Deepening Our Understanding on the Use of Models and Code in Game Software Engineering: A Controlled Experiment in Unreal Engine

Video games are not just a work of art; they also involve a significant amount of programming. This programming part can be developed using code (C++) or software models (Blueprints), as is the case with the widespread Unreal game engine. In fact, in Unreal projects, it is common to use both code and software models. This work deepens our understanding of the use of code and software models in the software development of video games. To achieve this, we conducted a controlled experiment by comparing code and software models in Unreal. The experiment involved 31 active professional developers from 15 video game companies. Our results can help to explain the success of software models in video game workers. The results show that Blueprints benefit both developers and artists as effective development artifacts. Despite challenges in testing, modularization, and performance, they improve correctness. Their visual, constrained structure reduces errors and supports interdisciplinary collaboration.