I am trying to find ways or tutorials on how to create an expansion pack or DLC for game created on Unreal Engine 5.2.
I wanted to create a new expansion that is separate from the base game. (Like adding files to the current packaged build).
I found this tutorial for UE4 where they create the DLC as a plugin and export the .pak files into the packaged files. I wonder if there are any other better ways to do it for UE5?
A solution to this should be more simplistic than it is currently. I’m still looking for real solutions to having optional content in packaged games. This might be one of those things that requires digging through the engine source… (Like pretty much everything in the Unreal Universe)
EDIT:
I should add that I’m looking for a solution that involves the use of C++. I want to package my application once and add items like cars, maps, etc… dynamically. If my application’s code does not change, I don’t see a need to rebuild everything. I have not found a solution for this yet.
I don’t know why this is so difficult or why the documentation is so lacking.
Have you looked into building a Baseline Build and then Chunking? I have not done this, and had only recently come accross this, but i too am looking for the best way to do modding, dlc etc. (all the same no?), where end users can create content in engine, package it, load into the runtime version of the game. Like, how do i create packaged content, have others download and install/copy-paste, how do I read directories to get a list of packages, to then read meta-data about a package before loading whole package and all in bluepint only (except perhaps for making the actual package? Unless can do that blueprint only, butt hat it had to be compiled in visualstudio no?)
In addition to what blindminds suggests with Chunking, you could look into Game Features. At least for DLC. The Game Features System (introduced 4.27) allows you to make plugins that are dependent on the game allowing you to make content that the game doesn’t know about but can use. These plugins can contain code & content to extend your game and with Chunking you could produce a separate pak file for each plugin so that you could ship/download/discover them dynamically.
Thanks for this, I did not know it had this feature, I think I have been confusing Gameplay Features with something else, this may be exactly what I need in conjuction with chunking, I thought i only had chunking.