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Getting Started: Your First Ocean in 5 Minutes

· 2 min read
Galidar
Galidar
Founder, Galidar Studio

New to Oceanology? This quick tutorial will have you rendering beautiful ocean water in just 5 minutes.

Prerequisites​

Before we start, make sure you have:

  • Unreal Engine 5.3 or later
  • Oceanology NextGen from the FAB Store
  • A new or existing UE5 project

Step 1: Enable the Plugin​

  1. Open your project in UE5
  2. Go to Edit → Plugins
  3. Search for "Oceanology"
  4. Enable the plugin and restart

Step 2: Add the Ocean Actor​

  1. Open the Content Browser
  2. Navigate to Oceanology/Blueprints/
  3. Drag BP_Ocean_NextGen into your level
  4. Position it at your desired water level

Step 3: Configure Basic Settings​

Select the Ocean actor and adjust these key settings:

Wave Settings:
├── Wave Height: 1.5
├── Wave Speed: 0.8
└── Wave Direction: (1, 0, 0)

Visual Settings:
├── Water Color: Deep Blue
├── Foam Amount: 0.3
└── Transparency: 0.7

Step 4: Add Post-Processing​

For underwater effects:

  1. Add a Post Process Volume to your level
  2. Set it to Infinite Extent
  3. The ocean will automatically handle underwater rendering

Result​

You should now see a beautiful, animated ocean surface with:

  • ✅ Realistic wave motion
  • ✅ Dynamic foam
  • ✅ Proper lighting and reflections
  • ✅ Underwater effects when submerged
Pro Tip

Use the included presets for quick configurations: Ocean, Lake, River, and Storm modes are available out of the box.

Next Steps​

Now that you have a basic ocean, explore these features:

Need help? Check our FAQ or join the Discord!