YamlDataAsset

A plugin for the Unreal Editor that allows you to convert between UDataAssets and YAML files.

This makes it easier to swap between Unreal and external data sources.

Installation

• Like any plugin, clone this repository into the Plugins directory and compile into your project.

• You may also need to enable it in the plugins settings (Edit->Plugins->Project->Editor).

Usage

To Import

• Drop a YAML file into the content browser.
• Select the asset type from the list.
• Click OK.

To Export

• Choose export from the Asset Actions menu, choose YAML.

Example

UMyDataAsset

UCLASS( BlueprintType )
class UMyDataAsset : public UDataAsset
{
	GENERATED_UCLASS_BODY()

	UPROPERTY( EditAnywhere )
	FName Name;

	UPROPERTY( EditAnywhere )
	TArray<int> SomeNumbers;
};

YAML

Name: MyName
SomeNumbers:
  - 4
  - 8
  - 15
  - 16
  - 23
  - 42

The plugin uses the Unreal reflection system walk the properties and set the values. It is recursive, so it will work with nested structures, collections and compound types. Property names are case-insensitive.

Notes

__uclass

You can put a __uclass property at the top of the file to let the plugin know the class to use. If the UDataAsset exists then it will skip the dialog box. For example:

__uclass: MyDataAsset
Name: MyName
SomeNumbers:
  - 4
  - 8
  - 15
  - 16
  - 23
  - 42

Asset References

You can set pointers to assets by setting the reference as a string in the yaml (right click on the asset in the content browser and select Copy Reference).

For example:

UPROPERTY( EditAnywhere )
TWeakObjectPtr<UObject> MyAssetReference;
};

MyAssetReference: /Script/MyProject.MyDataAsset'/Game/Assets/MyDataAsset.MyDataAsset'

Compound Keys

A TMap with a compound key type (a struct as a key, e.g. TMap<FMyCustomKey,FString>) is not supported. Whilst this is allowed in Unreal, JSON (and therefore YAML) only allow value types for keys (this is a JavaScript limitation).