UPDATED: I have now made a NEW version of this loading screen that has less of a chance of bugging out and now has a fully functional progress bar as well! Again, this is using ONLY blueprints!
Preview of the functionality:
Key notes that I forgot to mention in the videos
Make sure the added sublevels are set to be loaded by blueprints and are not set to always visible
If you really want to tidy things up a little, you can add all of the parts to the loading screen into an array variable and use that for purging them when it’s done. Rather than having the manually click each actor and add it to the level blueprint, you can just add them into a publicly exposed array.
Here is the four part video series explaining how to pull this off:
I was actively researching articles on cool game loading screens. There’s even a Loading Screen Jam that focuses on is creating interactive loading screens/mini games. Read-only Loading Screens can convey Secret Cheats, Narrative/Lore, and Advertisements. My plan is to literally Reward the player for waiting. One idea is to present an interactive Slot Machine (The MotherLoad) which can be played for a chance to Win in-game currency/Special Loot. In a survival game this could be an opportunity to replenish resources. I’m opened to discussing other ideas for Loading Screens.
And yeah, this kind of workflow basically lets you create whatever you want. The only thing holding you back, from starting the next level, is the part where you switch the new level to being visible. Until then, it’s just another map and you’re free to make absolutely anything you want. I specifically used a pawn actor to show that you can even put in logic if you wanted. You could even still play as the character if you desired. Keep in mind, you don’t want it to contain so much content that it takes 10 seconds just to load the loading screen <Insert the yo dawg meme>…
For the game I’m working on, I kind of wanted load screens with something simple, but interesting on the eyes, and to have the ability to throw in lore or other text for you to read while you play. It’s not a new concept, by any means, it’s just that extra step to help break up the abrupt transitions. Like I mentioned: Skyrim. On a side note, a lot of games have been secretly sneaking load screens in while still in game. Think of games where you have to slowly squeeze through the tightly collapsed rubble and it takes 10-15 seconds… Yeah, that’s a streaming load screen basically.
