This is a goldmine, thank you!

I'm about to get into this too :-) Any favorite resources you recommend?

I have some memory that nointerpolation may (on some hardware at least) cause that export to not be packed with interpolated vertex exports, and depending on how many you have and the way the memory lines up, that could be relevant

Lucky timing for me! Been playing Warframe a bunch too, lightning is striking repeatedly here, and I'm excited to contribute to it :D

PS: I did end up going with a studio using custom tech. This would have been an easy call years ago, to just keep learning from different ways people write engines, but this time I made this choice knowing I may actually be severely limiting my future opportunities.

I followed my heart though :-)

This remote support is very cool. One I'd like to shout out is this job at Yellow Brick which is still open: yellowbrickgames.ca/job/graphics...

I loved my experience interviewing with them, and their next title is a unique opportunity if you're looking.

More good news - the amount of remote opportunities as a game graphics programmer are higher than I have ever seen. I counted them in the dozens (40+) at time of application, most of them Unreal-based. Six years ago that number would have been near-zero.

On the flip-side, in the wake of all these layoffs from large corporations, are springs of many new small studios who would otherwise have no chance of making their games without UE5.

Both edges of the sword are sharp!

I think the impacts are both very positive and very negative.

Consolidation is not great, especially when the future relies on the perpetual good graces of one company, which is not usually a good bet. Learning fundamentals may also be diminishing as a result (not enough info)

I haven't written a followup because the reality is (I would imagine) pretty clear, the Unreal takeover is real and the implications are a lot to think about.

UE may ultimately become the tool we're required to know, like artists with their DCCs.

That experience has been shared by a number of people I know who were also on the job hunt at the same time.

Some years ago I wrote a post titled "On the Perceived Inevitability of Unreal" and its impact on the industry from my (limited) perspective --

3 of the studios using UE turned my application down immediately at the front door citing "lack of professional experience with UE5" No screening.

Because I had not worked on a UE5 title specifically, which was formally released less than 4 years ago, three companies felt I was a non-starter

this is beautiful