week 1 - research

Written By Ben Jones

Litchfield: Installed this software and will test it this week using the original pictures

Volinga:

I was able to install the Volinga Plugin through a Free Trial

Luma AI

Pros:

  • Very easy to use mobile app for iOS and Android

  • High-quality captures with good detail and lighting

  • Official Unreal Engine plugin with straightforward import

  • Free tier includes basic captures and exports

  • Fast processing in the cloud

  • Clean, user-friendly interface

Cons:

  • Free tier has limited captures per month

  • Requires internet connection for processing

  • Less control over advanced capture settings

  • Some export formats require paid subscription

  • File sizes can be large

Polycam

Pros:

  • Mobile app available (iOS and Android)

  • Multiple capture modes including Gaussian splats

  • Unreal Engine export support

  • Good for quick scans on the go

  • Active development and updates

Cons:

  • Free tier is quite limited (few exports per month)

  • Best features locked behind paid tiers

  • Quality can be inconsistent on free tier

  • Unreal export may require Pro subscription

  • Processing times can be slow on free tier

Volinga

Pros:

  • Purpose-built for Unreal Engine integration

  • High-quality professional results

  • Optimized workflow for game development

  • Good performance in-engine

Cons:

  • Not free (paid software)

  • More expensive than alternatives

  • Steeper learning curve

Community Gaussian Splatting Unreal Plugins (GitHub)

Pros:

  • Completely free and open-source

  • Import standard .ply Gaussian splat files

  • Full control and customization

  • No usage limits or restrictions

  • Can use splats created with any tool

Cons:

  • Requires technical setup and compilation

  • Limited documentation and support

  • May have bugs or compatibility issues

  • No official support from Epic Games

  • Updates depend on community maintenance

Nerfstudio + Unreal Import

Pros:

  • Completely free and open-source

  • Train your own Gaussian splats from photos

  • Full control over training parameters

  • Very high quality results possible

  • Active research community

Cons:

  • Steep learning curve

  • Requires powerful GPU for training

  • Command-line based (not user-friendly)

  • Need to capture your own image sequences

  • Export to Unreal requires additional steps/plugins

  • Time-consuming training process

Postshot (formerly Kiri Engine)

Pros:

  • Free tier available

  • Web-based processing (no powerful PC needed)

  • Multiple output formats

  • Handles both photogrammetry and Gaussian splats

  • Relatively easy to use

Cons:

  • Free tier has strict limitations

  • Quality varies depending on input

  • Requires good internet connection

  • Export options limited on free tier

  • May not have direct Unreal plugin

3D Gaussian Splatting (GitHub implementations)

Pros:

  • Completely free and open-source

  • Cutting-edge research code

  • Ultimate control and customization

  • Can modify for specific needs

Cons:

  • Very technical - requires coding knowledge

  • Difficult setup with many dependencies

  • No GUI or user-friendly interface

  • Requires powerful CUDA-capable GPU

  • No direct Unreal integration (manual export/import)

  • Minimal documentation for non-researchers

Ben Jones