Unreal Engine 4 Now Free For Universities

Big news for aspiring game developers who are students.

Big news for aspiring game developers who are students. Epic Games, the developer of the widely used Unreal Engine, are providing free access to their tech as of today. This is for school-licensed computers only.

“Epic Games is committed to supporting students and schools, and helping companies that license Unreal Engine 4 find and hire qualified developers,” the Education sectionof their site states.

According to a Game Developer’s Conference presentation from this year, this edition of the Unreal Engine is the most accessible and user-friendly version yet.

“Nothing is stopping students from honing the skills needed to enter the range of fields using Unreal Engine technology, from entertainment software and film to visualization, healthcare simulation and military training,” said Ray Davis, general manager, Unreal Engine. “Students who know Unreal Engine technology have a huge advantage when it comes to job placement.”

Complete availability of the C++ code, which is hosted on GitHub and can be used collaboratively with others, and Blueprint visual scripting are both offered the facilitate the design experience. Unreal Engine is widely used on PC, mobile, and many upcoming VR devices. Artists, designers, and programmers all have different avenues to explore and practice under the engine. Epic provides free tutorials, documentation, complete sample projects to look at, a wiki and a forum, and weekly livestreams. All these can help a teacher integrate the Unreal Engine 4 into the classroom.

The Engine is widely used by many game companies as well for training simulations and architectural simulations. The idea is to allow students to get started on building their portfolio, which can hopefully lead to a desired job in the gaming industry. For more details, check out Epic’s websiteon this opportunity.