UE4 : What is BSP and When Should You Use It?

[@motionforgecg]

The clip of an early version of unreal engine at 0:53 just looks crazy ancient now - it's amazing and great how much its developed.

[@Falgren]

I've been working with bsp in worldcraft/hammer since quake 1 up until team fortress, but I never really got into the unreal editor. I really hope the next video is gonna be on how to go from bsp to static meshes so I might give ue a shot.

[@Linkz64]

You can covert the bsp objects to mesh objects from the properties.

[@Falgren]

@@Linkz64 Cool, like i said never really got into the UE. I tried starting it a few times, but I was like.. This is too alien, time to go back to familiar places haha.

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

It won't be in the next video but I will cover that. And yeah, BSP tools in UE4 are nowhere near the usability of Hammer editor but we gotta work with what we got.

[@ccricers]

I like the parallels between BSP brushes and negative space, as you are carving space to make the levels rather than simply only adding things (like static meshes). Feels very much like the method of designing architectural spaces.

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

Beautifully said!

[@izvarzone]

there are both additive and subtractive brushes, both should be used in level. Though some ppl like to use only additive.

[@emiliancioca]

Useful video, but what does BSP stand for? what "is" a bsp?

[@void_official404]

Binary Space Partitioning

[@emiliancioca]

@@void_official404 thank you :)

[@kyaintit]

Love the channel! I'm starting to learn UE4. It would have been nice to explain what BSP means.

[@0sac]

delicious bsp

[@EX_ANTI]

I don't get it, can't you do everything you said in the primary benefit page with simple static meshes? What makes BSP fundamentally better for this job?

[@brightlighter]

Very helpful. Thank you!

[@Linkz64]

Thank you this is very useful

[@mae2309]

Good shit!!! Love it

[@AdamMann3D]

Binary Space Partition

[@Infarlock]

Does UE4 automatically turn brushes into static meshes? Or do I need to use something like blender to turn it all into a huge model?

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

No. UE4 does not turn BSP brushes into Static Meshes automatically. You could convert BSP brushes into Static Meshes by selecting BSP Brush and in Details Panel there will be an option to "Create Static Mesh" from that BSP brush. Blender offers a way to create Static Meshes (3d models) that are then imported into UE4 to be used as final in-game geometry. I recommend to use Blender or other 3d software to create Static Meshes with rather than converting BSP brushes into Static Meshes inside UE4 (which isn't very efficient).

[@izvarzone]

usually better select many brushes and convert into 1 static mesh, there wont be any inside walls and it gets 1 lightmap UV.

[@Palaxz]

@@izvarzone Making all brushes in one static mesh is a mistake I did long ago. I had split a level into 2-3 static meshes that needed 4096 sized lightmaps, and these made building static lighting to take forever to finish. If you don't use static light, then they will not be that bad. Still, these large static meshes will need collision, and it will be chore to make.

[@ethanrichards1815]

I do have a question from watching the Corridor tutorial. In there when changing the size of the BSP brushes you do it via Geometry Editing instead of resizing with scaling. Is there a reason that approach is used instead?

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

Yes. Geometry Editing mode is easier and more intuitive for me to change the size of the brush and it also helps me to ensure all the brushes stay on the grid. I had a lot of problems maintaining brushes on the grid with Scale Tool, since it scales each brush from the pivot point.

[@ethanrichards1815]

@@WorldofLevelDesign Thanks! I appreciate the quick response, keep up the great vids. I really have been enjoying and learning from your series of videos.

[@chemistchemist228]

I'm sorry - but I didn't get - what is BSP brush? Probably it is just simple cubes, planes etc? i expected that brush are brush where I can paint like vertex painting etc? Do you have any tuts about vertex painting please?

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

Yes. Simple geometry to blockout or create your initial environment with for testing scale, proportions, implementing gameplay and overall environment layout (cubes, planes, cylinders etc.) I don't have vertex painting tutorials yet.

[@justavaneggtv5772]

Hi just a quick question.. i have built a whole base for a level using bsp brushes (not including meshes, doors, objects etc etc, as I'm going to decorate and add all the functionality stuff later) so that being said.. should I export the whole level as a static mesh or should i export parts of it into static meshes and fit it together? I did a test run of exporting the entire level into one giant static mesh and the collison and everything it seems to be working fine.. any tips or warnings I should consider?

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

I would NOT do the entire level as one static mesh. You will get better performance and visual quality if you have several modular meshes that you put together to construct your environment. Also the resolution of your textures and number of materials as well as the type of materials you end up using, this will cause all sorts of problems trying to make that work. As well as trying to change or modify things later will be extremely hard if it is one single mesh. Export parts, export repeated architecture elements (columns, floors, ceiling, stairs, pillars, trims, walls, decorations etc). Then construct the level back together as several final detailed meshes that are being reused throughout your level.

