• RPG item data table that contains item stats such as damage, armour etc.
• Subtitles for dialogue that can easily be accessed by character name.
• An enemy data table containing a list of pre made enemy types with enemy health, damage, stamina etc.

In this guide we will be showing you how to use Data Tables in your Unreal Engine 5 game.

Pre-requisites

To use Data Tables in Unreal Engine 5 you will need to know how to create and use structures.
Click here to read our guide on structures.

It would also help to know how to create and use an blueprint enum.
Click here to learn about enums in Unreal Engine and how to create them in your project.

What is a Data Table?

In Unreal Engine 5, a Data Table is an extremely useful tool that allows you to define a list of data and store different values for this defined list based on a key.

This data is stored as an asset in your project which makes it incredibly easy to retrieve and update the data from anywhere in your code.

The data is also remembered inside of the editor meaning you can create your data while you are developing your project, then use the data inside of your project during runtime.

A great example of this is data for items or enemies in your project. This data can be set by you when designing your items and enemies which is then saved and persistent.

Making and using Data Tables in Unreal Engine 5 is easy and requires very little work. In the next section we explain how to make your own data table inside of your Unreal Engine 5 project!

Making our Data Table

Creating an Enum

Before we create our struct, we need to create an enum. This is an item rarity enum which will represent the quality of our role playing game item.

Simply create your enum by right clicking the content browser and clicking Enumeration in the Blueprint category.

Then set the values as shown that you require. If you are following along with this guide, copy the values in the image below.

Creating our Struct

Now that we have our enum created, next we need to create the struct that our data table will use for the types of values it will hold.

Right click anywhere in the content browser, then click Structure in the Blueprints category.

Then set the values as shown that you require. If you are following along with this guide, copy the values in the image below.

Creating our Data table

Finally we can create our data table. This is done exactly the same way by right clicking inside of the content browser and clicking the Data Table option in the Miscellaneous category.

Next there is a popup asking which struct you want to use. In this guide we are using the ExampleStruct we made earlier.

Adding Values to the Data Table

Now that are data table is created and configured correctly, we can press the Add button to add a new row to our data table.

As you can see in the image below, the data table has a new row with some default values from our struct.

We can change the values in the “Row Editor” and the values in the data table will change above.

We can now create as many entries as we want!

Clicking the row name section in the row, we can change the row name. In this example we are using BronzeSword as the new row name.

The Damage, Rarity, and Sell Price values we defined earlier are in the Data Table view, and the Row Editor below.

Changing the values in the Row Editor will affect the values stored in the data table.

Don’t forget to Save often to prevent losing your changes!

Using your Data Table

Now that we have our data table created, configured, and filled with data, we can now learn how to access this data in our code.

We have create an Event BeginPlay node to our level blueprint and have created a Get Data Table Row node.

This Get Data Table Row node asks for a data table asset reference, and a row name.

Data Table reference is our data table we created earlier, and the Row Name is the row we want to try to find the data for.

If the row is found, the Row Found pin will run code and the Out Row will contain our data, if the row is not found, the Row Not Found pin will run code and the Out Row data will be invalid.

We can set the Data Table reference by clicking on the select asset drop down and selecting our data table from the list of assets.

Now we can split the Out Row struct by right clicking and clicking Split Struct Pin in the menu. This will split our struct into all the types and values in contains for easy visibility.

We can also see that our Row Name is now a drop down that contains all the available row names. This can be overridden by connecting a value to the Row Name pink pin.

Now that we have split our Out Row struct, we can see the Damage, Rarity, and Sell Price values we set earlier.

Looping over your Data Table Rows

Now that we can access a specific row in our data table, it is essential to know how to use a loop with a data table.

In the example below we have created a Get Data Table Row Names node. This returns an Array with all of the row names inside of the data table.

We can then connect this to a For Each Loop node. This will now run the Loop Body for each Row Name in the Out Row Names from our Data Table.

Finally connecting our For Each Loop into a Get Data Table Row like before, we can then connect the Array Element pink pin to the Row Name pink pin.

This will now get the data for that row name each time the loop runs.

We can then use the Out Row values however we want in the project!

Conclusion

Now you have learned how to create, configure, populate, and implement data tables in your Unreal Engine 5 project!

Almost every Unreal Engine project benefits from using a data table to efficiently and neatly store data for use within the systems you develop.

Working collaboratively using data tables makes sharing a single source of truth for your projects data simple and does not require any C++ knowledge!

Further Reading:

• A more advanced look into Data Table merging and composite tables from Unreal Engine 5’s wiki
• A great visual guide for Data Tables by Gorka Games (Not affiliated with CouchLearn)
• The official Unreal Engine 5 documentation for Data Tables in Blueprints

The post How to use Data Tables in your Unreal Engine 5 game appeared first on Couch Learn.

Prerequisites

To follow this guide you need to understand the basics of Unreal Engine, working with blueprints inside the editor and using a custom Game Instance. We have linked guides below to these topics.
The basics of blueprint actors.
Adding variables to blueprint actors.
How to use custom Game Instances.
Custom Events in Unreal Engine.

