Create a UE5 GameFeature Plugin

To make a game based on Lyra, you need to create a GameFeature Plugin in your LyraStarterGame project.

There isn’t anything particularly special about this plugin except it must go into the Plugins/GameFeatures directory.

How to Create a UE5 GameFeature Plugin for Lyra

With the LyraStarterGame project open in the UE5 editor, follow these steps:

• UE5 Editor Menu: Edit > Plugins
• Click + Add button
• Choose Game Feature (with C++) template
• Name Plugin (I called mine XistGame)
• Click Create Plugin button

When you create this, it will supply you with an initial, mostly empty GameFeatures.GameFeatureData data asset, named after your game.

Add Dependencies to Other Plugins

This step is optional. You only need to do this if you want to extend your game from the base ShooterCore. If your game will not use any ShooterCore content at all, you can skip this step.

• Open your XistGame data asset (whatever you named your plugin).
• Change the Current State of your plugin to Registered (by default it should be Active)
• Click the Edit Plugin button
• Scroll to the bottom where it lists Dependencies
  • Add dependency for ShooterCore
  • Add dependency for LyraExampleContent
  • Save button
• Change plugin Current State back to Active
• Save data asset

Initial Plugin Contents

Your plugin now contains minimal default content. There is the uplugin definition, the GameFeatures.GameFeatureData uasset config, an icon and required boilerplate C++ code.

Plugins/GameFeatures/XistGame directory list

XistGame
├── Content
│   └── XistGame.uasset
├── Resources
│   └── Icon128.png
├── Source
│   ├── XistGameRuntime
│   │   ├── Private
│   │   │   └── XistGameRuntimeModule.cpp
│   │   └── Public
│   │       └── XistGameRuntimeModule.h
│   └── XistGameRuntime.Build.cs
└── XistGame.uplugin

Don’t like those default “Runtime” names?

If you don’t like having files named XistGameRuntime (and API export code XISTGAMERUNTIME_API) then you can change them now.

I’m anal and it bugged me to see XISTGAMERUNTIME_API everywhere rather than XISTGAME_API everywhere. I know (and don’t really care) that my plugin is being loaded at runtime. I don’t need to see it all over the code!

If you want to change this, NOW IS THE TIME. This is totally optional, but if you wait, it may not be easy to change it later.

How to: Remove “Runtime” Suffix from GameFeature Plugin Code Names

Next Step: Configure Asset Manager

Now that you have a plugin, you need to configure Asset Manager so that it knows where to find your game’s components.

Configure Asset Manager or go back to Lyra Starter Game

Want more info?

More information RE creating a GameFeature Plugin can be obtained by watching some Epic Games developer discussions that I have annotated.