Nice Lobby System

Install the plugin

1. Copy the pluginPut the NiceLobby folder into your project's Plugins folder (create the folder if it doesn't exist). The project must be a C++ project; any game module works, even an empty one.
2. Turn on the helper pluginsIn Edit › Plugins enable Python Editor Script Plugin and Editor Scripting Utilities. They are only used in the editor, for the setup tool. The plugin itself already switches on what it needs (Online Subsystem EOS, Null, Voice Chat, Enhanced Input).
3. BuildRight-click the .uproject › Generate Visual Studio project files, open the solution and build Development Editor, or just open the project and let it build.
4. Run the setup toolIn the editor: Tools › Nice Lobby: Run Setup. It creates the four Data Assets in /Game/NiceLobby/Data, a Widget Blueprint for every screen in /Game/NiceLobby/UI (see Changing the look), the character select level L_NLS_CharacterSelect and a small travel level L_NLS_Transition. Assets that already exist are left alone.
5. Point the project at itProject Settings › Maps & Modes › Game Default Map = L_NLS_CharacterSelect. If you moved the Data Assets, set them in Project Settings › Plugins › Nice Lobby.
6. Add spawn pointsOpen each level players can play on and use Tools › Nice Lobby: Add Player Starts (adds 8 around the first one). Save the level.
7. Press PlayYou land on character select. Start Game opens the single-player level; Backspace opens the in-game menu.

The four Data Assets

Everything you would normally change lives in these four files. Double-click one to edit it. Anything you leave empty uses the plugin's default.

Characters, levels and game modes

Hooking up your game

The plugin runs the lobby, rounds and scores. Your game only needs to tell it a few things.

Changing the look

The built-in screens use one theme from DA_NLS_UI › Theme. These are the default colours: cool graphite with a warm amber accent.

Playtest in the editor

Every key and button

The scoreboard

Hold Left Alt in any multiplayer game. Your row is outlined, team modes are grouped and tinted by team, a green dot shows who is talking, and spectators are listed underneath.

Chat and voice

Opening and resizing the menu

Backspace opens the in-game menu over the game; the game behind it blurs. Backspace or Esc closes it. Drag the small grip in the bottom-right corner to change its shape (it stays centred and grows on both sides). Double-click the grip to go back to the normal size. For bigger or smaller text and buttons, use Settings › Graphics › Menu Size. Both are remembered in your profile.

A round, from start to finish

In modes with rounds (everything except Free For All) the bar at the top of the screen tells you what's happening.

1. Waiting for playersFewer players than the mode's Min Players. Everyone can run around freely. Bar: DEATHMATCH · WAITING FOR PLAYERS (1/2)
2. Everyone presses ReadyOn the Team tab or with /ready. Bar: DEATHMATCH · READY 2/3. The banner tells you if it's waiting for you.
3. Countdown10 seconds. If someone un-readies or leaves, it stops. With Travel On Start, everyone moves to the most-voted level here.
4. RoundFresh scores, everyone respawned, the timer runs. Kills score points; in Battle Royale you have one life, then you watch.
5. Results"RED TEAM WINS", "YOU WIN", "DRAW" or "MISSION COMPLETE" for 10 seconds, then the next round starts by itself.

The frame around every tab

1. Title. Your game's name goes under it (set in DA_NLS_UI › Game Title).
2. Close. Same as pressing Backspace or Esc.
3. Tabs. Six pages. Click one, or use a gamepad's shoulder buttons (LB / RB) to move left and right.
4. Where you are. "Hosting X" if it is your game, "Playing in X" if you joined someone, or "Playing solo".
5. Quit Game. Leaves the game completely and closes it. To leave just the match, use Leave Team on the Team tab.
6. Resize corner. Drag it to make the menu window bigger or smaller. Double-click it to go back to the normal size. The size is remembered. To make the text bigger too, use Settings › Graphics › Interface › Menu Size.

Before the menu: the character screen

This is the first thing a player sees when the game starts. It is a 3D room with your character standing in it.

1. Game title from DA_NLS_UI.
2. Player name. Type the name others will see. If you leave it, your Epic name is used after you sign in.
3. Rejoin. Only shows up if you fell out of a game in the last few minutes. One click puts you back in the same game, on the same team, with your score.
4. Start Game. Goes into the game with the character you picked. From there, open the menu to host or find a game.
5. Quick Match. Finds an open public game and joins it. If there is none, it makes one for you.
6. Character picker. The arrows (or A / D, the arrow keys, or LB / RB on a gamepad) switch characters. The 3D model changes straight away.
7. Online switch. Click it to swap between ONLINE (Epic, play over the internet) and OFFLINE (LAN) (same house or office network). It says "SIGNING IN…" while it talks to Epic.

