Hi there! I’m still confused - don’t think I don’t like Verse as a fan of functional programming and logic, types, categories I’m so exited! But I don’t understand what is the new hierarchy.
Right now I can make almost anything with blueprints and as I understand eventually this will be true for Verse too. So they will be in total overlap - I will be able to drive Behavior Trees and Animation Blueprints with Verse etc. so I wouldn’t need Blueprints at all nor for classes nor for interfaces etc. - For example system with components in the framework of Blueprints is convenient but I don’t understand how it will work with Verse: right now I create Blueprint class add static meshes, components, program construction script - and with Verse it will be no less expressive power just with different interface? What are Blueprints for then?
So for proper use of the engine my collaborators would not need to know blueprints? A person asks me “teach me Unreal” and I say sure - Verse. I was asked to teach programming using UE5 to kids and I thought I’ll start with UEFN and Verse because we will grow with it - so I shouldn’t teach them Blueprints. Is it the way to go - or eventually they will still really need blueprints to use Unreal? Blueprint are great for teaching programming but if Verse is the future of Unreal why even teach them to anyone especially kids interested in UE?
Is Verse mainly for Metaverse? What is Metaverse? It’s like some set of games that are bounded together and therefore just a game made in UE is not by default part of Metaverse so it doesn’t need Verse and can be only BP/C++? So I need to use Verse only to be in Metaverse?
Uncertainty is not a bad thing but I feel like I don’t understand what at all is happening. It’s like living in the Empire and there are new laws emerging and you like “Sure great! …but?” and there is not much comments what’s the plan or I don’t understand where to look.
Verse was made because there is no such thing as a mature language specifically for game development. Don’t confuse Unreal Engine with UEFN/Verse - if you want to make a heavyweight game from scratch that is “your game”, then UE is the way to go. Note that this implies C++ programming. UEFN on the other hand uses Verse which is more like an auxiliary language for scripting rather than the core logic. For example, in Verse we don’t have to worry about the main game loop, packet syncing over the network, collision systems, etc. I mean technically we can/could be able to re-write such things in Verse but the point is that it shouldn’t be necessary.
A “metaverse” is a buzzword given to a platform consisting of many games/interactive experiences that are highly connected through a social backend. An early example of metaverse-like gaming are the large Minecraft server networks out there - you have to register, you get your own profile and skins and abilities and such, but that character is usable on a hundred or so different “mini games” that are all connected via some “hub system”. The social aspect is a huge factor.
Fortnite is the metaverse in question here. There is no such thing as “the metaverse” in literal terms; it’s like the next step after an MMO (an MMO with more layers than just “the one big game”). You can’t make a game in UE and “connect to the metaverse”, because Fortnite is the metaverse here - you need to make it in UEFN. That’s the point of UEFN. If you want your UE game to be in “a metaverse” then you’d have to make one from scratch or join an existing one out there probably… if anybody has even made one which works that way (i.e. open to external developers connecting their games to their servers).
UEFN is not designed to replace UE, nor the other way around. If you want to make a standalone game from scratch, then use UE. But if you want to make games/interactive experiences within the Fortnite metaverse, then you have to use UEFN. The decision is actually that simple.
UEFN provides a more managed platform/environment than UE. More managed means more limited, yes - and also more automatic in a lot of things. You can pump out games weekly within UEFN, allowing you to adapt and respond to trends very quickly. While our capabilities in UEFN and Verse are indeed very limited compared to UE, there’s just so much more in UE you have to do yourself - and UEFN is only going to get better from here out.
If you still don’t understand what the deal is with Fortnite’s foray into the metaverse, it could be that you’ve just underestimated the benefits of how fast it is to make something in UEFN, along with the fact that Fortnite is free and has a massive audience. It literally costs you nothing but time to make a game in UEFN; the same can not be said for UE (unless you’re fine with not listing your game on Steam or any other store). Not to mention server running costs for your multiplayer UE game…
Thank you for a detailed answer. It clarifies things a bit - I initially thought that Metaverse is a some sort of hub for any game or social media interaction at all not only for a Fortnite. Like Metaverse is a new face of the Internet. As for Verse Tim Sweeny said that it will be eventually in the UE so it still confuses me what BPs place is in that new situation. Actual custom games possible with UEFN or just advanced map editor? - #3 by Tim_Sweeney Why we will need Verse and BPs simultaneously is still a mystery for me.
I am also interested in the question, is it worth studying blueprints and C++, when a verse appears in UE6, is it possible to completely abandon blueprints and C++?