Epic Games made remarkable announcements about the future of Unreal Engine at the State of Unreal presentation held as part of Unreal Fest. While the company shared the first details about Unreal Engine 6, it also launched Unreal Engine 5.8. At the center of the announcements was the deeper integration of generative artificial intelligence technologies into game development processes. Epic Games aims to enable developers to use their preferred artificial intelligence models directly within Unreal Engine in the new era.
The experimental Model Context Protocol (MCP) plug-in introduced with Unreal Engine 5.8 allows generative artificial intelligence models such as Claude and Gemini to be connected to the game engine. Marcus Wassmer, the head of Epic Games’ development team, stated in his statement published on the company blog that these models can support developers in terms of creativity and efficiency. The goal, according to Wassmer, is to enable teams to focus on more creative and technically critical tasks rather than time-consuming manual processes.
According to the information shared by the company, Unreal Engine 6 aims to reduce repetitive and laborious processes in content production. In this way, it is planned that developers will be able to make more experiments and improve their projects faster. Epic Games states that UE6 will come with tools and workflows that have been tested both in in-house development processes and by Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN).
Unreal Engine 6 will bring artificial intelligence models closer to game development processes
Live demonstrations during the event offered concrete examples of how Epic Games wants to bring this vision to life. In one of the demonstrations, Claude Code connected to the Unreal Engine, selecting objects from an asset library and placing them in a virtual living room. However, developers can continue to make manual edits to the created scene. This approach positions AI as a tool that supports existing workflows rather than replacing the human developer.
In another example, a dynamic city scene was created using Claude Code. The system has been shown to be able to automatically update the city layout as new parks or different assets are added. Artificial intelligence is not limited to just arranging objects; It can change lighting conditions, adjust atmospheric effects, and adapt real-world environmental conditions to the virtual environment.
According to the information shared in Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 5.8 promotional video, the MCP plugin can provide automation in areas such as asset creation, testing processes and optimization. It is stated that the plugin can access the core components of Unreal Engine, including blueprint systems, materials, levels, assets and three-dimensional models. This paves the way for artificial intelligence tools to be used at many stages of the development process.
Epic Games’ approach to generative artificial intelligence has actually been known for a long time. Company CEO Tim Sweeney said in his statements last year that artificial intelligence will take part in most of the game production processes in the future. Sweeney argued that while “made with artificial intelligence” labels might make sense in art exhibitions or licensing platforms, they would become less and less distinctive in game stores.
Despite this, discussions about artificial intelligence in the gaming industry continue. According to the 2026 industry report of the Game Developers Conference (GDC), 36 percent of more than 2,300 industry employees stated that they use productive artificial intelligence tools in their work. While these tools are mostly preferred for research and idea development purposes, they are also used in areas such as prototyping. However, 52 percent of those surveyed think that productive artificial intelligence has negative effects on the industry. This rate has increased significantly compared to previous years.
Other announcements made within the scope of Unreal Fest also attracted attention. Epic Games announced that it plans to combine Unreal Engine 5 and UEFN platforms under Unreal Engine 6. In addition, new systems are being tested so that Fortnite character skins can be ported to other UE6 games and developers can transfer the skins from their own games to Fortnite. The company aims to release the early access version of Unreal Engine 6 towards the end of 2027, and make the full version available approximately 12 to 18 months later.
On the other hand, new collaborations for the Fortnite ecosystem were also announced. Content creators using UEFN will soon be able to create The Simpsons-themed gaming experiences. The company also announced that more than 30 game collaborations are planned for Fortnite in 2026. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, Vampire Survivors, Control Resonant and Phantom Blade Zero are among these projects.
Still, Epic Games’ AI strategy is not welcomed equally by all partners. Poncle, the developer of Vampire Survivors, announced that they are reviewing their Fortnite collaboration following Epic Games’ announcements regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the production of game assets and Fortnite characters. The company stated that new information about how the process will proceed will be shared later. This shows that although artificial intelligence is gaining more ground in game development tools, disagreements across the industry continue.