There is a point in every game developer’s career where they have to choose between Unity and Unreal Engine. Choosing between them can be challenging since these are both top-tier game engines and are used to develop Triple-A titles like Among Us, which is built using Unity. And Fortnite, which uses Unreal Engine 4.
Deciding between Unreal Engine and Unity can directly impacts your game development career, so you should carefully consider the pros and cons of both engines.
Unity vs Unreal Engine Difficulty
Unity is considered a more accessible gaming engine since it uses C#. Many developers choose Unity as their game engine at the beginning of their careers because it is easy to learn and get started. In contrast, Unreal Engine is more challenging to learn, especially for beginners. The User Interface of Unity is also very straightforward and has constantly improved through regular updates over the years.
Unreal Engine is more difficult to learn for beginners compared to Unity which is why you don’t see many new developers use it. It is based on C++, a more complex language than C#. But with all this, Unreal Engine also has a significant advantage called Blueprints which allows users to program easily without having to be an expert in C++ coding. Blueprint is a visual scripting tool in Unreal Engine 4 which allows you to drag-and-drop nodes and add wires to connect them to add logic. This replaces coding and allows you to write complex codes using visual programming.
Unity vs Unreal Engine Graphics
Unreal Engine is the undisputed winner in terms of graphics and visuals and is the leading engine in the gaming industry because of its graphics. Unreal Engine gives its developers access to ready-to-use tools like Volumetric lighting, post-processing and lens flare, allowing them to customise these settings quickly.
Unity also has great visuals and graphics, but they don’t compare to those of Unreal Engine. Unity uses great lighting technologies like PBR and GI. But despite this, it still doesn’t have shading detail like Unreal, and neither does it have a material editor.
Unity vs Unreal Engine Price
Both engines are free to use, but when using Unreal Engine, you own royalties to them. Unity’s base version is free to use, but if you want access to more advanced features, you have to purchase the full version of the software. This can be done with a one-time payment of $1500 or $75 every month.
Final Words
Unity is more beginner friendly and easy to learn, while Unreal Engine 4 is a bit more complicated. If you are a new developer, you may feel overwhelmed by the Unreal Engine 4 interface, in which case, you should opt to go with Unity. But if you are attracted by the absolutely gorgeous graphics of Unreal Engine 4, then putting in some time to learn the engine can help you go a long way.
