Best Game Engines for Running AI on device

Most used game engines for running AI Models at runtime on user device.

Source: https://imetatech.io/blog/unity-unreal-godot-comparison

With the recent boom in artificial intelligence, various sectors have incorporated AI models to different degrees. In this post, we’ll explore which game engine is best suited for handling AI models at runtime on user devices, with a focus on built-in compatibility. We’ll consider the most widely used game engines: Unreal Engine 5, Unity, and the increasingly popular open-source engine, Godot.

Unreal Engine 5

Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) has introduced a built-in system called the Neural Network Inference (NNE) to run machine learning models directly within the game engine. This powerful feature allows developers to integrate and utilize neural networks in their projects, supporting models in the Open Neural Network Exchange (ONNX) format. The NNE provides a flexible and efficient way to implement various AI behaviors and functionalities in games and other real-time applications.

Developers can find implementation guides in the official Unreal Engine documentation, including a quick start guide for UE5.3. This resource provides a foundation for understanding and utilizing the NNE within Unreal Engine projects.

While the official documentation offers a solid starting point, comprehensive third-party guides and active communities specifically focused on NNE development are currently limited. This scarcity of additional resources may present a challenge for developers looking to explore more advanced implementations or seeking community support for NNE-related issues beyond the official documentation.

Godot

While Godot does not have built-in functionality for running AI models at runtime, there are community-developed solutions available. You can find implementations of various AI techniques, including reinforcement learning, in third-party repositories on platforms like GitHub.

Unity 6

Unity is at the forefront of incorporating AI trends into game development, investing heavily in AI asset generation, a specialized chatbot for the engine named Muse, animation generation, and model runtime inference with Sentis. Our focus will be on Sentis, which can run models in the…