A Guide to Creating Scene Variants with Unreal Engine Variant Manager

What will you learn in this guide?

Organizing different design options for a scene within a single Unreal Engine project can simplify presentation and interactive visualization workflows. Variant Manager lets you store specific properties of actors in a level across different variants and switch between them. For example, you can set up different material choices, lights that are switched on or off, or the visibility of certain objects as separate options in the same interior scene. These are architectural visualization examples adapted from the property types specified in the source documentation.

By the end of this guide, you’ll be able to create a variant set, link actors to variants, save property values and try out the options in the editor. You’ll also learn when automatic capture is useful, when it can be risky, and what additional steps are needed to present scene options to users at runtime.

Requirements

• You’ll need a project open in Unreal Editor and a level to work on. The source documentation does not specify a particular Unreal Engine version.

• The Editor > Variant Manager plugin must be enabled in your project. To enable it, go to Edit > Plugins, search for Variant Manager and check its box. The plugin may be enabled by default in templates for architecture, engineering and construction, or automotive, manufacturing and product design; check this for the project you’re using.

• Basic editor skills are sufficient. You don’t need to write Blueprint code for this guide. Projects that need to let users switch variants through an interface at runtime will require Blueprint logic and a UMG interface.

Step-by-step: Create scene variants

1. Plan your options and groups. First, decide which scene choices you want to change. For example, in an interior presentation, different floor finishes, wall materials or the visibility of a furniture group could be options. Grouping related variants in the same variant set helps keep options organized. Think of a set as a category that separates different design decisions.

2. Create a Level Variant Sets asset. In the Content Drawer, right-click and select Level Variant Set from the Miscellaneous list. This asset is where you’ll organize variant sets and variants. Double-click it to open the Variant Manager panel.

3. Add a variant set and options. In the panel, click + Variant Set to create and name a set. The Add (+) button beside the set adds a new variant. Right-click variants to rename them, or choose Set from viewport from the menu to reflect the current state in the viewport. For example, you could use one set for material alternatives and another for lighting options.

4. Link actors to variants. With a variant selected, use the Add (+) button in the Actors column. Alternatively, drag actors from the World Outliner and drop them into the Actors list or directly onto a variant. Linking creates an association between the actor and the variant; when the variant is activated, the saved properties are applied to that actor.

5. Choose the properties to control. After linking an actor, Variant Manager prompts you to select the properties to capture. Actor properties exposed to Blueprints can be controlled. For Blueprint actors, variables created in the class and marked instance editable may also be included. To add properties later, use the Add (+) button in the Properties column or right-click the actor.

6. Save and apply values. Set the desired property value for each variant. You can edit values directly in the Values column of Variant Manager. To save the current value in the scene, click the Record the current value icon beside the property value or use Record Current Value in the context menu. Changing a value in the Values column may not immediately update the viewport if a variant is already active. If that happens, reactivate the variant or choose Apply recorded value.

7. Test the variant in the editor. Double-click the variant or right-click it and select Switch on to activate it. Variant Manager applies the saved values to linked actors. You can check whether a variant is active using the status indicator in the panel. Try the options in sequence to catch unwanted property changes early.

8. Use automatic capture if needed. Enable the automatic capture button at the top of the Variants column, then select the target variant first. Next, make changes to actors in the level; capturable properties will be saved to the selected variant, and actors that aren’t already linked will be added automatically. Turn off the button when you’re done. If you leave this mode enabled, subsequent edits may also be saved to the selected variant.

Common mistakes

The main risk is failing to notice that automatic capture is enabled. Changes may be unintentionally added to the selected variant while you’re editing another part of the scene. Before starting a new round of edits, check which variant is selected and whether automatic capture is on.

Another common source of confusion is assuming that a saved value and the value currently visible in the viewport will update at the same time. After changing a value in Variant Manager, you may need to reactivate the variant or apply the saved value. Also, switching variants in the editor is not the same as offering users options in a packaged project: runtime control requires additional Blueprint logic or a user interface.

Next steps for architecture and visualization workflows

For architects, interior designers and visualization teams, this approach can make alternatives easier to compare in a single scene. Saving material or visibility options in separate variants helps teams evaluate them against the same underlying scene during presentations. However, this approach depends on grouping design decisions appropriately and checking which actors are linked to each variant.

Variant Manager can be used both in the editor and at runtime. If you want a client or viewer to change options in the application, you’ll also need to set up Blueprint logic and a UMG interface to switch variants on and off. According to the source documentation, when importing scenes with preconfigured variants through Datasmith, the Level Variant Sets asset and actor may be created automatically; user interaction still requires Blueprint logic or UMG components. Epic’s documentation names Autodesk VRED and 3DExcite Deltagen for this example.

Teams looking to automate repeated scene setups can use Blueprint or Python in editor scripts. This API supports creating Level Variant Sets assets, adding variants, linking actors and capturing property values. However, according to the documentation, the editor scripting API cannot configure a Function Caller to be invoked when a variant is activated; it is limited to capturing actor properties and setting their values this way.

Source and license

This guide was adapted into Turkish from the scene variants, Variant Manager and editor scripting sections of Epic Games’ official Unreal Engine documentation, numbered K1, K2 and K3. The source texts were provided as license=free.