Unreal Engine 5.8 Lets Animators Select Mesh Surfaces As Control Points
Learn more about Direct Mesh Controls.
In case you missed it, Unreal Engine 5.8 preview dropped last week, bringing plenty of updated and brand-new features, including experimental Mesh Terrain, PCG and PVE improvements, plus major changes to rigging and animation workflows.
As Control Rig Physics moves into Beta with this release, Unreal Engine 5.8 also introduces Direct Mesh Controls (DMC), an experimental system that basically lets you interact with controls directly on the mesh surface, significantly cleaning up the viewport. Instead of relying on traditional control shapes like boxes, circles, or spheres, you can now simply select the mesh.
Users online have already compared it to Pixar's Presto animation software. For a closer look at this feature and the many other additions in Unreal Engine 5.8, check out the recent video from Stéphane Biava, also known as Proj Prod:
If you're just getting started with animation in Unreal Engine, Stéphane has a great video that breaks down why animating in-engine has become a real alternative. Visit his YouTube channel for various great tutorials.
Epic Games also offers a free rigging workshop that teaches you how to build animation-friendly rigs from scratch:
There are plenty of other additions in the preview that go beyond these features. Check out the Unreal Engine 5.8's roadmap for more information.
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