Topic A: The Real-Time Pipeline

• How Game Engines differ from 3D DCCs (Maya/Blender).
• Interface Tour: Viewport, Content Browser, Outliner, and Details Panel.
• Project Management: Folder structures and naming conventions.

Topic B: World Building with Lumen & Nanite

• Importing 3D Assets: Static Meshes and Textures.
• Nanite: Handling high-poly geometry without performance loss.
• Lumen: Understanding Global Illumination and real-time lighting.

Topic C: Landscape & Foliage

• Creating terrain with the Landscape Tool.
• Painting materials (Grass, Rock, Sand).
• Using Foliage brushes to populate the world.

Topic A: Blueprint Fundamentals

• Actors vs. Components.
• Events, Functions, and Variables.
• The Event Graph: BeginPlay, Tick, and Custom Events.

Topic B: Interaction Logic

• Triggers and Collision: Overlap vs. Hit.
• “Press E to Open”: Creating a functional door or chest.
• Branching Logic: If/Then statements in Blueprints.

Topic C: Blueprint Communication

• Casting: How one object talks to another.
• Timelines: Animating object movement (doors, elevators) via code.

Topic A: Game Modes & Pawn Classes

• Setting up the GameMode Base.
• The Character Blueprint: Capsule components and Mesh.

Topic B: Input Enhanced System

• Mapping keys (WASD/Space) to actions.
• Movement Components: Walk speed, Jump height, and Gravity.

Topic C: Cameras in Games

• Camera Booms (Spring Arms) and Third-Person vs. First-Person views.
• Using Camera Shakes for impact.

Topic A: Skeletal Meshes & Import

• Exporting from Maya/Blender: FBX settings for UE5.
• Skeleton Retargeting: Using different skeletons on your character.

Topic B: Animation Blueprints

• State Machines: Idle -> Walk -> Run -> Jump transitions.
• Blend Spaces: Creating smooth movement transitions based on speed.

Topic C: Animation Montages

• Triggering one-off animations (Attacks, Reloads, Gestures) via Blueprint

Topic A: The Material Editor

• PBR (Physically Based Rendering) workflow.
• Material Instances: Saving memory and time.
• Dynamic Material Parameters: Making objects glow or change colour through gameplay.

Topic B: Niagara VFX

• Creating fire, smoke, and magical sparks.
• Emitter types and Particle lifecycles.

Topic C: Post-Process Volumes

• Colour grading, Bloom, and Depth of Field in real-time.

Topic A: Unreal Audio (MetaSounds)

• Adding 3D Spatial Audio.
• Triggering sound effects via Blueprint events.

Topic B: Widget Blueprints (UMG)

• Designing an In-Game HUD (Health bars, Stamina).
• Creating a Main Menu and Pause screen.

Topic C: UI Logic

• Binding variables (Health) to the UI.
• Button interactions and screen navigation.

Topic A: AI as a Development Partner (Gemini)

• The Logic Architect: Pasting a logic requirement into Gemini to get a step-by-step Blueprint breakdown.
  • Prompt Example: “I need a Blueprint logic for a double-jump system that resets when touching the floor. Explain the nodes I need.”
• The Narrative Designer: Using Gemini to generate item descriptions, lore, and quest dialogue.

Topic B: Innovative Prototyping

• Using Gemini to generate “Pseudo-code” that helps plan complex Blueprint systems before building them.
• Debugging: Pasting error logs into Gemini to find common UE5 fixes.

Topic C: Basic Enemy AI

• NavMesh Bounds: Defining where enemies can walk.
• Simple AI Behaviour: “Patrol” and “Chase” logic.

Topic A: Optimization & Polishing

• Checking Frame Rates and Draw Calls.
• Light Baking (for static scenes) vs. Lumen.

Topic B: Packaging the Game

• Project Settings for Windows/Desktop.
• Building the project into a .exe file.

• Portfolio Review: Reviewing your UE5 scenes for recruitment.

• Indie Career Path: How to publish on Itch.io or Steam.