[@justavaneggtv5772]

​@@WorldofLevelDesign I just dont have the time to use modeling software to make parts for a level and im going to have to buy 70% of the models I need for my game anyway. So bsp is the only thing I have time to use, i will export parts of the level and sections into static meshes then :) to improve performance. thanks for your reply. Ive been doing the coding and logic for about a year and a half so struggling with level design a bit. Do you do independent jobs? Do you make and sell models etc?

[@jamiefurey564]

I made a whole new level with BSP and converted it all to static meshes. Now everything is totally black I wish the conversion was simple. I am now stuck and have been for a while. Have you got any tips? My original plan was to make the level in BSP and then convert it all into static mesh but for some reason it isn't working out very well.

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

Yeah, it isn't a perfect system. Reason it's black is probably due to lightmap issues on the converted Meshes. Try to rebuild lighting and perhaps increasing the lightmap resolution on the converted Mesh, that might work. It's likely that the converted Mesh is just too big and can't handle the lighting of it.

[@jamiefurey564]

@@WorldofLevelDesign Thank you

[@jamiefurey564]

@@WorldofLevelDesign Your structure is great though. I have now implemented the prototype phase first. I have blender, if I convert the brushes to static meshes is there a way by using blender that I can add a lightmap?

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

@@jamiefurey564 you should be able to create a second UV channel in Blender that UE4 will use as a lightmap. See this blenderartists.org/t/second-uv-channel/542817 After you re-import the mesh, you'll also need to update UV Coordinate Index to 1 inside the Static Mesh Editor for that Static Mesh for it to take effect.

[@saurabhkumar-bi6im]

sir realistic graphics for information plz

[@NeonFraction]

I’m actually going to disagree, even though I do like BSPs I don’t think they’re a good idea for blockouts. The reason is BSPs allow TOO much creative freedom. It’s easy to forget you need to create modular pieces and BSPs don’t really support modularity. BSPs can be good for a rough draft, but there’s no checks in place to make sure you don’t create a complete mess of a level that will require an absurd amount of art assets or gameplay elements (like cover, ledge to jump over, door sizes, etc.) I think for early ‘sketches’ they can be good, but are awful for white-boxing if not used properly. Everyone has a different approach of course, but for me personally, I wouldn’t go into the white boxing stage with them.

[@WorldofLevelDesign]

Fair enough. Good comment. I like hearing about different workflows others use. Thanks for sharing.

[@izvarzone]

You dont need to make every room of hundreds of pieces, you can make entire room as 1 mesh (converted from BSP) and then add smaller modular details. Not _every_ mesh have to be modular. It actually better for performance that way, because there's less wasted lightmap information, and less objects for CPU. Also with these add/subtract brushes you can make more interesting rooms than ctrl-c ctr-v'ing froor and wall meshes, or if you want change something you move few vertices instead of dozens of meshes. (as long as lightmap looks good, converted BSP into mesh can be that big)

[@ysomadbeats]

Keep in mind that different workflows work for different people.

[@art4style]

if it would have same role like in the past, it would be useful tool to use it instead mesh at some good occassions.. or even build complex levels if someone would rather do it inside Unreal rightaway on the go, if game genre would allow it. Doing work twice is annoying, and as you say, you need to think ahead, thinking of modularity and mesh reuse. It's just good only for very basic proportions/positions idea for import into 3D soft. It's always better to have UVed modular pieces of all build items you would need (depending on the game) to build basic level without props, and then block the level with game ready objects instead, so your work has always progress. Blocking out entire level is just waste of time and redundant step, but also I get it's only tool to share ideas in bigger gamedev teams, not much for small garage devs or one-person indie project, if it's not supposed to be game ready object. If BSP tools would be entire voxel based modelling system, that makes nice optimized UVed gameready mesh after merging, then now we are talking.. You would have entire interior level with materials built in one afternoon, even many many props.

[@Maciej.01]

Thanx

[@saurabhkumar-bi6im]

i like you sir

[@adamjensen253]

thnx

[@kingades1013]

2:13

[@victorzuim]

What I want to know is Why would you use static meshes and not BSP? Is it about performance? Like I understand that to do something more detailed you'll want to work on bender or something, but that corridor in the example, I don't see any difference between the BSP and the Static Meshes. Ow... I found your video today... thanks! kzbin.info/www/bejne/eYvRkIyQlKqJodE

[@sozno4222]

😂 so what is it? Lol. You didn’t even define it. 😂😂. I’m cracking up.

[@goblinphreak2132]

no one is using bsp to block out levels, it would literally be a waste of time. what game engines need to do is allow bsp and mesh to work together to make level design easier. I can model all day and all night in new engines and get literally nowhere. Or I can go back to GTK Radiant and design a level in that same timeframe....

[@izvarzone]

I use it, because I like subtract and additive csg, and not think of topology or lightmap unwrapping.