It would also be beneficial to understand how Input Actions work in Unreal Engine:
Click here to learn how to use input actions and axis.

How it Works

SaveGame is a class in Unreal Engine that is preconfigured to save and load the data contained in the variables you add.

The variables you set are then saved to a file stored on the user’s machine. This is then read and the variables can be accessed in your game.

The save file is located in these locations:
Windows: Local Appdata folder
MacOS: Library/Application Support
Linux: /home/username/.local/share

Almost every variable type can be saved and loaded using the SaveGame class.

Creating our Save Class

Firstly, create a new blueprint class from the content drawer.

Next, in the popup window, click the drop down arrow at the bottom. In the search bar type “SaveGame” and click the option from the list.

Then, give your new SaveGame blueprint a suitable name. We need to remember this as it is used later. In our case, we used the name DemoSaveGame.

Saving the variables

Now that your SaveGame class has been created, you can add any variables you need for your project.

For this demo we create a new Vector variable called “PlayerPosition”.

Once you have created the variables you need for your project, click Compile and Save to ensure your changes are applied and saved.

Adding Save and Load Functionality

Firstly, in our Game Instance, add two new custom events. “Save” and “Load”.

We also need to add a new variable on the Game Instance. Name this variable SaveGame and set the type to the class you created in the previous step.

Loading our Variables from the Save File

Now that our Game Instance is setup, on the Load event, create a new “Does Save Game Exist” node. The “Slot Name” pin needs to be given a name. This can be set to anything you want. Each different name you use saves to a different file.

In our case we just named this “savegame”.

Next, add a branch to the output pin of the “Does Save Game Exist” node. This will branch if our save file exists or not.

If the Save File Exists

From the “True” pin, create a new “Load Game From Slot” node with the same “Slot Name” as before.

Next, from the blue output pin, create a “Cast to” node. This should cast to the class you created in the first step. For us this is “Cast to DemoSaveGame”.

Then set the Game Instance’s Save Game variable we created earlier to the output of the “Cast to” node.

From there, we create a “Set Actor Location” node. This will be used to move our character to the saved location.

From the variables list on the left of the editor, drag the “SaveGame” variable and drop near the the nodes. This will show a list of options. Click the “Get SaveGame” option to allow us easy access to this variable for the next few steps.

Dragging from the “Save Game” blue pin then typing “get player position”, we can see our “Player Position” Vector variable that we created earlier. Click this option in the list to add it to the blueprint graph.

Next, connect the “Player Position” vector pin to the “New Location” option on the “Set Actor Location” node.

Lastly, create a “Get Player Character” node and connect this to the “Target” pin of the “Set Actor Location” node. This now gets our saved player position and moves the player character to it.

If the Save File doesn’t Exist

If the save file does not exist then we need to create a new file. From the “False” pin create a new “Create Save Game Object” node. Then set the “Save Game Class” purple pin to the custom SaveGame class we created earlier.

Then, set the Game Instance “Save Game” variable to the blue output pin value.

Lastly, connect the “Set Save Game” node to the blueprint nodes above. This can be done by double clicking the white lines to create points.

Connect the blueprints nodes together as shown in the image below.

Saving our Variables to the Save File

Now that we can load saved variables, we need to save the variables!

Firstly, drag and drop the SaveGame variable and click “Get SaveGame” next to the Save event.

From there, we create an “? Is Valid” node. This allows us to branch the code if our save file has been loaded or not.

If the Save File is Valid

From our “Save Game” blue variable, create a “Set Player Position” node and connect it to the “Is Valid” pin.

Next, create a “Get Player Character” node and from the blue output pin, create a “Get Actor Location” pin.

Lastly, connect the yellow output pin of the “Get Actor Location” node to the yellow input pin on the “Set Player Position” node. Now if our save game object is valid we will save the player character location to the save file on disk.

If the Save File is not Valid

If the save game object isn’t valid, we need to create it before saving any data.

Firstly, create a “Create Save Game Object” node, set the purple input value to our previously created save game class, then connect this to the “Is Not Valid” pin as shown below.

Next, set the Game Instance SaveGame variable to the blue output pin of the “Create Save Game Object” node.

Then, connect the “Set Save Game” node to the “Set Player Position” node as shown below. This will save the player character’s position after the “Save Game” object is valid.

Finally, create either a “Save Game to Slot” or “Async Save Game to Slot” node from the blue SaveGame variable.

If your game needs to save lots of information, use the “Async Save Game to Slot” node.

If your game only saves a small amount of data, use the “Save Game to Slot” node.

Make sure to set the “Slot Name” variable to the name you used earlier. In our case this was “savegame”.

Saving and Loading the Player Position

Now that your Save and Load system is complete, we need to trigger this functionality.

In your Player Character class add an Key Press Event. For this guide we used the number 1 key from our ThirdPersonCharacterBP class.

From there, create a “Get Game Instance” node and a “Cast To” node to your custom game instance. Connect the two as shown below.

Next, from the blue “As Game Instance” pin, call the “Save” event we created earlier. Now when we press the number 1 key, our game will save the current player character’s position to the save file.

Repeat the previous step for the number 2 key as shown in the image below.

