CCP has announced an agreement with EPIC Games China to licence Unreal Engine 3 for use in the development of DUST 514™. They have also announced that they will be working along side geometrics to integrate their Enlighten real-time lighting product with Unreal technology. Dust 514 is the first sheduled console release to combine the use of Enlighten with the Unreal Engine 3 to produce fully dynamic lighting for console platforms.

“The dynamic large-scale battlefields of DUST 514 presented an interesting challenge for us,” said Hilmar Petursson, CEO of CCP. “We determined Unreal Engine 3 to be the perfect solution because its tremendous flexibility allows us to easily integrate new technology and produce stunning results.”

“In DUST 514, CCP is creating the very first game of its kind, and thus requires an engine versatile enough to handle these new demands,” said Paul Meegan, CEO Epic Games China. “Unreal Engine 3 will enable DUST 514 to build upon the standards of visual excellence that CCP achieved in EVE Online. We’re avid fans of CCP and their games. The results will be spectacular.”

“Standardizing on Unreal Engine 3 gives CCP’s development team the time and flexibility to focus on extensions such as Enlighten, and to perfect the optimal client-side engine and pipeline to fully realize CCP’s vision for creative and artistic excellence. With its own Core Technology Platform (CTP), CCP can provide a fully scalable and persistent online gaming experience that meets both the visual, technical and creative demands for DUST 514.”

The lighting technology from Geometrics is now fully integrated with dust 514 which will allow the artists and level designers to enhance the mood and atmosphere of the game through dynamic lighting. This is the same technology that was seen in the early footage of “Incarna” (walking in stations)

“Having already produced stunning real-time radiosity results with Geomeric’s Enlighten technology on the PC platform, we entered into a partnership with them to integrate their technology with Unreal Engine 3. The results knocked my socks off,” said Hilmar Petursson, CEO of CCP. “Additionally, we now have rapid iteration on the lighting which is crucial to achieve the high bar we have set for Dust 514.”

“Our advanced lighting technology will help players immerse themselves in the incredible universe CCP is creating,” said Gary Lewis, CEO Geomerics. “We look forward to seeing how CCP will take advantage of the integration between Unreal Engine 3 and Enlighten in this new category of videogame.”

All this puts dust 514 in good company. Just take a look at the list of top quality games that use Unreal Technology: Gears of War, Mass Effect, BioShock, Unreal Tournament, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas, America’s Army, Mirror’s Edge, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell the list just goes on!