1Find Games

1. Rejoin banner. Shows when you dropped out of a game that is still running. Rejoin puts you back; Dismiss hides it.
2. Search box. Type part of a game's name, the host's name, a level or a mode. The list filters as you type.
3. Refresh asks again for the newest list. Quick Match joins the best open game for you (or hosts one if there is nothing).
4. Filters. Sort by ping, players or name; show only one game mode or one level; hide full games; hide games that have already started.
5. Join. Jumps into that game. A game you can't join (full, or a private game) shows a grey button instead. Private games are never listed; you get in with an invite.
6. Status line. How many games were found, or "Searching…". If nothing is found: "No games found. Refresh, or host your own game."

2Host Game

1. Server name. What other players see in Find Games. Starts as "Your Name's Game".
2. Game mode. Free For All, Team vs Team, Battle Royale, Co-op, or your own. Pick this first: the Map list then only shows levels that work with this mode. (Hidden if your game has just one mode.)
3. Map. The level to play, from the levels in DA_NLS_Levels that support the chosen mode.
4. Max players. How many people fit, between Min Players and Max Players Limit in DA_NLS_GameSettings.
5. Visibility. Public shows up in Find Games. Private (invite only) is hidden, and friends join through your invite. On LAN it reads "Public (local network)".
6. Map preview. The picture and the description you gave the level.
7. Host Game. Creates the game and takes you there. It says "CREATING GAME…" while it works.

3Team

The busiest tab. The left side is about people, the right side is about where you go next and the chat.

1. Team members. Everyone in the game, with their portrait, character, team colour and Ready pill. A green dot means they are talking. Tags tell you who is LEADER (picks the next level), who is HOST (the computer running the game) and which row is YOU.
2. Row buttons. Click MORE on a player to open their buttons. Mute stops hearing them (voice and chat). The leader also sees Make Leader (give the leader crown away) and Kick (send them out).
3. The MORE line. Block hides them from you for good, in every game. Report sends a report to Epic with a reason. Vote Kick asks everyone to vote; if most say yes, they are removed (it becomes VOTE YES while a vote is running). Ban (host only) kicks them and keeps them out of your games, even later.
4. Your buttons. I'm Ready / Not Ready tells everyone you are set; a round starts when enough players are ready. Invite Friends opens the Epic friends overlay. Leave Team takes you back out; for the host it reads End Game and opens the hand-over panel below.
5. Your team and spectating. In team modes, pick Red, Blue (or your own team names), or Automatic to be put on the smaller team. Spectate lets you watch instead of play; Join the Game brings you back.
6. Next level. Browse the levels with the arrows. The leader clicks Travel With Team and everyone goes together. Everyone else clicks Vote For This Level so the leader can see what people want; the vote count shows next to the name.
7. Chat. The same chat as in the game, right inside the menu. All of the chat commands work here too.

4Friends

1. Count. How many friends are online right now, and how many you have.
2. Add Friends opens the Epic overlay where you can search for people. Refresh updates the list.
3. Invite banner. When a friend invites you, it pops up here (and as a toast in the game). Join takes you straight to their game.
4. Join / Invite. Join appears when a friend is in a game you can enter. Invite appears when you are in a game they could join.
5. Hint text. On LAN there are no Epic friends, so this tab explains that instead.

5Stats

1. Your stats. Totals counted across every game you have played online: kills, deaths, rounds played and rounds won.
2. Leaderboard. Pick a board with the arrows. Your row is highlighted. The boards are made in the Epic Developer Portal (see chapter 6).
3. Achievements. Unlocked ones are green; the rest show how close you are in percent.

6Settings

1. Pages. Graphics, Audio, Controls, and Chat & Voice.
2. Rows. Click the arrows on a selector or drag a slider. Changes happen right away; there is no Apply button.
3. Interface › Menu Size. Makes the whole menu (text and buttons) bigger or smaller, 75% to 150%.
4. Reset to Defaults puts the page you are looking at back to how it started.

Every one of these is explained in kid words in chapter 3 › Player Settings.

