Right now I’m learning how to code in C++ and my objective July next year is to have made an Action RPG in UE4 using the assets, such as the Action RPG pack but then find how these work in C++ and then adapt them, as well as the Paragon/Infinity Blade assets. I was just wondering how difficult it would be to create a basic Action RPG purely using C++, coding in all the features like levelling, equipment and stats, and using the free models/animations in the Marketplace? I’m going to have a side project be following the Action RPG tutorial by Virtus Learning Hub and create one using blueprints as well. I’m not that good at 3D modelling unfortunately (might follow some tutorials to improve my skills) and I’m unable to draw due to an accident a few years ago (a nerve was damaged in my right arm, meaning I can’t use my index finger that much, and I’m right handed) Thanks in advance!
If you’re a beginner it’ll be very difficult.
The issue as far as using marketplace assets is that it’s unlikely to give you the look you’d really like and things may be mismatched in style.
Let me be realistic with you and explain why this is a poor (albeit frequently asked) question.
What you are asking here is the equivalent of asking a forum full of architects and construction workers: “How hard would it be to create a building of unspecified size and design with what I can get from the hardware store?” When you frame the question this way you’ll see there is no meaningful answer. What are you building? What are your existing skills? What’s the scope? These and several more questions would have to be understood before being able to give you even a rough ballpark that is within years of when you’d actually finish. To put it another way, there are people whose entire careers revolve around answering these kinds of questions and even they, with all their wisdom and experience, are frequently far off with their estimates.
What I can tell you is that an “Action RPG” implies content, and a lot of it. Not only that but an Action-RPG typically contains some of the most difficult content to make (especially when concerning animation). To return to the building analogy, the game you are looking to build is more Sistine Chapel than it is backyard shed. As someone who started out asking the same sorts of questions I can tell you now that you will never finish this project. I’m not trying to be bleak, but it’s simply true, and if you pursue projects like this you will learn the hard truth the same way I did. However, if you go into the project knowing this then have fun and enjoy yourself! If on the other hand you are interested in releasing or perhaps even selling your games, then scope back your ideas significantly. Ask yourself, “How can I do something that gets at the essence of what I like about action RPGs while keeping the game size and complexity at the level of Pacman, Galaga, or Tetris?” With a highly constrained scope you will realize that you can create something interesting with just marketplace assets if that’s what you want to do.
Anyways to recap, continue down this path if you want to play around and learn interesting things and you don’t care about finishing. Take my “reduce your scope” advice if you want to look back in a couple of years and have a few finished games under your belt. Most of all just start making something and you’ll realize how impossibly hard it is to predict how long anything in game development takes.
Let me be realistic with you and explain why this is a poor (albeit frequently asked) question.
What you are asking here is the equivalent of asking a forum full of architects and construction workers: “How hard would it be to create a building of unspecified size and design with what I can get from the hardware store?” When you frame the question this way you’ll see there is no meaningful answer. What are you building? What are your existing skills? What’s the scope? These and several more questions would have to be understood before being able to give you even a rough ballpark that is within years of when you’d actually finish. To put it another way, there are people whose entire careers revolve around answering these kinds of questions and even they, with all their wisdom and experience, are frequently far off with their estimates.
What I can tell you is that an “Action RPG” implies content, and a lot of it. Not only that but an Action-RPG typically contains some of the most difficult content to make (especially when concerning animation). To return to the building analogy, the game you are looking to build is more Sistine Chapel than it is backyard shed. As someone who started out asking the same sorts of questions I can tell you now that you will never finish this project. I’m not trying to be bleak, but it’s simply true, and if you pursue projects like this you will learn the hard truth the same way I did. However, if you go into the project knowing this then have fun and enjoy yourself! If on the other hand you are interested in releasing or perhaps even selling your games, then scope back your ideas significantly. Ask yourself, “How can I do something that gets at the essence of what I like about action RPGs while keeping the game size and complexity at the level of Pacman, Galaga, or Tetris?” With a highly constrained scope you will realize that you can create something interesting with just marketplace assets if that’s what you want to do.
Anyways to recap, continue down this path if you want to play around and learn interesting things and you don’t care about finishing. Take my “reduce your scope” advice if you want to look back in a couple of years and have a few finished games under your belt. Most of all just start making something and you’ll realize how impossibly hard it is to predict how long anything in game development takes.
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Thank you for this! I think it will just be for the fun of learning how things and mechanics work. I tried to create a turn based JRPG last year, which was essentially my “dream game” to make, but that turned out to be 7 weeks of researching and struggling, asking here, Reddit and Discord and struggling the whole way along, so I thought I might try out making an Action RPG using the Virtus Learning Hub tutorial (Creating A Role Playing Game - Unreal Engine 4 Course - YouTube) since it seemed so much simpler than creating the whole turn based battle system, and someone in my games development course managed to make an Action RPG using these tutorials and following/adapting a world-building tutorial, using the Infinity Blade assets.
I think I might try and make a smaller game, with something like a levelling system with a health and attack stat, maybe something like a 2D side scroller, megaman style where the damage you deal to an enemy walking towards you increases as levels do, unless you’d be able to come up with an idea of a simple game with a levelling system? Also there’s the whole C++ deal, since all this is about making a game in C++ rather than blueprints. Once I finish learning C++ (started a few weeks ago), I’ll look into tutorials on Udemy to create games in UE4 using C++, and then analyse the Action RPG Template (Action RPG in Epic Content - UE Marketplace) and see if i can convert the blueprints of these features into C++.
Theoretically possible to have a working demo of an action RPG game if you really focus on what matters, cut features aggressively, buy a lot of stuff from marketplace, and work on it for hours every day.
But if you’ve never worked on a C++ project before it will certainly be harder, working with a large base of C++ is a wonderful time but it is still a time. Consider blueprints?
Thanks, but have a look at the comment I made a few days ago in response to “TacoShank”. It’s a college project, where I’ve tasked myself to learn how to code in C++ and make either a platformer or an action RPG using C++ rather than Blueprints, or try out a side scroller and implement an RPG mechanic
When I started making games everything was pretty difficult, with Unreal and current game optimization requirements this is as easy as making games has ever been. On the issue of c++ vs blueprints, you have to be careful and understand the differences and how they work, but I am satisfied with using c++ for involved back end things like files or A* (pathfinding) and blueprints for visuals and user input. Something people may not be realizing is blueprints can be changed and you can play pretty much instantly while c++ has significant compile time.
49 Days if you know what you are doing 
Here is mine. All art assets are from Marketplace for free.
https://forums.unrealengine.com/unreal-engine/marketplace/1775358-action-jrpg-template
