The collaboration problem nobody warned you about

Game development has changed dramatically. What used to require a full studio, expensive licenses, and years of specialized training is now accessible to anyone with a computer and the willingness to learn. Unreal Engine is free. The documentation is extensive. YouTube tutorials cover everything from basic blueprints to advanced rendering techniques.

But here's what the "anyone can make a game" narrative glosses over: the moment you add a second person to your project, everything gets complicated.

It's not the creative collaboration that's hard. It's the technical infrastructure. How do two artists work on the same level without overwriting each other's changes? How does a programmer in Berlin and a designer in Tokyo contribute to the same project without constantly stepping on each other's toes? How do you track what changed, when, and why – especially when your project folder is 50GB and growing?

This is the version control problem. And for Unreal Engine projects specifically, it's a problem that most existing tools weren't designed to solve.

Why Unreal Engine projects are different

If you're coming from a traditional software development background, you might think: "Just use Git. Problem solved."

Not quite.

Unreal Engine projects are fundamentally different from typical codebases. Yes, there's code – C++ files, config files, build scripts. Git handles those fine. But the majority of your project isn't text. It's binary assets:

• .uasset files – Unreal's proprietary format for everything from materials to blueprints
• Textures – Often multiple GBs worth of PNGs, TGAs, and compressed formats
• 3D models – FBX files, skeletal meshes, static meshes
• Audio – WAV files, sound cues, audio banks
• Levels – Entire maps stored as binary data

Here's the problem: if you are making a game with the Unreal Engine, you need a version control system optimized for uassets and other binary formats.

What teams have been using (and why it's painful)

Let's be honest about the current landscape. If you're doing version control for Unreal Engine today, you're probably using one of these approaches:

Git + Git LFS

The most common choice for small teams and solo developers. Git is free, widely understood, and integrates with GitHub/GitLab. Git LFS (Large File Storage) extends it to handle large binaries.

Where it falls short:

• LFS wasn't designed for game development. It bolts large file support onto a system that fundamentally doesn't understand binary assets.
• Clone times are brutal. New team members can wait hours (or days) to pull a full project.
• Merge conflicts on assets like blue prints are essentially "pick one version and lose the other work."
• The learning curve is steep for artists and designers who aren't command-line comfortable.

Perforce (Helix Core)

The industry standard for AAA studios. Perforce has been the go-to for large game projects for decades.

Where it falls short:

• Cost. Perforce licensing gets expensive fast, especially for growing teams.
• Complexity. Setting up and maintaining a Perforce server requires dedicated DevOps knowledge.
• The client (P4V) feels like software from another era – because it largely is.
• Self-hosting means you're responsible for backups, security, and uptime.
• File locking workflows can create bottlenecks when multiple people need the same asset.

Learn more in our Perforce vs Diversion for Unreal Engine Projects guide.

Plastic SCM (now Unity Version Control)

A more modern alternative that's gained traction, especially in the Unity ecosystem.

Where it falls short:

• It's owned by Unity now. For Unreal Engine teams, relying on a competitor's tooling feels... uncomfortable.
• The Unreal integration isn't first-class. It works, but it wasn't built with UE workflows in mind.
• Pricing and feature availability have been in flux since the Unity acquisition.

The shared folder approach

Some teams just give up on proper version control entirely. They use Dropbox, Google Drive, or a shared network folder, maybe with some manual file naming conventions (Level_v1_final_FINAL_v2.uasset).

This works until it catastrophically doesn't. And by then, you've lost work that can't be recovered.

What version control for Unreal Engine should actually look like

After watching teams struggle with these tools, a pattern emerges. The version control system that Unreal Engine projects actually need would:

Handle large binary files natively – Not as an afterthought or extension, but as a core design principle. Your 200MB texture file shouldn't be a special case.

Understand .uasset files – Not just store them, but actually help teams work with them. That means; workflows that prevent conflicts before they happen.

Be fast – Clone times measured in minutes, not hours. Syncing the latest changes shouldn't be a coffee break.

Work in the cloud – No server to maintain, no IT overhead, no "the build machine is down" emergencies.

Feel modern – A interface that doesn't require a manual to understand. Something artists and designers can use without becoming Git experts.

Scale with your team – From solo developer to 50-person studio, without requiring a complete workflow overhaul at each stage.

Integrate with Unreal Engine directly – Work within the editor, not alongside it in a separate application.

This is why we built Diversion

Diversion is version control built specifically for Unreal Engine projects. Not adapted for them. Not compatible with them. Built for them.

We started with the problems we've outlined above and worked backward. What would version control look like if you designed it today, specifically for game development, specifically for Unreal Engine?

Native large file support

Every file is a first-class citizen. Your 500MB level file gets the same treatment as your 5KB config file. No LFS configuration, no storage limits surprises, no special handling required.

.uasset-aware workflows

Diversion understands Unreal Engine's file formats. We handle locking intelligently, so two people can't accidentally modify the same blueprint simultaneously. But we do it in a way that doesn't create bottlenecks; if a colleague edits a file, you get notified before opening the file. If it is a blueprint, we can help you merge it.

Cloud-native architecture

No server to set up. No maintenance windows. No "who has the latest backup?" conversations. Your project lives in the cloud, accessible from anywhere, automatically backed up.

Built for speed

We've obsessed over performance. Cloning a project should take minutes. Syncing changes should feel instant. Your version control system should never be the thing slowing you down.

An interface humans can use

We built Diversion for entire game development teams – programmers, artists, designers, audio engineers. You shouldn't need to memorize command-line syntax to commit your work.

Unreal Engine integration

Work directly within the Unreal Editor. See file status, commit changes, resolve conflicts – all without leaving your project.

Getting started

If you're currently fighting with Git LFS or paying too much for Perforce, Diversion is worth a look.

We offer a free tier for small teams and solo developers. Setup takes minutes, not days. And migrating existing projects is straightforward, we've built tools specifically for teams coming from Perforce and Git. Try Diversion for free.

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