logic and code for the skull game manager, and also the scripts that give the puzzle its functionality. This puzzle gives you 4 skulls, and each have a unique symbol painted on them.

Summed up, the manager listens to a script on a trigger collider. each trigger collider represents a correct location for a specific skull to be placed. Each skull has a unique ID within the code, and each trigger is looking for a specific ID. Once a skull with the correct ID sits within each of the corresponding triggers, the skull game manager registers as being complete.

Explaining the Floor Game

In this video, I explain the floor game manager, and the other scripts that add the functionality to this puzzle.

In short, the manager script listens to a script that is attached to each of the floor buttons. Once the floor buttons are all the correct color, the game manage will register that this puzzle has been solved.

General Game Architecture

In this video I explain the basic architecture of the game and how each of the different puzzles is managed in the big picture.

A Late Start

Howdy!

I meant to be posting my work to blogger as I went throughout the semester, so I am going to do so now. I am going to separate the content of this blog basically into two sections, one for each of the projects that I am doing. For the first project, we were supposed to virtually recreate an Italian chapel using Unity. In the second project we are supposed to create a point based game, with a central point that you can see from anywhere on the map.

My part in these project is to design the architecture of the code and to write it. Basically, I make the actually game part of the projects happen, using the models, materials and other assets that the art students made for the project. I will mostly just be posting the scripts that I write, and some videos that will show what they do and how.

That's all for this post, until next time!