While the business model for its upcoming Fortnite multiplayer online game has yet to be revealed, Epic Games is entering the free-to-play space with its reboot of Unreal Tournament.
Adding a new twist to the crowd-funding phenomenon that Kickstarter and Indiegogo have established, Epic Games will develop the new Unreal Tournament with fans.
The PC game franchise has an avid mod community, which has taken the Epic game into new directions over the years.
“We know that fans of the game are as passionate about Unreal Tournament as we are,” said Steve Polge, Epic senior programmer and Unreal Tournament project lead. “We know that you have great ideas and strong opinions about where the game should go and what it should be. So let’s do something radical and make this game together, in the open, and for all of us.”
Epic has created a small team of UT veterans that have begun work on the project starting this week. Polge said that from the very first line of code, the first art created and design decision made, development will happen in the open, as a collaboration between Epic, UT fans and UE4 developers.
“We’ll be using forums for discussion, and Twitch streams for regular updates,” said Polge. “If you are a fan and you want to participate, create a free account and join the forum discussion.
All code and content will be available live to UE4 developers on GitHub.”
The game, which will release on Windows, Mac and Linux, will be true to its roots as a competitive first-person shooter (FPS). Because development has just commenced, it won’t be playable for many months.
This game will start from scratch using Epic’s new Unreal Engine 4 technology.
“When the game is playable, it will be free,” said Polge. “Not free to play, just free. We’ll eventually create a marketplace where developers, modders, artists and gamers can give away, buy and sell mods and content. Earnings from the marketplace will be split between the mod/content developer, and Epic. That’s how we plan to pay for the game.”
Epic has a history of developing games to show off its Unreal Engine technology and entice new developers to sign on.
At the Game Developers Conference in March, Epic changed its Unreal Engine 4 business model to a subscription model. Developers can now get full access to the engine technology for $19 per month, plus a 5 percent royalty on any revenue generated from these games.
“A lot of this is brand new for Epic, and we don’t yet have everything figured out,” said Polge. “Things will probably definitely go wrong from time to time, and when they do, we’ll have to work through them together. There will be a lot of tough decisions to make, and not every feature will make it into the game. But if you’re a fan of Unreal Tournament, a UE4 developer, or a future modder – or if you just want to learn how we make games – we hope you’ll join us. It’s going to be fun.”
Epic has taken a similar open approach to game development since moving to the subscription model. The company recently released Unreal Engine 4.1, which allows all subscribers who are registered Xbox or PlayStation developers, including members of the ID@Xbox independent developer program, to receive access to the engine’s complete source code for their respective console platforms, at no extra cost.
The 4.1 update also includes SteamOS and Linux support, refined iOS and Android workflow, new game templates both for C++ programmers and designers using Blueprint visual scripting. Epic also has worked with its community to make more than 100 improvements to the engine.
The Elemental demo that impressed media members at GDC 2013 is now available for free for Unreal subscribers to download from the engine’s Marketplace so that developers can learn from its construction and use its assets in their own projects.
As a demonstration of UE4’s high-end console support, the engine includes “Shooter Game,” a sample project created by Epic and released for free on Marketplace. The sample is now undergoing certification on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Driven by feedback from the community and informed by Epic’s experience building games such as Fortnite, Unreal Engine 4 is evolving at an incredible pace. Its first month has seen thousands of development forks created on GitHub to improve and extend the engine in an open, collaborative manner. Developers on GitHub can see Epic’s internal development process in real-time, with live-streaming source code updates.
Unreal Tournament will add another dimension to this open process by allowing gamers to have a say in the direction of development.
Not all Epic Games will be developed this way. Tim Sweeney recently said that three additional new games, not including Unreal Tournament or Fortnite, are in development at Epic.