Finally, call the “Load” event from the “As Game Instance” blue pin. This will now load our saved player position from the save file and teleport our player to that position.

Demo

Download the Project Files

Conclusion

Now your project has saving and loading capabilities!

This is a very basic implementation but allows you to expand this further. Any data you want to save and load can be implemented into the events we created during this guide.

An example of this would be the player’s health. This variable could be created on the SaveGame, saved and loaded onto the character with minimal setup.

Further Reading:
Official UE4/5 documentation for the Saving and Loading in the engine.
Tom Looman’s great guide for implementing Saving and Loading for C++ classes

The post How to Save and Load in Unreal Engine 5 appeared first on Couch Learn.

Before Installation

To reduce the install size of a new install of Unreal Engine, firstly click the plus button next to “Engine Versions”. This is found in the Unreal Engine / Library tab of the Epic Games Launcher.

From there select the engine version you would like to download and click the “Install” button.

In the popup box, choose the directory to install the engine to then click “Options”.

Finally scroll through the list of options and remove the ones you do not need in your install then click “Apply” and “Install”.

We recommend keeping the templates and editor symbols to aid in development and debugging.

The easiest to remove are TVOS and HoloLens2 as most users do not build for these platforms.

After Installation

It is still possible to reduce the install size even if you have already installed a version of Unreal Engine.

First find the version you would like to reduce in size then click the arrow next to “Launch”.

Next click the “Options” button in the drop down menu underneath the editor version you are editing.

Finally scroll through the list of options and remove the ones you want to remove in your current install then click “Apply”.

We recommend keeping the templates and editor symbols to aid in development and debugging.

The easiest to remove are TVOS and HoloLens2 as most users do not build for these platforms.

Conclusion

Your Unreal Engine 5 editor install size is now reduced!

Newer versions of the editor are considerably larger than older Unreal Engine 4 installs and this most likely will continue to grow as more features are added.

For the best development experience, we recommend installing Unreal Engine to a separate 512GB SSD. This improves the speed of the editor and allows you to have all the features and files installed in case you begin to develop for separate platforms or need to use the standard assets.

Click here to read the official UE5 install documentation
Click here to read the official required and recommended hardware for Unreal Engine 5

The post How to reduce Unreal Engine 5 editor install size appeared first on Couch Learn.

Prerequisites

To understand this guide and implement timers into your project, you will need to know how to use custom events and functions in Unreal Engine 5 before starting.

Click here to read our guide on custom events.

How to create Blueprint Timers

Basic Timer Settings

Before we create our timer, we will look at the basic timer settings that all timers have. These allow us to set the frequency of the timer and if the timer repeats or not.

The green Time pin is the time Unreal Engine will wait to call your event. If this value is less than or equal to 0, the timer will be cleared and will not call the event.

The Looping check box will repeat the timer if set to true and only run once if set to false. Ticking this box is best for functionality that you want to run repeatedly.

Timer by Event

When you want to create a timer that uses a custom event in the event graph, you need to use Set Timer by Event.

As shown below, your custom events can be connected using the red event delegate square. Any custom event are connected to this pin to trigger on the time set. Only one event is connected at a time.

Timer by Function

If you want to use a function instead of an event delegate, we have the Timer by Function Name blueprint node. This has function name and object pins replacing the red delegate pin.

Object is the reference to the object that you want to run the function on (e.g. FirstPersonCharacter or your own custom actors). If you want to run the function on this actor, you can leave this pin empty.

“Function Name” is the name of the function found in the function list in your object.

In this example we have created a new function in the My Blueprint panel on the left of the blueprint editor. Our new function is called MyCustomFunction.

Now our function has been created, we then add the functions name into the Function Name pin.

The blueprint node above now run MyCustomFunction after 5 seconds without looping.

Saving the Timer

If you want to change any properties about a timer, you need to save a reference to the return value. The easiest way to do this is to drag from the return value and click Promote to Variable.

Pausing and Unpausing Timers

Now we have a reference to our timer, we can pause and un-pause the timer. The nodes below show the handle and function versions of pausing and unpausing your timer.

Function timers can be paused and unpaused using the function name and do not need a timer handle.

Removing a Timer

When you need a timer to stop, use the clear and invalidate timer blueprint nodes. These nodes will stop the timer and destroy the specified handle object.

When using a Function Timer, you will need to clear and invalidate the timer separately if you want to use a function name.

Checking a Timer’s Status

With the handle or function name, you can check various properties about a timer.

Firstly we have Does Timer Exist. These nodes check if the timer exists in memory. If the timer is cleared and invalidated this value is false.

Is Timer Active will return true if the handle or function name has a timer that is actively running and exists.

“Is Timer Paused” returns true if the timer is not actively running but does exist.

Conclusion

Now you have all the knowledge to use timers in your blueprint code in Unreal Engine 5!

Having all of these nodes at your disposal allows code and functionality to run at specific times and at certain frequencies. This will overall improve the readability of your code and can bring great performance gains. We recommend setting the Time value to 0.1 or 0.05 seconds instead of running every frame on tick.

Further reading:
In depth use of timers with gameplay example from Unreal Engine documentation
Click here to read how C++ Timers work in Unreal Engine

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