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Serra Lessons

Week 5 marked a significant push in building the scene within Unreal Engine 5. With the environment taking shape, the focus shifted toward establishing visual effects and testing animation systems. Niagara was used to create a dynamic snowstorm, incorporating wind and layered particle effects to simulate motion and depth. This early VFX pass helped define the atmosphere and tone, creating a cohesive backdrop for the upcoming animation.

While the spaceship assets were easy to set up, figuring out how to animate them convincingly across the scene required additional research. The solution came through the use of the Cinematic Camera Rig Rail system, which allows actors and objects to be attached to a spline path.

This tool enabled the ship to move quickly and fluidly from one side of the environment to another, maintaining cinematic consistency while aligning well with the snowstorm’s direction and flow.

By combining VFX and rigged movement in parallel, Week 5 laid down a functional and visual foundation for the final space chase animation. These elements will guide the next stage, where timing, performance, and camera framing will be refined.

Serra Lesson

Week 4 marked a shift in focus due to technical setbacks. Houdini was not able to run properly on the system, which limited the ability to explore its procedural simulation features. As a result, the decision was made to begin assembling the scene directly in Unreal Engine 5 and prioritise accessible tools within that environment.

Crane rigs were introduced for the spaceship animations, allowing for more controlled and cinematic camera movement during the space chase sequence. This setup helped establish the spatial layout and energy of the scene.

Given the limited time remaining, Niagara was chosen as the primary VFX solution instead of continuing with Houdini. Niagara’s integration within UE5 and its more approachable learning curve made it the practical alternative for developing effects such as engine trails, debris, and atmospheric elements.

Serra Lesson

Experimentation with Gaea revealed its strength in hierarchical, node-based terrain generation. Each terrain element builds logically from the last, starting with broad forms like canyons, then refining into rock formations, adding snow layers, and finally blending in surface details such as scattered rocks. This layered approach allows for a high degree of control and realism, making it well-suited for crafting complex natural landscapes.

However, after importing the landscape into Unreal Engine 5, the terrain appeared less detailed, potentially due to limitations in the export settings or resolution of the heightmaps and masks. While the scene runs smoothly on the current hardware, further investigation is being done through forums and documentation to improve visual fidelity in UE5.

A side-by-side comparison was created to evaluate the visual fidelity between Gaea and Unreal Engine 5. The Gaea render on the right contains noticeably more terrain detail, while the UE5 version on the left appears flatter and less refined. This discrepancy is likely due to resolution settings during the export process or limitations in the landscape material setup within UE5. Despite this, the scene performs well on current hardware.

Further research is being conducted through forums and documentation to improve landscape fidelity in UE5. Houdini exploration continued, focusing on how its procedural tools could enhance environmental effects like snow displacement and surface erosion, adding more dynamic elements to the scene.