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Infinite Ocean

The Infinite Ocean feature in Oceanology provides an expansive ocean that appears limitless, utilizing "origin shifting" technology. This approach relocates the actor's origin as you move your camera, allowing for an infinite ocean effect while maintaining performance. You can observe this effect as the XY coordinates of the actor continuously update while you move in the editor or during gameplay. Notably, the Z axis remains fixed, representing the constant water level.

Overview of Infinite Options in Oceanology

You can find the infinite-related options under the "Infinite" section within the BP_OceanologyInfiniteOcean class. These options allow you to control the behavior of the infinite ocean feature.

Explanation of Options

  • Enable Infinity: This option is enabled by default to provide the infinite ocean effect. Uncheck this option to disable the infinity feature, effectively creating a limited-size water body.

  • Enable Infinity in Editor: When enabled, the infinite ocean effect is visible while you are working in the editor, allowing you to visualize the ocean's behavior during design time.

  • Enable Infinity in Game: This setting controls whether the infinite ocean effect is enabled during gameplay. Disable it if you want to see a fixed-size ocean during play.

  • Follow Update Interval: Controls the rate at which the actor's origin is updated while following the camera. This helps fine-tune the movement of the origin.

  • Time Jump: This parameter is used during the origin shifting and snapping process. It can be adjusted to modify the infinity effect, though the default value is recommended for most use cases.

  • Force Follow: Use this button to force the ocean to update its position to follow the player character or camera, which is useful for debugging and testing the infinite effect.

Setting Up the Infinite Ocean

To help you get started, here is an example of how to set up the infinite ocean feature in your scene using BP_OceanologyInfiniteOcean:

  1. Add BP_OceanologyInfiniteOcean to Your Scene

    • Drag and drop the BP_OceanologyInfiniteOcean actor into your scene. This actor provides the infinite ocean effect by default.

  2. Configure Infinite Settings

    • In the details panel, go to the "Infinite" section.
    • Make sure Enable Infinity is checked to activate the infinite ocean. You can also enable or disable the Enable Infinity in Editor and Enable Infinity in Game options as needed for your workflow.
    • Adjust the Follow Update Interval if you need to change how frequently the ocean updates its position to follow the camera.

  3. Test the Infinite Effect

    • Play your scene and observe how the ocean follows the camera's movement. You can enable debug options to see how the XY coordinates shift while maintaining the Z axis.

Creating a Smaller Ocean or Sea

If you want a smaller, non-infinite water body, you can achieve this by:

  • Disabling Infinity: Uncheck the Enable Infinity option to stop the ocean from expanding infinitely.
  • Adjusting QuadTree Settings: Reduce the Grid Size in the QuadTree settings to make the ocean appear smaller. This allows you to control the scale and appearance of the ocean, creating smaller water bodies like lakes or seas.

Summary

The Infinite Ocean feature in Oceanology is a powerful tool for creating expansive water bodies without the performance cost of an enormous static mesh. By using origin shifting, the ocean maintains an infinite appearance while dynamically adjusting to the player’s movement. You can customize the ocean's behavior through the available settings to create anything from vast oceans to smaller, confined seas.

For further assistance or detailed examples, consider joining our Discord community, where you can find additional tips and support for configuring the infinite ocean effect in Oceanology.