[Gear VR] What version of Unreal Engine are you using?

"motorsep" wrote:

"andrewtek" wrote:
I really like UE4, but I need my tools to work. I just installed Unity and was able to get something deployed to my GearVR in less than 45 minutes. It worked perfectly.

Sigh.

Switching to Unity?

Definitely not switching.

After pulling my hair out trying to get UE4 working, I was willing to ~try~ anything. I needed to see something work. The fact that Unity did work was sort of a clue too. Unity's build actually compiled for Android SDK 23 (Marshmallow) and used a newer version of the Oculus SDK. That had me trying to get UE4 to build SDK23 (no luck) and gave me additional hope that trying 4.11.preview 7 might solve my runtime problem.

The main reason I really wanted to get UE4 working is that I am working on something that has GearVR and Rift components. We really want to be able to share multiplayer logic between them.

Thanks again for your time motorsep!

Oh, I didn't mean switching due to inability to build for Gear VR. I was wondering if you considered switching because of performance issues, lack of features and general lack of interest in Gear VR on Epic's part (now that Oculus expressed desire to change things around, Epic are the ones that hold back).

For me, there are 2 things that make UE4 beat Unity any day (which makes it a really hard call, even with all the issues I mentioned in the past posts) - Blueprints and free multiplayer with dedicated servers. Even if I conquer C#, there is still MP that has to be paid for based on number of players and other stuff.

We are working with Epic on better Gear VR support and they are interested! Initial support was only added recently. The stock version of 4.10 comes with mobile SDK 0.6.2, which will not work properly with S7 as you have found. As you noted, 4.11 is not yet ready for prime time, but all new features and performance optimizations are being added there, so it is interesting if you are a strong programmer and interested in working around the open issues with it. Today, the only way to use 4.10 with Gear VR on S7 is to build from source in our Github repo (https://github.com/Oculus-VR/UnrealEngine/tree/4.10-0.8). In general, Gear VR UE4 development requires you to be technical. If you want to totally avoid coding, Unity is probably a better option.

"vrdaveb" wrote:
If you want to totally avoid coding, Unity is probably a better option.

That's not quite true, since that's what you have to do in Unity in general :) Good thing Unity's VR assets provide all non-programmer need to get started, but then Oculus Utils have to be merged into it which is quite technical. On the contrary, using Oculus Utils requires to do coding for everything else (locomotion, UI, etc.).

We have seen a number of projects use the Oculus Utilities for Unity without writing any code. However, especially on mobile, the ability to code will give you a lot more control over the app's behavior.

"vrdaveb" wrote:
We have seen a number of projects use the Oculus Utilities for Unity without writing any code. However, especially on mobile, the ability to code will give you a lot more control over the app's behavior.

Indeed, being able to code is a power necessary to be able to achieve a better project.

I am just noting that an artist/designer can achieve more, and quicker, using BP with UE4 than using Unity and C# simply because C# is actual programming language that needs to be known at a certain capacity, IMO. It took me less time to figure out how to make my UE4 project do automatic screenshots when running on Gear VR, than do something similar in Unity.

I guess what I am saying is BP allows artists to get their prototypes up and running in shorter period of time, and provide that alpha/beta build of the game to either go for early access or/and recruit actual programmer into the project. It would take more time and effort in Unity, unless said person already know C# and general programming practices (using C++ or C#).

And on top of that, having to pay for multiplayer services (Unity) isn't a good thing, when UE4 provides a better solution.

Also, if I want to make a cross-over game, I'd want to stick with one engine and for me as non-programmer (or probably rather someone who doesn't know formal programming language) UE4 seems to be a better option.

What you're asking for (free, performant, cross-platform VR support on heavily resource-constrained mobile devices for non-technical app makers) is a goal of ours and Epic's (and Unity's). Unfortunately, these things take time. For now, I would recommend hiring a programmer or ramping up on C++ if you want to stick with UE4.

Sorry, I still don't see how BP, if used properly (especially if compiled in 4.11), can bog down performance on S6 :/

"vrdaveb" wrote:
In general, Gear VR UE4 development requires you to be technical. If you want to totally avoid coding, Unity is probably a better option.

I don't mind coding or being technical at all. I don't use UE4 to avoid code. I do wish that I would not have needed to figure out, through trial and error, that 4.11.preview was required if building for Galaxy S7. Following are some things that would have helped to make that clear:

1. When you run an app built using UE 4.10.4, instead of having the display shake when turning one's head, throw an "Unsupported Runtime" exception with a message like "This application was not built using Oculus SDK 1.0 or newer." That would have been super useful.
2. Update the documentation to state clearly and prominently that the Galaxy S7 only works with 1.0. I checked the developer blog and this forum, as well as the Unreal Engine forum. I could not find a single mention of this.
3. When someone posts a question to the forum asking what version of UE to use, and mentions they are having issues building for Galaxy S7, having someone at Oculus post a response would be nice too. I totally get that last week was GDC though, and that you are releasing CV1 in just a few days... so monitoring the forum is not (and should not be) the highest priority.

Without at least one of the above, the best assumption I could make was that my own code/setup was broken.

"andrewtek" wrote:
I do wish that I would not have needed to figure out, through trial and error, that 4.11.preview was required if building for Galaxy S7.

Sorry for the frustration. We are setting up better documentation and looking at other ways to help people avoid these hazards when they exist.

"andrewtek" wrote:
instead of having the display shake when turning one's head, throw an "Unsupported Runtime" exception

Good idea. I'll see if this is possible. At first glance, it looks challenging because 0.6.2 does not use our shared SystemActivities. That means the Gear VR service would probably have to catch and stop apps using 0.6.2. The VR service is hard to change, but I will see what we can do.

"andrewtek" wrote:
the documentation to state clearly and prominently that the Galaxy S7 only works with 1.0.

Apologies, the docs for UE4 + Gear VR are very sparse right now. We are reviewing them and we expect to have a better offering and template soon.

You're right - GDC and Rift launch have taken a lot of our bandwidth recently, but the UE4 + Gear VR developer experience is important to us. We are just getting started supporting this, but your feedback will help us make it better.