The State of Unreal 2025 showcase simply wrapped, and it was full of groundbreaking tech, gorgeous demos, and highly effective new instruments for builders throughout gaming and interactive media. The occasion highlighted Epic Video games’ newest improvements for Unreal Engine 5.6, main expansions to MetaHuman, and thrilling updates for creators utilizing Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN).
A First Have a look at the Subsequent Witcher Saga – Powered by Unreal Engine
The present opened with an thrilling technical demo created in partnership with CD PROJEKT RED, providing a glimpse into the cutting-edge options fueling the following Witcher saga. Whereas not The Witcher 4 itself, the demo follows Ciri as she navigates the dominion of Kovir throughout a monster-hunting contract.
Working in real-time on PlayStation 5 at 60 FPS with ray tracing, the demo showcases Unreal Engine 5.6’s open-world capabilities — together with Quick Geometry Streaming, ML Deformer for lifelike facial animation, and the visually gorgeous Nanite Foliage system, which can be absolutely rolled out in model 5.7.
Unreal Engine 5.6: Constructed for Scale, Velocity, and Visible Constancy
Now obtainable for obtain, Unreal Engine 5.6 is engineered to assist groups construct huge, visually wealthy open worlds that carry out seamlessly on fashionable {hardware} — together with consoles, high-end PCs, and even cellular.
Key options embody:
Optimized large-world help
Built-in animation and rigging workflows throughout the engine
Native MetaHuman authoring instruments
Efficiency enhancements focusing on constant 60 FPS output
This replace marks a major step towards making large-scale improvement extra accessible and performant than ever earlier than.
MetaHuman 5.6: Subsequent-Gen Digital People
MetaHuman 5.6 takes the toolkit out of early entry and absolutely integrates it into the engine. The most recent launch brings:
Extra lifelike digital characters with higher-quality supplies and improved scan knowledge
Broader customization choices for faces, our bodies, and outfits
MetaHuman Animator, which might generate real-time animations from video or audio
Expanded compatibility with exterior platforms like Unity, Godot, Maya, Houdini, and Blender
New plugins and Fab market integration additionally make asset importing and artistic iteration simpler than ever.
Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN): Extra IPs, AI Instruments, and LEGO Builds
UEFN continues to thrive with over 260,000 stay islands and $722 million paid to third-party creators. Epic is supercharging UEFN improvement with:
LEGO Brick Editor – construct block-by-block beginning June 17
New IPs arriving quickly: Squid Sport (June 27), Avatar: The Final Airbender, and Star Wars
Conversational AI NPCs, debuting with Darth Vader in Fortnite: Galactic Battle, are being made obtainable to creators with the brand new Persona System
The Epic Developer Assistant, an AI-powered code helper for Verse, is now in beta
Scene Graph launches June 7 – a unified runtime/editor view system enabling prefab creation and dynamic scene management with Verse scripting
RealityScan 2.0: Smarter, Quicker 3D Scanning
RealityScan 2.0 will quickly unify cellular and desktop scanning experiences beneath one app with smarter options like:
AI masking
Improved alignment instruments
Help for airborne laser scans
CD PROJEKT RED used the software to deliver real-world parts into their Witcher tech demo.
Fab and Loci Be part of Forces for Smarter Asset Creation
The Fab asset market is coming to the Epic Video games Launcher this summer time. With Loci tech integration, builders will profit from:
Automated asset tagging
Smarter search by semantic AI
Improved mental property administration
Epic Video games Retailer Updates: Extra Video games, Extra Options, Higher Income Sharing
The Epic Video games Retailer (EGS) continues to develop quickly, now boasting:
Over $2.1 billion paid to builders
A cellular library of 70 video games with 40 million installs
New income share mannequin: 0% for first $1M, then 12% afterward
Upcoming options and occasions:
MONGIL: STAR DIVE (by Netmarble) launches completely in October on EGS
Pre-loading coming in September
Gifting for PC and cellular in time for the vacations
Epic Internet Retailers launching in July, permitting devs to promote in-app gadgets with favorable phrases
Main social options incoming — game-independent voice and textual content chat, events, and pal invitations throughout platforms
Conclusion: A Huge Leap Ahead for Creators EverywhereFrom next-gen open worlds to AI-driven improvement instruments, Epic Video games is delivering an arsenal of highly effective improvements for builders, storytellers, and artists alike. Whether or not you’re constructing huge RPGs, crafting Fortnite islands, or designing digital people, there’s by no means been a greater time to create.
Discover all the brand new options and downloads now on the Epic Developer Neighborhood.
