There is a particular kind of friction that only shows up after you have done enough Unreal Engine work to know your rhythm.
You are in the Editor. The scene is loaded, the lighting is close, a gameplay beat is ready to show, or a bug is finally reproduced after twenty minutes of setup. Then you need to capture it.
So you leave the flow.
You open external recording software. You resize windows. You check the capture source. You wonder whether the frame rate you are seeing is the project or the recorder fighting for resources. Maybe you record the wrong monitor. Maybe the editor drops frames. Maybe the bug disappears the moment everything is set up.
REC came from being tired of those moments.
I wanted a faster, more stable way to capture Unreal Engine work directly from the place where the work is already happening. REC is built around that idea: capture from inside Unreal Engine, keep the workflow tight, and make sharing progress, bugs, tutorials, and gameplay footage feel like part of the editor instead of a separate production step.
Why REC Exists
External capture tools are powerful, but they are general-purpose. Unreal projects are not general-purpose workloads. The editor is already doing a lot: compiling, streaming assets, running PIE, drawing Slate UI, rendering the viewport, and sometimes driving complex virtual production or realtime visualization setups.
REC is designed specifically for Unreal Engine capture workflows. The goal is not to replace every video tool on your machine. The goal is to remove the daily capture friction that slows down engine work.
That means:
- Staying in the editor while you record.
- Choosing the right capture mode for the task.
- Avoiding unnecessary setup when you just need to show what is happening.
- Keeping capture stable enough to use during real production work.
- Giving teams a clean path from “I need to show this” to “here is the clip.”
REC started from a simple frustration, but it has grown into a tool for a lot of everyday Unreal Engine moments.
Capture Modes Built Around Real Unreal Work
Different capture jobs need different sources. Recording a cinematic viewport is not the same as recording a bug report. A tutorial needs editor UI. A clean gameplay clip often does not.
REC focuses on making those choices clear.
Viewport Capture
Viewport capture is for the cleanest view of the Unreal scene itself. When you want to show the game, environment, previs, simulation, or realtime content without the surrounding editor window becoming the focus, this is the mode you reach for.
It is especially useful for quick review clips, visual progress updates, gameplay moments, and capturing work-in-progress content without turning the whole desktop into part of the shot.
3D Scene Only Capture
Sometimes you need the scene without the Editor UI or overlays getting in the way. REC supports capture paths aimed at separating the rendered 3D output from the interface around it, which is useful when the footage itself matters more than the tool context.
This is the kind of mode that helps keep review footage clean. It is not about hiding the fact that work is in progress. It is about letting the viewer focus on the image, motion, timing, lighting, animation, or gameplay.
PIE Session Capture
We’ve also added the ability to screen capture in a PIE session for those who wish to record or share gameplay. Currently, if you enter PIE you will see a ghostly REC icon in the top right portion of the viewport. By clicking on this, you are presented with two options. Basic or Advanced. In basic mode, you feed REC a preset actor. In advanced mode, you get all of the options you would typically find in REC’s plugin settings. We’re releasing a few preset example assets with the project. Feel free to use them or reference them if you want more bespoke settings.
Full Editor Window Capture
There are plenty of times when the UI is the point. Tutorials, bug reports, internal documentation, tool demos, layout walkthroughs, and “here is exactly what I clicked” clips all need the editor context included.
This mode is useful because it captures the working environment, not just the result. If you are teaching someone how to use a Blueprint tool, showing a material setup, walking through a level design issue, or recording a bug with the exact editor state visible, window capture gives the audience the missing context.
For teams, that can save a lot of back and forth. A short clip with the editor visible often explains more than a long message.
Game Capture From PIE
REC also supports the common loop of recording a running Play In Editor session. That matters because PIE is where many bugs, behaviors, and gameplay interactions actually show up.
Instead of treating the editor and the running game as disconnected worlds, REC is built for the workflow Unreal developers already use all day: adjust, play, test, capture, repeat.
A Toolbar That Belongs in the Editor
One of the design goals for REC is that it should feel like an Unreal Engine tool, not a separate app duct-taped to the side.
The REC controls live directly in the editor toolbar. The capture menu gives quick access to capture mode, capture area, audio options, shortcuts, and help. The record button is always close by, but the control stays compact enough that it does not take over the editor.
That matters more than it sounds. A capture tool you have to hunt for is a tool you will only use when you plan ahead. REC is meant for the moments you did not plan: the bug that finally happened, the lighting pass you want quick feedback on, the setup you want to explain before someone else loses the thread.
Built for Speed, Stability, and Flow
The important thing about REC is not just that it records. It is that it records without pulling you out of your Unreal workflow.
When capture is integrated into the editor, the mental cost goes down. You do not have to stop and become a video technician. You stay in the scene, in the tool, in the problem.
That is the difference REC is aiming for:
- Fast enough for everyday use.
- Stable enough for production habits.
- Focused enough to understand Unreal Engine workflows.
- Flexible enough to capture the right thing for the moment.
We are intentionally not turning this post into a deep technical breakdown. There is a lot happening under the hood to make capture feel smooth inside Unreal, and we are going to keep those details close. What matters from the user side is the result: REC gives Unreal teams a direct, practical way to capture what they are working on, when they are working on it.
Coming in REC Pro
Some of the features we are excited about include:
- 4K capture for higher fidelity review and delivery workflows.
- Picture-in-picture support for face cam, webcam, or presenter overlays.
- Microphone audio capture for tutorials, walkthroughs, commentary, and async team communication.
Those features are a natural extension of the same goal: make Unreal Engine capture faster, cleaner, and less disruptive.
Sometimes you need a silent progress clip. Sometimes you need a fully narrated tutorial. Sometimes you need a high-resolution capture that can stand up in a client review. REC Pro is being shaped around those real production needs.
Why I Think It Matters
Unreal Engine work is visual, interactive, and often hard to describe in text. A good capture can make a bug obvious, make a design note clearer, make a tutorial easier to follow, and make a progress update feel real.
When capture is annoying, people do it less. When capture is easy, teams communicate better.
That is the heart of REC.
It is a capture tool built by people who work in the editor and wanted recording to feel like part of the creative process instead of a detour from it.
A Note From Evil Eye Labs
REC is being developed at Evil Eye Labs, and it has been a team effort from the start.
Huge thanks to Dan Rosen, Aaron Rhodes, Ben Peck, Ben Riley, and Jason Briggs for their help, feedback, testing, and support along the way. Tools like this get better because people use them, challenge them, and help shape them around real production needs.
We are excited to keep building REC and to share more soon.