Early Access: Unreal Engine 5 Dos & Don'ts: What Can Game Developers Learn From Hellblade 2? (Patreon)

Unreal Engine 5: What Can Game Developers Learn From Hellblade 2?

Digital Foundry is sponsored by MSI's new range of next-gen QD OLED gaming monitors. Learn more about these displays here: https://msi.gm/MSI-QD-OLEDs Want to check out Xbox Series X-equivalent settings as seen in this video? Select the 'high' global preset, then change shadow quality, reflection quality, global illumination quality and volumetrics down to medium. Leave variable-rate shading on. These are also optimised settings, though you can choose between medium and high foliage as both look great. Adjust post-processing to your personal tastes. Ninja Theory's Hellblade 2 is one of the most impressive Unreal Engine 5 games on PC - a clear sign that the technology is evolving in the right direction. Alex takes a looks a look at the strengths and weaknesses of this remarkable presentation, with a view to setting expectations for the PC ports to come. Want some DF-branded tee-shirts, mugs, hoodies and various items based on DF catchphrases? Check out our store: https://store.digitalfoundry.net Join the DF Supporter Program for pristine video downloads, behind the scenes content, early access to DF Retro, early access to DF Direct Weekly and much, much more: https://bit.ly/3jEGjvx Subscribe for more Digital Foundry: http://bit.ly/DFSubscribe 00:00:31 Introduction 00:01:22 Copy This: Shader Pre-Compilation 00:03:32 Copy This: Performance & Graphics Preview 00:06:11 Copy This: Graphics Options 00:07:31 Avoid This: Artificial Settings Limitations 00:08:58 Avoid This: No Hardware Lumen 00:10:26 Avoid This: Little Post-Processing Control 00:11:17 Avoid This: Fixed Aspect Ratio/FOV 00:12:51 Avoid This: Traversal Stutter 00:14:31 Avoid This: Poor Mid-Range Experience (8GB GPUs) 00:19:19 Conclusion