I’m just starting development of a game, and I’m not sure if Unreal is right for me. I have a few questions about the capabilities of Unreal that I’m not sure about. I’m not asking if these things are easy - I’m quite confident that many of them aren’t - I’m asking if they can be done.
Can I make a game client that connects to a server that is running a different program? In other words, could I have multiple players playing on a server that none of them are hosting (It being hosted on a dedicated server somewhere.) Would said server program have to be built in Unreal?
Would it be possible for me to make players able to import 3d models ingame? For example, make a model in a 3d modeling program and make that the new visual representation of their character?
Again, I want to know if these things can theoretically be done, not the difficulty. Thanks!
You could make a plugin to connect to a different program to act as the server program, or you could run UE4 as a server. As far as 3D assets, if you wanted to import new ones you should be able to if they are saved as .uasset files I think, though they may have to be cooked as well.
You have the source code, so ANYTHING can be done. As long as you have the programming skill to make it work. Unreal has a dedicated server of some sort, so that could get you started. The model import thing would be a bit harder because of the way they bake assets, but again, if you’re asking if its theoretically possible, of course it is. The question should be one of feasibility at your own skill level and familiarity with the engine. Eventually pretty much anything can be done with it, because you have the code. But its not necessarily the right choice in terms of feasibility. You could have a look at how the FBX importer module does its thing and maybe make it build in runtime as well as engine builds.