UNREAL MATERIAL SYSTEM | TECHNICAL MATERIAL
Technical details
| Software | Unreal Engine 5 |
| Category | Technical Materials / Shaders |
| Rendering | Realtime |
| Type | Shader Development |
| Approach | Material Editor · Procedural Shading · Reusable Systems |
Project Goal
The goal of this collection was not to develop a single shader, but to explore different real-time shading techniques using exclusively the Unreal Engine Material Editor. Each case study investigates a different visual and technical approach, developing reusable materials through fully parameterized systems ready to integrate directly into interactive projects.
As part of the process, all shaders were designed to work using Material Instances, exposing only the necessary parameters to control their visual behavior without modifying the original Material Graph. This approach facilitates reuse, accelerates artistic iteration, and allows for the generation of multiple variations from a single implementation, following standard methodology in production environments.
Workflow
Technical Idea & Objective → Technique Research → Material Graph Development → Parameterization → Real-Time Validation → Reusable Material Instance
Case Studies
01 · Advanced Toon Shader
This shader explores the implementation of a Non-Photorealistic Rendering (NPR) system developed entirely in the Unreal Engine Material Editor, with the goal of reproducing an illustration- and comic-inspired aesthetic without resorting to post-processing techniques.
The material uses Blend Mode Opaque and Shading Model Unlit. The separation between lights and shadows is dynamically calculated from the direction of the Directional Light, while reflections and the Outline respond in real time to camera orientation and geometry. The result is a fully dynamic shader capable of automatically adapting to different lighting conditions while maintaining a consistent stylized finish.
02 · Stylized Energy Shader
Stylized shader designed to represent energy effects through procedural deformation and real-time animation.
The material uses Blend Mode Masked, Shading Model Unlit, and Two Sided rendering. The combination of Two-Sided Texturing and World Position Offset generates dynamic deformations over the geometry, providing a sense of movement and volume without needing to modify the original mesh. All visual behavior is controlled from within the Material Graph itself using instanced parameters.
03 · Pixelation Shader
This shader develops a procedural pixelation system capable of being applied to any material without modifying its original textures.
El efecto se obtiene cuantizando las coordenadas UV en función de la resolución de pantalla. La resolución se divide mediante un parámetro instanciable que determina el tamaño de cada píxel y, utilizando operaciones matemáticas sobre las coordenadas UV, el material modifica la forma en que todas las texturas son muestreadas.
El shader no modifica las texturas; modifica la forma en la que son muestreadas.
This technique works equally on Base Color, Normal Maps, and the rest of the material maps, maintaining a consistent behavior regardless of the original content.
04 · Hologram Shader
Shader developed to recreate a stylized holographic effect through transparency and procedural animation.
The material uses Blend Mode Translucent and Shading Model Unlit, fully controlling the lighting through the Emissive channel. The main effect is based on a Generate Bands system, which creates the animated horizontal stripes characteristic of a holographic projection. The material's entire behavior is controlled through exposed parameters, facilitating its adaptation to different contexts and visual needs.
05 · Stylized Magic Orb
Stylized shader developed to represent a magic orb with continuous procedural movement and a clearly artistic aesthetic.
The material uses Shading Model Unlit and combines Fresnel, Motion 4Way Chaos, and Bump Offset to generate apparent depth and an internal flow of energy without the need for additional geometry. All animation is produced through procedural UV displacement, maintaining a lightweight, fully parameterized system ready to generate multiple variations from a single implementation.
Material Graph Architecture
The following Material Graphs show the organization and structure of the different shaders developed during this project. Their objective is not to document the construction process, but to reflect the architecture, modularity, and complexity of each system within the Unreal Engine Material Editor.
01 · Advanced Toon Shader/ 02 · Stylized Energy Shader / 03 · Pixelation Shader/ 04 · Hologram Shader/ 05 · Stylized Magic Orb
