Is Unreal Engine 3 dead now?

Jaber

With the new release of U4 to the public will everyone and all studios start using it and stop using Unreal engine 3? I'm currently working on a level in U3 and am wondering if I should buy U4 for the 19.99 a month to bring my current environment into because studios that I apply to wont pay much attention to my stuff if its in U3?

Neox

good art is good art, it's not like ue4 will make your assets made for ue3 look much much better.

cman2k

The real question is - will they continue to license it? Will the costs stay the same? Are some people going to pay more for UE3 than UE4 because their production is too far along already? eh?

ZacD

It's also good to be ahead of the curve and jump on new tech as it comes out.

Jaber

Neox, good art is good art, I agree. But will continuing the use of U3 hurt me in the long run because studios are going to be looking for those who know U4 and want that skill and want to see people using it for their environments rather than U4.

Chase

Youre not the only one to wonder this. I dont want to have to pay to use a game engine when its been free all these years. If im forced to rent UE4 just to keep above the curb would suck

Neox

you are talking about one environment piece or how much work do you talk about? is this the work of years and almost finished or do you have a lot of stuff ahead? i don't think one piece will block you.

Jaber

Neox, yeah it's one environment piece that I'm currently working on, but it's one of my first ones, I'm fairly new to environment art and am just starting to build my portfolio. So I'm kinda torn to as if I should make my first environment in U4 for a fresh portfolio all with U4 content or just continue the work I have in U3. Which also bring the question to those of you who have experience with U4 of is it hard to bring what I currently have in U3 to U4. I have the block out so far and a few assets are textured.

Chase, I agree that getting to use Unreal for all these years for free has been awesome, and being forced to rent U4 just stay above the curb is a bummer, but if it's what we need to do to stay above the curve and learn the new work flows/studio standards and techniques then it's a must.

JordanN

Unreal Engine 2 was still being used even when Unreal Engine 3 first came out. Bioshock used a modified UE2.5 and some Splinter Cell games use it also.

But it's obviously going to fall by the wayside as UE4 is better suited for next gen game development.

Neox

it is one of your first pieces, in a couple of months you will look down to it, no matter which engine you are going to use

don't worry man, finish it, and switch, or use cryengine next, it doesn't matter.

Add3r

I honestly say that keeping up with the latest tech like UE4 and such is good for the port/resume, showing you can adapt. It will not make your art insta-good, though there are aspects that can enhance its quality if taken advantage of. If its one of your first pieces, why jump backwards?

Like said 1000+ times already across the forum, you do not have to pay monthly to keep the engine. If you pay $20 bucks, you get access to all content released that month, to continue getting updates and support you need to pay the monthly $20. When your first $20 runs out, you are allowed to continue using the version of the engine you have downloaded though! This is ideal for us artists looking to use it for portfolio pieces rather than full on game development.

Those complaining about a single $20 fee for such an awesome piece of software to display their art... IDK. That however is a totally different argument. I say though, why not pay the $20 and put yourself ahead of the game early. Why not learn how to game art with the latest tech? Why learn with the old tech and then force old habits out with the old tech, just because you were "learning". See what I am saying? Just my logic behind it

Jaber

Thanks Add3r, I had no idea you could buy it for 20 bucks and keep that version forever, very cool, there is no excuses on not taking advantage of that. I was looking on the UE4 site and couldn't find the 20 dollar buy bundle though.

Chase

Yeah didnt know about that one month deal. Still, money is always a fun dance to deal with :-/ $20 isnt bad but it can add up to the point of being rediculous. Thats all im saying. Im all for staying above the curve though

Benjam

I agree with Add3r. $20 for UE4 is an immense price. You also have to keep in mind as has been stated already, for the next however many years, physically based rendering and node based systems like blueprint are going to become more and more commonplace so it is good to get ahead of the game while you have the chance