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Programming Using Blueprints

Now, we have the Unreal engine installed and you have familiarized yourself with its layout. We've set up our project, looked at how to customize it, and we have added extra content with the Animation Starter Pack. Now, it's time to learn about Blueprints.

Blueprints are a powerful alternative to traditional C++ programming. As I said in the previous chapter, it is possible to create an entire game using only Blueprints. In this chapter, we will start laying the foundation for our Awesome Game using Blueprints, and, in later chapters, we will expand on this game so we can learn how to use other Unreal Engine 4 systems.

The following points will be covered in this chapter:

Creating custom Blueprint classes and extending from Epic's base classes
Using variables and functions within Blueprint classes
Adding Components to a Blueprint class...

Key benefits

Learn the fundamentals of Unreal Engine such as project templates, Blueprints, and C++

Use replication to create multiplayer games

Build dynamic game elements using Animation Blueprints and behaviour trees

Description

Unreal Engine is a popular game engine used by developers for building high-end 2D and 3D games. This book is a practical guide designed to help you get started with Unreal Engine 4 and confidently develop interactive games. You’ll begin with a quick introduction to the Unreal Engine 4 (UE4) ecosystem. Next, you’ll learn how to create Blueprints and C++ code to define your game's functionality. As you progress, you’ll cover the core systems of UE4 such as Unreal Motion Graphics (UMG), Animation Blueprints, and behaviour trees to further build on your game development knowledge. The concluding chapters will then help you learn how to use replication to create multiplayer games. By the end of this book, you will be well-versed with UE4 and have developed the skills you need to use the framework for developing and deploying robust and intuitive games.

What you will learn

Learn how to use project templates for your games

Create custom Blueprints and C++ classes and extend from Epic s base classes

Use Unreal Motion Graphics (UMG) to create menus and Heads-up Displays (HUDs) for your game

Develop more dynamic characters using Animation Blueprints

Understand how to create complex AI with behavior trees

Optimize, test, and deploy a UE4 project

What do you get with Print?

Instant access to your digital eBook copy whilst your Print order is Shipped

Paperback book shipped to your preferred address

Download this book in EPUB and PDF formats

Access this title in our online reader with advanced features

DRM FREE - Read whenever, wherever and however you want

AI Assistant (beta) to help accelerate your learning

Frequently bought together

Unreal Engine 4 Shaders and Effects Cookbook

€52.99

Blueprints Visual Scripting for Unreal Engine

€49.99

Unreal Engine 4 Game Development Quick Start Guide

€20.99

Total € 123.97

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cybereality Aug 31, 2019

Rachel Cordone’s Unreal Engine 4 Game Development Quick Start Guide is the perfect book for people with some programming chops, or users of other engines (like Unity), that want to get up to speed quickly with Unreal. I really liked how the author does not waste time explaining basic things (like what functions or variables are) and jumps to the practical steps for getting things working. Unreal experience is not required at all, though you should have some foundation of how programming works to get the most out of the text.Most of the book is using Blueprints, the built-in visual scripting language of UE4. I’m a huge fan of Blueprints, and visual scripting in general, and you can accomplish many things, even a whole game, without touching C++. However, Rachel does show how to use C++ and interface with Blueprints code (very handy). Within the book, the author explains each step along the way to accomplish various things, along with screenshots of the Blueprints, making everything easy to follow.Some of the topics covered include: the basics of navigating the editor, using variables, functions, events, and creating a Blueprint from scratch. Adding C++ to a Blueprint project. Creating menus and HUDs with UMG, animation, scripting AI, multiplayer, and optimization. Definitely not an exhaustive list, but a good range of information to get a feel for how powerful Unreal is and how to quickly start working with it.So far, I’ve only read maybe a couple other Unreal books, but I think I can say this is the best I’ve seen. While some other books are longer and more in depth, as this one only clocks in at just under 200 pages, I feel like the brevity helps keep things focused. While you’re not creating Grand Theft Auto here, the simple demo built in the book is functional and teaches the basics of how you would make a game in Unreal.This is a case where the title of the book is very apt and honest. This is a “quick start” guide for game developers not familiar with Unreal Engine 4, but maybe that have experience with Unity or some other engine or framework. I think if you are a complete beginner, you might want to read up on basic programming concepts first, though the book is simple enough you could probably just jump in if you really wanted. For people with experience elsewhere, this is perfect to get up to speed with Unreal fast. I can’t recommend this book enough.

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stacie Feb 09, 2021

My son asked for theirs for Xmas and he needed it for school

Dr. Glen V Apr 02, 2022

I went from start to finish on this book and feel more than comfortable with the basics of this platform. If I can do it, so can journalists.

J. Bond Apr 07, 2021

Having read this, and followed it cover to cover, I have to say it did boot strap my thinking and jobbing knowledge around the engine. However, the BOLD and then Courier and then BOLD text style - the literal flow through the instructive steps to follow - was actually quite annoying.The reason for this annoyance is that in some instructions the BOLD text will be the source of an action, in the next line the BOLD will be the target, rather than consistently keeping the BOLD as either sources or targets.And then the navigation steps "in the menu"... "in the context browser"... in the whatever... sometimes these are a little random, the best example I can pick out is around page 89 where you're being introduced to HUD widgets... "Click on the BLUEPRINTS button, and then Click on OPEN LEVEL BLUEPRINT undewrneath"... I literally sat for minutes staring at this, it's a prime example... We've not been told what "BLUEPRINT" source button and never heard of the OPEN LEVEL BLUEPRINT button before.Where was this, well it's in the main menu of the main level editor, the text could have said this, instead it's just this throw away "Click on the BLUEPRINTS button"... where it's been training us over and over for near ehough the prior 88 pages to use the Content Browser BP area as "BLUEPRINTS".It's just frustrating to find your learning derailed by this lack of clarity, the writer knows their stuff, they are clearly extremely familiar with the interface, and in the first chapters whenever some new UI element of the engine editors is introduced they throw in a screen shot, but that fades as the text progresses.It's not a deal breaker, this is a good book, but like with all good things you pick out what stops them being great.I'm up, I'm running, this book helped, it is a good bootstrapper for the engine and editor style.

Cesar Vidal Romero Jul 11, 2020

Es bueno pero el contenido lo puedes encontrar en los cursos en linea de Unreal Engine

Unreal Engine 4 Game Development Quick Start Guide: Programming professional 3D games with Unreal Engine 4

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Unreal Engine 4 Game Development Quick Start Guide: Programming professional 3D games with Unreal Engine 4

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