Unreal Development Kit (UDK) is the free edition of the famous and widely adopted Unreal Engine. Unreal Development Kit is used in the creation and development of games which includes; rendering of the 2D or 3D graphics, scripting, asset management, physics, audio management, animation, networking, artificial intelligence, memory management, threading.

Learning Unreal Development Kit (UDK) is essential for anyone willing to start game development for any platform. Many games were created using Unreal Development Kit (UDK) like; Transformers sequel, Sin City, Mirror’s Edge, Mass effect sequel, Infinity Blade, Gears of War sequel, Devil may Cry sequel, Dishonored, DeadPool, Borderlands sequel, BulletStorm, BioShock: Infinite, and Batman sequel, the complete list of games that were created using Unreal Engine could be found here.

This post is a road map for anyone willing to start learning Unreal Development Kit (UDK) online for free from scratch, the post will present and compare between the best online sources where beginners can start from and follow along, the sources stated in this post are full structured courses so you won’t find a link to a single video or a group of unrelated tutorials.

If you just want the bottom line (the road map to learn Unreal Development Kit “UDK”) and you don’t wish to read the entire article then go to the “Bottom Line” section at the end of the article.

Start Learning UDK for Free from Scratch

The New Boston

The New Boston is the first free online outlet where beginner can start learning UDK. You don’t need to register to have access to the training, just go to the website and you’re ready to go.

Structure: The training is divided into 65 video tutorials that cover most of the topics that beginners should be familiarized with in order to start using UDK.

Interface: The interface is very simple, just go to the website and click on the topic you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the video’s window.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The course is well-structured and organized for beginners.
3. The instructor makes it easy for beginners to follow along.

Cons

1. UnrealScript isn’t covered in this training.

Verdict: This is the best outlet for beginners to start learning UDK through video tutorials.

World of Level Design

World of Level Design is the second free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK through video tutorials; you don’t have to register to have access to the training.

Structure: The training is divided into 8 sections, each section is divided into lessons and each of these lessons covers a certain topic in UDK. The training is available as video as well as text.

Interface: The interface is quite simple, click on the lesson you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the page where the lesson resides.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The training is well-structured and organized for beginners.
3. The training is available as video as well as text.

Cons

1. The training isn’t provided by the same instructor which makes the user’s experience inconsistent.
2. UnrealScripting isn’t covered in this training.

Verdict: This is a good outlet for beginners to start learning UDK; especially for those who don’t mind the inconsistent experience.

Design 3

Design 3 is the third free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK through video tutorials, you don’t need to register to have access to the training, but you might need to register in order to have access to the assets used throughout the training.

Structure: The training is divided into 5 sections, each of the sections is divided into lesson; each of these lessons covers a certain topic in UDK.

Interface: The interface is quite simple; just select the section from the menu at the left hand-side of the screen and you’ll be directed to the section’s page, then select the lesson you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the lesson video’s page.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The training is well-structured and organized for beginners.

Cons

1. The training covers an old release of UDK, though that might not a big problem for beginners.
2. UnrealScripting isn’t covered in this training.

Verdict: This training is suitable for those who’re interested in having an overview about UDK.

3D Tutorials

3D Tutorials is the fourth free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK through video tutorials; you don’t need to register to have access to the course.

Structure: There’s no structure for the training, it’s more of a YouTube for UDK but unlike YouTube the training is created by the same instructor. The tutorials cover many topics in UDK.

Interface: Click on the lesson you’re interested in and the video will start.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The tutorial covers UnrealScripting.

Cons

1. There’s no structure for the course.
2. There’s no way by which the training could be organized to make it helpful for beginners (e.g. playlists).

Verdict: Though this outlet covers most of the topics in UDK in depth; but the lack of structure and organization makes it not suitable for beginners.

Magic Stone Studio

Magic Stone Studio is the fifth free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK; you don’t need to register to have access to the training or the assets used in the training.

Structure: The training is divided into 3 sections, and each section is divided into lessons, each of these lessons covers a certain topic in UDK. This training has a “learn by doing” style; it’s also worth noting that part of this training is available as video and part of it as text.

Interface: The interface is very simple, click on the lesson you’re interested in and the video tutorial will start.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The course is well-organized for beginners.
3. UnrealScript is covered in this training.

Cons

1. UnrealScript isn’t covered in depth; it’s more of an overview.

Verdict: This training is suitable for beginners interested in getting an overview about UnrealScript.

Waylon Art

Waylon Art is the sixth free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK, this training is text based only. You don’t need to register to have access to the training.

Structure: The training is divided into 3 main sections; each section is divided into lessons. Each lesson covers a group of topics in UDK.

Interface: The interface is very simple, just click on the lesson you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the lesson’s page.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The training is well-structured for beginners.

Cons

1. The training is available as text only which might be a problem for beginners who prefer video tutorials.

Verdict: This training is suitable for beginners who prefer text-based tutorials.

Epic Games

Epic Games is the seventh free online outlet where beginners can start learning UDK, the training available is text-based and no registration is required to have access to it.

Structure: The training is divided into 5 sections, and each of the sections covers various topics in UDK.

Interface: just click on the section you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the section’s page where you can select the topic you’re interested in learning more about it.

Now, pros and cons:

Pros

1. Free.
2. The training covers many topics that beginners should be familiarized with in order to start using UDK.

Cons

1. The training isn’t easy to navigate which might be cumbersome for beginners.

Verdict: The organization of the training might be a problem for many beginners.

Bottom Line

The recipe for learning UDK for free

1. The New Boston is the best place for beginners to start learning UDK through video tutorials.
2. Waylon Art is the best place to learn UDK for beginners who prefer text-based training.
3. Design 3 is the best place for anyone willing to have an overview about UDK.

Remember that the first step is always the toughest step, and the aim of this post is to provide you with resources that will help you take your first step in UDK.