Shipcheck README¶

ShipCheck is an editor-only Unreal Engine plugin that gives you a clear pre-build and pre-release checklist directly inside the editor.

Pick a preset, run the scan, and ShipCheck shows what passed, what needs attention, and what still needs a human confirmation before you send out a build or submit a project to Fab.

It is designed to feel like a practical release assistant for Unreal projects: simple enough to use every day, but structured enough to catch the small things that are easy to forget when you are close to shipping.

What ShipCheck Does¶

ShipCheck helps you review common release risks before packaging, testing, or submission.

It can check areas such as:

Project settings
Default maps
Packaging setup
Debug leftovers
Redirectors
Oversized textures
Broken asset references
Enabled developer plugins
Localization setup
README and changelog files
Fab plugin submission fields
Fab asset submission preparation
Custom manual release tasks

The result is shown as a readiness score, a list of check results, and a details panel with explanations and suggested fixes.

Key Features¶

Built-in Release Presets¶

ShipCheck includes presets for common Unreal release workflows:

Game Build
Steam Demo
Internal QA
Fab Plugin Submission
Fab Asset Submission

Each preset runs a different group of checks based on the type of release you are preparing.

Custom Presets¶

You can create your own presets from inside the plugin.

Click the + button next to the preset dropdown, choose the automated checks you want, add your own manual checks, and save the preset for future use.

Custom presets are useful for teams, solo developers, QA workflows, marketplace releases, demos, client builds, and any project-specific checklist you repeat often.

Custom Manual Checks¶

Some release tasks cannot be fully automated. ShipCheck lets you add your own manual checks for those.

A custom manual check can include:

Name
Explanation
Fix hint
Severity

Examples:

Confirm the store page is updated
Test the build on target hardware
Verify controller support
Check the final trailer link
Confirm the release notes are ready

Clear Result States¶

Each check can return a status such as:

Passed
Warning
Failed
Manual
Skipped
Not Applicable

This keeps the dashboard readable and makes it easier to decide what to fix first.

Details Panel¶

Click any result to see what ShipCheck checked, why it matters, what it found, what it expected, and what you can do next.

Report Export¶

After running ShipCheck, you can export a report as:

Markdown
JSON

You can also copy a short summary for Discord, Slack, Notion, issue trackers, or build notes.

Reports are saved to:

Saved/ShipCheck/Reports/

Editor-only Plugin¶

ShipCheck is a pure editor tool.

It does not add runtime systems to your game and does not affect packaged builds.

That means:

No runtime code in your shipped game
No added gameplay dependencies
No extra packaged assets
No binary size impact
No performance impact for players

Supported Unreal Engine Versions¶

ShipCheck officially targets:

Unreal Engine 5.5
Unreal Engine 5.6
Unreal Engine 5.7

Older engine versions may work, but they are not officially tested or supported.

Installation¶

Fab Installation¶

Open the Epic Games Launcher.
Go to your Library.
Find ShipCheck under your Fab or Marketplace plugins.
Install it to the correct Unreal Engine version.
Open your Unreal project.
Go to Edit > Plugins.
Search for ShipCheck.
Enable the plugin.
Restart the editor when prompted.

After restarting, open ShipCheck from:

Ecal Studios > ShipCheck - Release Checklist

Blueprint-only Projects¶

ShipCheck is a C++ editor plugin. Blueprint-only projects may need a small C++ module before Unreal can compile and load the plugin correctly.

The class does not need to do anything. It only gives Unreal the build infrastructure it needs.

Open your Blueprint project.
Go to Tools > New C++ Class.
Choose None or Empty Class.
Give it a simple name, such as MyGameModule.
Click Create Class.
Restart the editor when Unreal asks.
Generate project files if needed.
Build the project once in Development Editor.
Enable ShipCheck and restart the editor again.

You can leave the generated class empty.

Verifying the Installation¶

After enabling the plugin, check the Unreal main menu bar.

You should see:

Ecal Studios > ShipCheck - Release Checklist

Click it to open the dashboard. The window is dockable, so you can place it wherever it fits best in your editor layout.

Saved Files¶

ShipCheck stores its data in your project folder.

Config/DefaultShipCheck.ini
Saved/ShipCheck/History.json
Saved/ShipCheck/CustomData.json
Saved/ShipCheck/Reports/

What Each File Does¶

File	Purpose
`DefaultShipCheck.ini`	Plugin settings
`History.json`	Previous run summaries
`CustomData.json`	Custom presets and custom manual checks
`Reports/`	Exported Markdown and JSON reports

These files are plain text or JSON, so they are easy to inspect, back up, or include in project workflows.

Uninstalling¶

Close Unreal Engine.
Disable ShipCheck under Edit > Plugins.
Remove the plugin from your project or engine installation.
Optional: delete Saved/ShipCheck/ if you also want to remove history, custom presets, and exported reports.
Optional: delete Config/DefaultShipCheck.ini if you want to remove ShipCheck settings.

Best Way to Use ShipCheck¶

Run ShipCheck before every important build.

A simple workflow is:

Select the preset that matches your release.
Run ShipCheck.
Fix failed checks first.
Review warnings.
Confirm manual checks.
Export a report.
Keep the report with your release notes or build archive.

For bigger projects, ShipCheck works best when it becomes part of your normal release routine instead of something you only run at the very end.