Animation Editors
An overview of the Animation Editor modes in Unreal Engine.
Character animations in Unreal Engine are built on the foundation of a Skeletal Mesh, a rigged mesh that can be manipulated to create animations. In addition, Animation Blueprints can be augmented to Skeletal Meshes to apply logic that governs animation behavior and interactions within levels.
Unreal Engine provides a variety of animation tools to work with Skeletal Meshes to further enhance your animations. This page provides an overview of these primary systems.
Animation Editors
Here you will find information about the Animation Editors in Unreal Engine, such as the Skeleton Editor, the Animation Sequence Editor, and the Skeletal Mesh Editor.
Skeleton Editor
An in depth look at the Skeleton Editor mode in Unreal Engine.
An in depth look at the Skeleton Editor mode in Unreal Engine.
Skeletal Mesh Editor
An in depth look at the Skeletal Mesh Editor mode in Unreal Engine.
An in depth look at the Skeletal Mesh Editor mode in Unreal Engine.
Animation Sequence Editor
An in depth look at the Animation Sequence Editor in Unreal Engine.
An in depth look at the Animation Sequence Editor in Unreal Engine.
Animation Blueprints
In Unreal Engine, Animation Blueprints are a powerful and versatile system that provides you with the ability to visually script your animation behavior. With Animation Blueprints, you can control animation blending, script interactions, and create other procedural behaviors.
Animation Blueprint Editor
An overview of the Animation Blueprint Editor and its user interface.
An overview of the Animation Blueprint Editor and its user interface.
Graphing in Animation Blueprints
Edit, blend, and manipulate poses on Skeletal Meshes using various graphs in Animation Blueprints.
Edit, blend, and manipulate poses on Skeletal Meshes using various graphs in Animation Blueprints.
State Machines
Create logic-based branching animation by using State Machines.
Create logic-based branching animation by using State Machines.
Animation Node Reference
Descriptions of the various animation nodes available for use in Animation Blueprints.
Descriptions of the various animation nodes available for use in Animation Blueprints.
Animation Slots
Insert entry-points within your Anim Graph to play animation from using Slots.
Insert entry-points within your Anim Graph to play animation from using Slots.
Sync Groups
Synchronize the cycles of animations with different lengths using Sync Groups.
Synchronize the cycles of animations with different lengths using Sync Groups.
Animation Blueprint Linking
Modularize your Animation Blueprint logic by using Animation Blueprint Linking and Templates.
Modularize your Animation Blueprint logic by using Animation Blueprint Linking and Templates.
Animation Assets and Features
These pages contain information about the various Animation Assets and their associated features available to you.
Animation Sequences
Animation assets that contains animations for skeletal meshes.
Animation assets that contains animations for skeletal meshes.
Skeletons
Learn about Skeletons, Bones, and animation data management in Unreal Engine.
Learn about Skeletons, Bones, and animation data management in Unreal Engine.
Blend Spaces
Blend Spaces are graphs where you can plot any number of animations to be blended between based on the values of multiple inputs.
Blend Spaces are graphs where you can plot any number of animations to be blended between based on the values of multiple inputs.
Animation Montage
Animation Montages are animation assets that enable you to combine animations in a single asset and control playback using Blueprints.
Animation Montages are animation assets that enable you to combine animations in a single asset and control playback using Blueprints.
IK Rig
Retarget and procedurally adjust animations using IK Rig and Retargeting tools.
Retarget and procedurally adjust animations using IK Rig and Retargeting tools.
Locomotion
An overview of Character Locomotion features in Unreal Engine.
An overview of Character Locomotion features in Unreal Engine.
Animation Composite
Animation Composites serve as a way to combine multiple animations together and treat them as a single unit.
Animation Composites serve as a way to combine multiple animations together and treat them as a single unit.
Animation Pose Assets
Describes the Animation Pose Asset which can be used to drive animation through weighted curve data.
Describes the Animation Pose Asset which can be used to drive animation through weighted curve data.
Deformer Graph
Use Deformer Graphs to create and edit custom mesh deformations for skinned characters and objects.
Use Deformer Graphs to create and edit custom mesh deformations for skinned characters and objects.
Animation Modifiers
Animation Modifiers enable users to define a sequence of actions for a given animation sequence or skeleton.
