C++/scripting mods¶

So far we've been working with Lua, which is a brilliant way to get started because it lets you experiment quickly and reload your code while the game is running. C++ mods are the next step up. They still run through UE4SS, but instead of being interpreted Lua scripts, they are compiled DLLs that UE4SS loads into the game process.

That makes them more powerful, but also a wee bit more complex and less forgiving! A Lua mistake usually means a script error in the UE4SS console. A C++ mistake can crash the whole game. Don't let that put you off, though!

What we're going to build¶

For this first C++ mod, we'll keep things simple to begin with. We will:

1. Create a UE4SS C++ mod project.
2. Build a DLL.
3. Install the DLL into the game's UE4SS Mods folder.
4. Confirm that UE4SS loads the mod and prints a message to the console.

That might sound boring and you'd be right to think so! This is essentially the C++ equivalent of getting a Lua print statement working. However, once you can reliably build, load, and debug a compiled mod, you have the foundation for doing more interesting things. We will then enhance that code to replicated the "unlimited oxygen, food, and water" cheat functionality that we implemented in our Lua example.

The full source code for the final C++ mod can be found in my GitHub repository: BeginnersGuideCppCheatMod.

Why use C++?¶

C++ mods are useful when you need something that Lua cannot comfortably do, or when you want tighter integration with Unreal's native systems.

Some common reasons to use C++ are:

• You want better performance than a Lua script can provide.
• You need to work with lower-level Unreal Engine types and functions.
• You want to use the UE4SS C++ API instead of the Lua API.

For many gameplay tweaks, Lua is still the friendlier choice. If your mod is just changing a few values or reacting to a small number of events, Lua may be all you need.