Unreal Engine 5 Tutorial - Online Multiplayer Lobby Part 2: Seamless Travel

Ryan Laley
Ryan LaleyApr 24, 2026

Why It Matters

Seamless travel with PlayerState persistence lets developers maintain player information across map loads, a critical requirement for polished, reliable multiplayer games.

Key Takeaways

  • Implement server travel button to transition lobby to game map.
  • Enable seamless travel in both lobby and game game modes.
  • Use PlayerState to transfer player data across maps.
  • Create Blueprint Interface for nickname get/set to simplify casting.
  • Test server travel in standalone, not Play In Editor, for reliability.

Summary

The tutorial walks through adding seamless map transitions to an Unreal Engine 5 online multiplayer lobby. It shows how to place a UI button, bind its OnClick event to an Execute Console Command node, and issue a ServerTravel command with the target map path, then enable "Use Seamless Travel" in both the lobby and game GameModes. Key steps include adjusting the player controller’s input mode after travel, fixing null PlayerState errors by using a validated get, and ensuring the new map’s GameMode also has seamless travel enabled. The presenter also demonstrates copying player data—specifically a nickname—across maps by extending PlayerState and overriding its CopyProperties function. To avoid repetitive casting, a Blueprint Interface (BPI) for getting and setting nicknames is created and added to both lobby and shooter PlayerState classes. The interface lets the name‑change widget directly call SetNickname on the PlayerState, and the copied nickname is printed in the new map to confirm successful transfer. The video stresses testing server travel in Standalone mode rather than Play‑in‑Editor, and highlights that preserving PlayerState data across maps is essential for features like load‑outs or persistent scores, ultimately delivering a smoother multiplayer experience.

Original Description

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