THE INFO:
Using Blender, I have modeled a large floating island with a basic cave system running through it from one end to the other (see screenshots). Now, I’ve got it imported into UE4 for the purposes of prototyping a game concept for Android (first-person exploration game.)
So, since this landmass is so large, I need to look into World Composition, Level Streaming, Lightmass Importance Volumes, and so on.
THE QUESTION:
Should I separate the internal cave system in Blender (from the surrounding giant floating island) and re-export it and the island as different meshes to re-import into UE4 where each one would be its own level, and then set up the cave level as a child level for the parent Floating Island level in World Composition?
This is my first time level-streaming something large and complex like this and also first time using World Comp. It’s just confusing. Can you arrange different levels in 3D space like you can with actors and etc in the UE4 level editor? In other words, if I had a level called “Garage” and one called “House” but they were made separately from each other, how do I actually (physically) attach the “Garage” to the “House”?
So, 2 questions:
Should I separate the cave system from the island and export both as their own mesh?
How do I arrange levels together in a “perspective” or “level editor” sense?
Found the answer to #2 on my own at 4:04 in this video for anyone else with this beginner level streaming question: https://youtu.be/-0mptinaWIo?t=4m4s
And if I can think hard enough about this I think that answer may lead to the answer for the first question I had. I hope this is of help to someone else and I would still love any input or further advice anyone could add.
It would be best to separate your island and the cave system into separate meshes. It would be even better to separate the cave into smaller chunks as well that can be used as modular asset to construct your cave system. This would allow UE4 to cull (remove) these assets that aren’t visible. With the mesh being a single object, or even two large pieces any part of the mesh not rendered is still going to have a performance cost.
Here are two articles on Modular Design that I’ve found useful before and may help you in your level design:
For the level setup, try setting up a Persistent Level (This will be the initial Map) and then add some sub-levels using the Levels window (Menu > Windows > Levels). Then here you could setup a level that is your island and one for the cave system in your island.
