Render Cube at Unreal Fest Chicago 2026

This June, Render Cube sent two of its own to the Windy City: Marcin Warszawski our producer, and Aneta Wiśniewska, our animation lead. Their destination was Unreal Fest Chicago 2026, Epic Games’ flagship annual developer event, held June 16 to 18 at McCormick Place Convention Center. Here is what they brought back.

Heart of the Epic Community

Unreal Fest is more than a conference. It is a gathering point for the global Unreal Engine community, where developers, artists, and creators from every corner of the industry meet to share work, exchange ideas, and get a direct line to Epic’s team. This year’s Chicago edition drew over 2,000 industry professionals in person, with hundreds of thousands more tuning in online.

Aneta and Marcin made the most of two days full of all-new presentations, hands-on labs, and live demos. The sessions covered the full breadth of what Unreal Engine powers today, from AAA game development to real-time cinematics, simulation, and beyond. Between talks, they connected with fellow developers, explored exhibitor booths staffed by Epic engineers ready to answer technical questions on the spot, and caught the social events that make Unreal Fest as much about community as it is about technology.

The Big News: Unreal Engine 6 Is Coming

The headline announcement of the event, delivered during the State of Unreal keynote, was one the entire industry had been waiting for: Unreal Engine 6 is officially in development.

Early access is targeted for the end of 2027, with a stable commercial release expected in 2028. For studios like ours, this is a confirmed roadmap rather than something to plan a production pipeline around today. UE 5.8, which shipped alongside the keynote, is the last planned major UE5 release and will remain the production standard through at least 2027.

What It Means for Small and Mid-Size Studios

One of the most encouraging threads running through Epic’s messaging was a clear commitment to making high-quality, high-scale game development more accessible. UE6 is explicitly designed to make it easier for small teams to ship massive, high-fidelity games to large audiences without needing the infrastructure of a major publisher behind them.

Sessions, Labs, and Industry Connections

Highlights from the broader programme included a first look at UE 5.8, a deep dive into Horde and the Unreal Build Accelerator, advanced simulation work from Lockheed Martin, and a session from Audi AG on using Unreal Engine for F1 livery design. MetaHuman also generated significant excitement on the show floor, with Epic announcing the developer kit would be made available for free.

Networking was a constant thread throughout. Whether at the opening mixer, the mid-event social, or the closing party at the Ramova Theatre, conversations with engineers, artists, and fellow studio leads offered the kind of informal knowledge exchange that no session slide deck can replicate.

Unreal Fest does not stop with Chicago. Epic has confirmed upcoming editions in Seoul, Shanghai, and Tokyo later this year, meaning the conversation continues for developers across Asia as well.

Sending Aneta and Marcin to Chicago was an investment in staying sharp and staying connected. The announcements around UE6 alone will shape how we think about our long-term technical roadmap. We will be sharing more detailed takeaways from specific sessions in the weeks ahead, so watch this space.