Just over half of game developers believe generative AI is detrimental to the industry, according to a report published earlier this year. Epic Games shared its strategy for incorporating generative AI into Unreal Engine during a keynote at Unreal Fest on Wednesday, where it also announced new features for Unreal Engine 5.8 and preliminary details regarding Unreal Engine 6 (UE6).
The Unreal Engine 5.8 update, released on the same day, includes an experimental Model Context Protocol (MCP) plugin that allows integration of generative AI models like Claude and Gemini. Epic aims to make the MCP a core element of UE6, enhancing the development experience.
Marcus Wassmer, head of Epic’s development team, stated in a blog post that generative AI models function as “creativity and productivity multipliers” to help teams focus on more vital creative tasks rather than time-consuming manual work. Wassmer emphasized that the goal for UE6 is to significantly decrease tedious content creation work, thereby allowing more time for creative exploration and iterative polishing of content.
Epic demonstrated how Claude Code can connect to Unreal Engine, extracting assets from a library and placing them into a virtual living space, while still allowing for manual adjustments. Additionally, the demonstration illustrated how a developer could create a city in UE that automatically adjusts its layout and environmental factors, such as lighting, as new assets are integrated.
The company highlighted that the plugin will facilitate automation in asset creation, testing, and optimization by interfacing with core Unreal Engine systems, including blueprints and materials. This functionality is expected to enhance efficiency and creative options for developers.
In November, CEO Tim Sweeney discussed the idea of a “made with AI” tag, which could serve important roles in authoring disclosure for art exhibits and digital content licensing marketplaces, reflecting changes in future production methods.
The 2026 State of the Game Industry report, released in January, found that 36 percent of surveyed game industry workers were utilizing generative AI tools, primarily for research and brainstorming, although 52 percent perceived generative AI as harmful to the industry, a noticeable increase from 30 percent in 2025 and 18 percent in 2024. Only 7 percent viewed it as beneficial.
At Unreal Fest, Epic announced plans to merge Unreal Engine 5 and Unreal Engine for Fortnite (UEFN) into a unified platform for UE6. The company is also testing the ability to import Fortnite skins into other UE6 games and vice versa. UE6 is projected to enter early access in late 2027, with a full release expected 12 to 18 months following.
In terms of collaboration, Epic revealed that creators using UEFN will soon be able to develop games based on The Simpsons, in addition to existing ties with Star Wars. More than 30 collaborations for Fortnite are scheduled for this year, including partnerships with titles such as Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, Vampire Survivors, Control Resonant, and Phantom Blade Zero.
However, Poncle, the developer of Vampire Survivors, expressed reservations regarding Epic’s adoption of generative AI for asset creation. Poncle stated on Reddit, “Following today’s news about generative AI usage by Epic to create all sort [sic] of game assets, including Fortnite characters, we’re currently ‘reviewing’ our collaboration with Fortnite.” The situation remains fluid as discussions continue.