How it fits together

Nice Lobby is one plugin with two runtime C++ modules and one editor module. NiceLobby holds everything that works on any online service. NiceLobbyEOS is a thin layer that talks straight to the Epic SDK (P2P networking, voice, reports, sanctions, stats) and plugs into NiceLobby through a few static hooks, so the core module never depends on EOS. NiceLobbyEditor only exists in the editor and makes the Widget Blueprints.

Folders

Every class, and when to touch it

Paths are under Plugins/NiceLobby/Source/NiceLobby/. Headers are in Public/…, code in Private/… with the same sub-folder.

Changing the code safely

Building and packaging

1. Generate project filesRight-click NiceLobbySystem.uproject › Generate Visual Studio project files (or open the folder in Rider).
2. Build the editorOpen the solution, pick Development Editor + Win64, and build the NiceLobbySystem project. Or just double-click the .uproject and let Unreal compile.
3. After changing C++Close the editor and build again for header changes. Live Coding (Ctrl+Alt+F11) is fine for code inside functions.
4. PackageIn the editor: Platforms › Windows › Package Project. Use Development while testing (logs and console work) and Shipping for release. Make sure the four Data Assets and both NLS maps are cooked (they are referenced, so they are by default).
5. Test the packageRun two copies of the packaged game, or one on each PC. Add -log to see what's happening.

Dedicated server

Players normally host on their own PC. For a server that is always on, build the NiceLobbySystemServer target. That needs Unreal built from source (the launcher version can't build servers).

1. BuildIn a source build: Platforms › Windows › Server as the target, then Package Project. Or build NiceLobbySystemServer in Development Server.
2. RunStart it with the options below. It appears in Find Games like any other game, with no player as host.
3. Epic sign-inFor an online dedicated server, the client in the Dev Portal needs the Trusted Server policy.

NiceLobbySystemServer.exe -log -port=7777 ^
  -NLSServerName="EU Arena 1" -NLSMap=Harbor -NLSMode=TeamVsTeam -NLSMaxPlayers=12
# LAN only:  add  -NLSLAN -UseLocalIPs

Setting up Epic Online Services

Until this is done, Nice Lobby quietly plays on LAN. Everything below happens on dev.epicgames.com/portal.

1. Create a productYour organisation › Create Product. It gets a Product Id, a Sandbox (Dev) and a Deployment.
2. Create a clientProduct Settings › Clients › Add new client. Make a client policy of type Peer2Peer (for player-hosted games). For a dedicated server, make a second client with Trusted Server. Write down the Client Id and Client Secret.
3. Epic Account ServicesProduct Settings › Epic Account Services › create an Application, link your client, and under Permissions turn on Basic Profile, Online Presence and Friends. Fill in the brand settings (name, links) or players can't sign in.
4. Fill in the artifactUnreal › Project Settings › Plugins › Online Subsystem EOS › Artifacts › add one: Artifact Name, Client Id, Client Secret, Product Id, Sandbox Id, Deployment Id, and an Encryption Key of exactly 64 hex characters (any random value, e.g. from openssl rand -hex 32). Set it as the default artifact. The same values live in Config/DefaultEngine.ini.
5. Dev Auth ToolFor testing several accounts on one PC: run the EOS Dev Auth Tool (in the EOS SDK's Tools folder) on port 6300 and sign in two Epic accounts named Player1 and Player2. Each game window picks a free credential by itself; add -NLSDevAuth=Player2 to force one. See chapter 4.
6. StatsGame Services › Stats › create KILLS, DEATHS, ROUNDS_PLAYED and ROUNDS_WON, each with aggregation SUM. Names must match exactly.
7. LeaderboardsGame Services › Leaderboards › create boards named KILLS and ROUNDS_WON that read the matching stat. They then appear on the Stats tab.
8. AchievementsGame Services › Achievements › add your achievements, unlocked by the stats above (e.g. First Blood when KILLS ≥ 1). Upload an icon for each.
9. Player Data StorageNeeded for cloud settings. It is on by default for the product; nothing to create.
10. Session bucketIn DA_NLS_GameSettings set a Session Bucket Id unique to your game, so you don't see other people's test games.

Blueprint API

Get a subsystem with its Get node (e.g. Get NLS Session Subsystem) and call:

All chat commands

Type them in the chat box (Enter, or / to start with a slash already typed). Commands are not case sensitive. To send a message that starts with a slash, type two: //like this.

When something goes wrong

Words used in this handbook

Nice Lobby System handbook · written for UE 5.8 · branch Claude of AbbasGames/NiceLobbySystem.