Animation Modifiers enable users to define a sequence of actions for a given animation sequence or skeleton.
Mirroring Animation
Mirror animation in Unreal Engine using the Mirror Data Table.
Mirror animation in Unreal Engine using the Mirror Data Table.
Skin Weight Profiles
Describes how you can use Skin Weight Profiles to improve visual fidelity on lower end platforms.
Describes how you can use Skin Weight Profiles to improve visual fidelity on lower end platforms.
Vertex Animation Tool
User guide for the 3ds Max Vertex Animation tool set.
User guide for the 3ds Max Vertex Animation tool set.
Morph Target Previewer
User guide for the editing modes available in the Animation Editor.
User guide for the editing modes available in the Animation Editor.
Live Link
The pages below will help you set up and operate Live Link, a tool for real-time streaming of animation data from external DCC environments.
Connecting your Master Lockit System
Guide on how to use the LiveLink MasterLockit Plugin with a virtual camera
Guide on how to use the LiveLink MasterLockit Plugin with a virtual camera
Connecting your Preston System
A guide to how to use the LiveLink Preston MDR Plugin with a virtual camera.
A guide to how to use the LiveLink Preston MDR Plugin with a virtual camera.
Live Link FreeD
Add tracking and camera data through Live Link with the FreeD protocol, commonly used for camera tracking and Pan, Tilt, Zoom (PTZ) cameras.
Add tracking and camera data through Live Link with the FreeD protocol, commonly used for camera tracking and Pan, Tilt, Zoom (PTZ) cameras.
Live Link VRPN
Add tracking and input data from VR peripherals with the Live Link VRPN plugin.
Add tracking and input data from VR peripherals with the Live Link VRPN plugin.
LiveLinkXR
Use LiveLink with XR devices through the LiveLinkXR plugin
Use LiveLink with XR devices through the LiveLinkXR plugin
Connecting Unreal Engine to Maya with Live Link
Connect Unreal Engine to Audodesk Maya with the Live Link Plugin.
Connect Unreal Engine to Audodesk Maya with the Live Link Plugin.
Using Live Link Data
Provides an overview of the features available for using Live Link to stream data to Actors.
Provides an overview of the features available for using Live Link to stream data to Actors.
Live Link Plugin Development
An overview of plugin development and integration with Live Link.
An overview of plugin development and integration with Live Link.
Live Link Curve Debugger
Using the Live Link Curve Debugger, you can quickly see what the output is of various Live Link curves are in an easy to debug manner.
Using the Live Link Curve Debugger, you can quickly see what the output is of various Live Link curves are in an easy to debug manner.
Connecting Unreal Engine to Motionbuilder with Live Link
Connect Unreal Engine to Audodesk Motionbuilder with the Live Link Plugin.
Connect Unreal Engine to Audodesk Motionbuilder with the Live Link Plugin.
Debugging and Optimization
For performance and debugging concerns, the following pages contain information about animation debugging and optimization.
Animation Sharing Plugin
Create a character animation system that can be efficiently shared across multiple characters.
Create a character animation system that can be efficiently shared across multiple characters.
Animation Compression
Use Animation Compression to reduce the memory impact of your project's animation data.
Use Animation Compression to reduce the memory impact of your project's animation data.
Animation Budget Allocator
System for constraining the time taken for animation data by dynamically throttling Skeletal Mesh Component ticking.
System for constraining the time taken for animation data by dynamically throttling Skeletal Mesh Component ticking.
Animation Insights
Use the Animation Insights to observe and profile your project's gameplay and animation performance during runtime.
Use the Animation Insights to observe and profile your project's gameplay and animation performance during runtime.
Animation Optimization
Use a variety of methods and techniques to optimize Animation Blueprint's performance and stability.
Use a variety of methods and techniques to optimize Animation Blueprint's performance and stability.
Rewind Debugger
With the Rewind Debugger you can record real-time segments of projects and preserve the data for debugging workflows.
With the Rewind Debugger you can record real-time segments of projects and preserve the data for debugging workflows.
Workflow Guides and Examples
Contained below are guides and content examples created using Unreal Engine's animation tool kit.
Animation Shortcuts and Tips
Here you can find workflow shortcuts, tips, and console commands to foster more efficient and productive techniques when utilizing the many animation tools Unreal Engine has to offer.
