Riverology
Riverology 3 is built directly from Oceanology Pro, so every Pro update reaches it. If you own Riverology 2, you receive Riverology 3 automatically, at no cost and with no re-purchase.
It is the river piece of the new lineup: rivers with flow, the lake system, the shallow-water simulation (which also produces waterfalls) and its hydraulics kit, plus the systems it shares with Oceanology Lite and Pro, such as swimming, buoyancy and underwater rendering. See how the lineup fits together →
Riverology is a professional spline-based river and water flow system for Unreal Engine, engineered for seamless integration into open-world environments. From tranquil streams to rushing rapids, Riverology provides the tools to create believable, interactive water bodies that respond to terrain, physics, and gameplay.
Who It's For
| Target | Use Case |
|---|---|
| Open-World Studios | Spline-driven river generation spanning kilometers with automatic terrain adaptation |
| Adventure Games | Interactive water with swimming, buoyancy, and flow-based physics |
| Environment Artists | Intuitive spline tools with real-time foam, caustics, and surface effects |
| Technical Artists | Exposed parameters for custom shaders and procedural workflows |
Core Features
🌊 River Generation
- Spline-Driven System - Define river paths with intuitive spline tools that adapt to terrain
- Flow-Based Physics - Realistic water flow affecting buoyancy, swimming, and floating objects
- Large-World Continuity - Rivers spanning World Partition cells without seams
🎨 Visual Effects
- Dynamic Foam - Procedural foam at rapids, obstacles, and shorelines
- Caustics - Underwater light patterns responding to surface movement
- Surface Rendering - Reflections, refractions, and flow-driven normal animation
- Refraction - Physically-based light bending for underwater distortion
🌊 Underwater Environment
- Volumetric Effects - Light scattering, fog, and depth-based color absorption
- Normal Maps - Detailed surface normals for fine water detail and ripples
- Post-Processing - Underwater camera effects with smooth transitions
🎮 Gameplay Systems
- Buoyancy Volumes - Physics-accurate floating with downstream flow forces
- Swimming Mechanics - Complete character swimming with current response
- Debug Tools - Visual debugging for flow vectors, splines, and volumes
🏔️ Terrain Integration
- Landscape Deformation - Automatic riverbed carving and shoreline blending
- RVT Support - Runtime Virtual Texture for seamless terrain-water transitions
- Waterfalls - Cascade shading on the river surface with dedicated waterfall foam textures
Technical Requirements
| Requirement | Specification |
|---|---|
| Engine | Unreal Engine 4.26 - 4.27, 5.0 - 5.7 |
| Development Platforms | Windows |
| Target Platforms | Windows, Mac |
| Graphics API | DirectX 12 (SM6 recommended) |
| Hardware | Mid-range GPU (GTX 1080 / RTX 3060+) or better |
Documentation Structure
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Setup | Installation and first river creation |
| Buoyancy | Flow-based buoyancy physics |
| Swimming | Character swimming with current response |
| Surface | Water surface rendering and reflections |
| Underwater | Volumetric effects and fog |
| Foam | Dynamic foam generation |
| Caustics | Underwater light patterns |
| Refraction | Light bending and distortion |
| NormalMaps | Surface detail and ripples |
| Landscape | Terrain integration and carving |
| Debug | Visual debugging tools |
Quick Start
- Install the Plugin - Enable Riverology in your project's Plugins menu
- Create a River Spline - Use the Riverology spline actor to define your river path
- Adjust Flow Settings - Configure flow speed, width, and depth along the spline
- Add Water Volume - Place a Riverology Water Volume for buoyancy and swimming
- Play - Enter Play mode to see your river in action with flow physics
For detailed instructions, see the Setup Guide.
Key Concepts
💨 Flow Direction
Rivers have a defined flow direction determined by the spline. Objects experience forces pushing them downstream, and swimming characters must fight against or swim with the current.
📏 Spline Width & Depth
Each spline point can have independent width and depth values - rivers can narrow through canyons, widen into deltas, or shallow near banks with smooth interpolation.
🏔️ Terrain Adaptation
Riverology automatically carves riverbeds into landscape geometry and blends shorelines using Runtime Virtual Textures.
Riverology vs Oceanology
| Feature | Riverology | Oceanology |
|---|---|---|
| Water Type | Rivers, streams, lakes | Oceans, seas |
| Generation | Spline-based | Infinite plane |
| Flow Physics | Directional current | Wave-based |
| Best For | Inland water, flowing rivers | Open water, coastal scenes |
Both Riverology and Oceanology can coexist in the same project for complete water coverage - rivers flowing into oceans! In the next generation, Oceanology Lite and Riverology 3 fit together the same way, and Oceanology Pro includes rivers, lakes and the ocean in one plugin.
Ready to create your first river? Start with the Setup Guide →