Epic showcases Unreal Engine 4 with screenshots

Epic has publicized screenshots that demonstrate the raw power of Unreal Engine 4.

The company's staff discussed the technology, which was unveiled in secret at the Game Developers Conference earlier this year, with Wired. In the article, Gears of War design director Cliff Bleszinski revealed Epic's intentions for the industry at large.

"There is a huge responsibility on the shoulders of our engine team and our studio to drag this industry into the next generation," he said. "It is up to Epic, and Tim Sweeney in particular, to motivate Sony and Microsoft not to phone in what these next consoles are going to be. It needs to be a quantum leap. They need to damn near render Avatar in real time, because I want it and gamers want it — even if they don't know they want it."

Members of Epic have seen specs for Sony's and Microsoft's next-gen consoles and want them to be even more powerful.

“‘We want 10 times more power; here’s what we can do with it,'" Tim Sweeney said, describing their experience at GDC. "We’re much more in sync with the console makers than any other developer is. That means we can give detailed recommendations with a complete understanding of what is going to be commercially possible.”

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