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Unreal Engine 3 is looking pretty real these days.

The next generation is on its way according to Epic, thanks to their widely used Unreal Engine 3, and it looks, in a word, stunning. What does this mean for the next generation of gaming?

The latest confirmations about what Unreal Engine 3 can do are pretty extraordinary. On the technical side of things, Unreal Engine 3 will support DirectX 11. This brings all sorts of visual punchiness, including tessellation, part of the rendering process that arranges aspects of an image to avoid overlaps and gaps. In other words, a way to render game elements more realistically and efficiently. Other supported technologies include Nvidia's PhysX, Apex, and 3D Vision. These technologies can greatly impact scale, realism, and immersion in the visual spectrum.

Epic Games vice president, Mark Rein, made a bold statement regarding their engine: "we have enhanced Unreal Engine 3 to bring unprecedented new levels of realism and demonstrate what the next generation of gaming will be."

So what does this mean for the next generation of games? I'm frankly still consumed with this generation; the thought of new consoles coming out in the next year would be hard to fathom, but maybe that's always been the case with new hardware releases. Right now, the console kings don't seem primed to make an announcement about new console platforms. The PC is geared to reap the rewards of the potential Unreal Engine 3 is showing, but what sort of hardware PCs, and consoles for that matter, would need is tough to say. Optimization is a powerful magic to wield.

According to Epic Games president, Dr. Michael Capps, "It’s like seeing the Unreal Engine all over again for the very first time." And based on a trailer shown at GDC, which should be available to the public next week, with images currently making their rounds on the internet, I can see why.

If these updates are like looking at Unreal Engine for the first time, what do these updates mean in terms of game developer tools beyond raising the graphical bar? The phrase that struck me most is "new levels of realism," and I'm sure this is largely referring to the visual enhancements, but there could be far more to it than that. These technical achievements are some of what interest me about the next generation; even though great game design doesn't necessarily need the latest and greatest technology, it enables games to explore different horizons. But talking about the next generation just catches me off guard, even though we're approaching the next iteration of a typical console release cycle. I think the concept of another generation is still in its formative years. For now, Unreal Engine 3's glimpse into the future is thought provoking indeed.