SharpText

[SUMFX]

Marketplace page](SharpText in Blueprints - UE Marketplace)

SharpText provides a way to create sharp in-game texts by using the MSDF (Multi-channel signed distance field) fonts. It started as a c++ code plugging but starting from version 1.4, it’s a blueprint only solution now.

• Download the playable demo (SharpText 1.4 / UE 4.26 / Win64)
• Online MSDF Font Generator is available
• Documentation

Main features:

• MSDF (Multi-channel Signed Distance Field) fonts
• Procedurally generated single 2D mesh for the whole text
• Lit, unlit, and custom material option
• Horizontal & Vertical alignment
• Dynamic font size
• Line-height
• Character spacing
• Outline text effect with customizable color and width
• Bevel text effect with customizable height and intensity (Beta)
• Animations (Beta)
• Show/Hide effect (Dissolve)
• Blueprint only with comments in place

[SUMFX]

Close-up comparison between Unreal Engine’s native **Text Render **and **Sharp Text Render

**

[SUMFX]

SharpText is now available on the marketplace: SharpText in Blueprints - UE Marketplace

[SUMFX]

SharpText 1.1 is live on the marketplace! Please restart your launchers to make sure you get an update notification.

-Changelog-

• Fix: New fonts will now render correctly.
• Fix: SetCharacterProperties blueprint function will now act properly.

[anonymous_user_712d4dfc]

I have just downloaded the plugin and am loving it so far! Great effects, really crisp even in VR which is what I bought it for in the first place. Would highly recommend to anyone!

One question, in the demo scene provided you have a lot of examples where the text has a highly vibrant emissive outline, I’ve attached an example of it. I can’t replicate this through playing with the outline colour etc and I can’t find any documentation on how to use the plug-in properly.

So, could you please shed some light on how to get an emissive effect on the outlines like you have? Or, could you please include the demo map in the purchase so that we can dissect it in engine.

Thank you!

[SUMFX]

@anonymous_user_712d4dfc

I have just downloaded the plugin and am loving it so far! Great effects, really crisp even in VR which is what I bought it for in the first place. Would highly recommend to anyone!

One question, in the demo scene provided you have a lot of examples where the text has a highly vibrant emissive outline, I’ve attached an example of it. I can’t replicate this through playing with the outline colour etc and I can’t find any documentation on how to use the plug-in properly.

So, could you please shed some light on how to get an emissive effect on the outlines like you have? Or, could you please include the demo map in the purchase so that we can dissect it in engine.

Thank you!

Hi,

Thanks for kind words. Below is a screen from the demoscene. Documentation is in progress by the way.

[anonymous_user_712d4dfc]

@SumFX

Hi,

Thanks for kind words. Below is a screen from the demoscene. Documentation is in progress by the way.

Hey!
Thank you for your repsonse.
I was controlling the outline colour the same way as you. I’ve also replicated your exact colour value, yet for me the emission that is produced is very soft and wide rather than being sharp and concentrated like yours.
Could it perhaps be an engine setting or post processing?

[SUMFX]

@anonymous_user_712d4dfc

Could it perhaps be an engine setting or post processing?

I would also suspect that since no fancy work happening here. It’s just an HDR value to give emissive look.

[datee]

Any update on an 4.19 version? Been waiting for this, so really need it!

[SUMFX]

@datee

Any update on an 4.19 version? Been waiting for this, so really need it!

I’ll send it to marketplace team in this week, so you can grab it this week or the next.

[TurtleSimos]

This crashes on a listen server running from the command line with -game, as it calls CreateEditorOnlyDefaultSubobject, then doesn’t check the return value before using it. Changing to:

        BillboardComponent = ObjectInitializer.CreateEditorOnlyDefaultSubobject<UBillboardComponent>(this, TEXT("Billboard"), true);
        if(BillboardComponent != nullptr)
        {        
            SpriteTexture = ConstructorStatics.STIconTextureObject.Get();
            BillboardComponent->Sprite = SpriteTexture;
            BillboardComponent->RelativeScale3D = FVector(0.4f, 0.4f, 0.4f);
            BillboardComponent->bIsScreenSizeScaled = true;
            BillboardComponent->bAbsoluteScale = true;
            BillboardComponent->bReceivesDecals = false;
            BillboardComponent->SetupAttachment(this);
        }

Fixes that.

-Brian.

[SUMFX]

@TurtleSimos

This crashes on a listen server running from the command line with -game, as it calls CreateEditorOnlyDefaultSubobject, then doesn’t check the return value before using it. Changing to:

 BillboardComponent = ObjectInitializer.CreateEditorOnlyDefaultSubobject<UBillboardComponent>(this, TEXT("Billboard"), true);
if(BillboardComponent != nullptr)
{
SpriteTexture = ConstructorStatics.STIconTextureObject.Get();
BillboardComponent->Sprite = SpriteTexture;
BillboardComponent->RelativeScale3D = FVector(0.4f, 0.4f, 0.4f);
BillboardComponent->bIsScreenSizeScaled = true;
BillboardComponent->bAbsoluteScale = true;
BillboardComponent->bReceivesDecals = false;
BillboardComponent->SetupAttachment(this);
}

Fixes that.

-Brian.

Thanks for reporting this Brian. Fix will be available ASAP.

[anonymous_user_dcfb7c20]

Is it possible to generate a font with special characters from the UTF-8 set?

[SUMFX]

@anonymous_user_dcfb7c20

Is it possible to generate a font with special characters from the UTF-8 set?

This is in development already and will be available in a week. Follow this thread for any updates, please. Edit: I suppose you realize that your font should support those special characters.

[SUMFX]

The new version of the online MSDF Font Generator is available! Check it out: Multi-channel Signed Distance Field font generator for Unreal Engine 4 | SUMFX

[SUMFX]

The plugin is now 4.19 and 4.21 compatible.

[anonymous_user_dcfb7c20]

The new font generator is an excellent addition to your plugin! Great work!

One issue I’ve found: The texture size 2048x2048 does not work for me. (UE 4.20.3 and 4.21) the letters aren’t positioned right, so you see only “text garbage”.

[SUMFX]

@anonymous_user_dcfb7c20

The new font generator is an excellent addition to your plugin! Great work!

One issue I’ve found: The texture size 2048x2048 does not work for me. (UE 4.20.3 and 4.21) the letters aren’t positioned right, so you see only “text garbage”.

Thanks for reporting this. I’ll check and see what’s wrong and will let you know when it’s resolved.

[Sly401]

I Can confirm 2K does not work (in 4.19) cropping the 2K texture to 1K (top left orientated ) will correct it

Paul G

[Sly401]

A few things good and bad

Changing the PNG to 16 bit increasess the definition, especially if you set 16 bit, scale x 4 and then scale back down again, sort of anti aliases the shape.
Use a huge font size and scale the component will also give sharper / smoother results.

I do however get crashes a lot when simply changing the Text or the font size of a sharp text component.

I made a BP class with exposed variables for text, font size, scale, font type and this does not crash the scene editor, the crashes occur in the BP editor

Has good potential, but could I suggest that you look at 16 bit and sizes up to 4K for your font generator tool

Cheers

Paul G