Amazon’s latest version of Lumberyard game engine targets accessibility

Amazon is unveiling its latest update for its video game creation engine, Lumberyard Beta 1.7, which includes more than 403 new features, improvements, and fixes.

J.C. Connors, senior leader of Amazon Lumberyard, said in a blog post that customer engagement with Lumberyard — which is based on a license from Crytek and its CryEngine — has exceeded the company’s expectations. Amazon gives Lumberyard away for free and charges for things such as web services.

“We are getting continuous feedback from game developers of all types, including some of the industry’s most ambitious developers, like Cloud Imperium, who are building incredible connected worlds,” Connors said.

The updates make Lumberyard easier to use and more accessible to professional game developers. Developers can now get an asset, such as art, into the engine and iterate on the details more easily.

“As our team thinks about accessibility, we also want to make sure that our choices never block you from achieving your vision, no matter its sophistication or quality, or the size and makeup of your team,” Connors said.

Connors said a new Asset Processor get assets into the engine nearly instantly. You simply save a file (for example, from Maya or Photoshop) into a folder, and the Asset Processor automatically processes that file from source art into game-ready assets. You can also browse the assets and use them quickly.

Amazon also revamped the layout and information architecture of the Lumberyard Editor itself. There are hundreds of features accessed through the Lumberyard Editor, and Amazon simplified the user interface. Amazon’s emphasis with the engine is creating community-driven games, as the engine has built-in hooks for Amazon’s Twitch livestreaming technology.

“As the industry evolves, more people play, and fans demand even higher quality content, we’ll continue to improve your ability to work fast, achieve your most ambitious vision, and build a game your fans will love, regardless of whether you are an engineer, artist, game designer, or a new role that hasn’t been invented yet,” Connors said.