Oh, the dreaded Final_Final_v2b_UseThisOne_REALLY folder 
@WonderWoman — you’ve just described one of the most universal asset management headaches in game development.
Why This Happens (Even to the Best Teams)
It’s rarely laziness or disorganization — it’s a lack of shared visibility and confidence:
- Artists aren’t sure which version was reviewed or approved
- Someone’s afraid to overwrite a teammate’s work
- No system exists to mark an asset’s “truth” without renaming or reuploading
Multiply that across 10 people and a few dozen assets… and suddenly you’re in folder hell.
Real-World Ways Teams Enforce the “One True Version”:
1. Use Source Control Branching Wisely (e.g. Perforce or Git LFS)
- Keep a clean
MainorReleasestream - Devs work in “feature” branches or folders → Only merge once approved
2. Implement Asset Status Markers
- Use naming conventions + suffixes like
_WIP,_QA,_Final - Even better: don’t rename the file — tag it through metadata or a checklist
3. Centralize Communication on Each Asset
- This is where we saw the biggest win.
What We Use: Asset Optics
Our team built this plugin specifically for this kind of chaos. It helps teams:
Leave comments or feedback directly on each asset in the Content Browser- Add checklists like “awaiting concept review” or “QA passed”
Sync that status to a web dashboard so everyone sees the same version and its current state
Instead of guessing, or renaming folders 10 times, your team gets clarity. No more “which one is real?” Slack threads. No more duplicate materials living forever in limbo.
You’re not alone in this — every Unreal team hits this wall eventually. The key is giving the team a shared language around asset state and a single source of truth they trust.