Naming Convention in Unreal Engine 5 – A Guide of Asset Prefixes and Sufixes

Why Naming Conventions Actually Matter (No, Seriously)

If you’re thinking, “I’ll organize everything later,” let me stop you right there.

You won’t – Nobody does.
And that’s how you end up debugging NewBlueprint36 at 2 a.m. wondering if it controls your enemy AI or opens a door.

Naming conventions in Unreal Engine aren’t just a formality—they’re your lifeline. Especially once your project grows past five assets and one coffee-fueled coding session. Trust me, naming things properly from day one will save your sanity when your Blueprints multiply like rabbits and your Levels start duplicating themselves out of spite.

Why you should care:

• You can find your stuff in seconds
• You know what an asset does before opening it
• Your future self will thank you (or at least hate you less)
• Your teammates won’t secretly curse your name

Core Naming Rules (a.k.a. The Basics That Shouldn’t Be Ignored)

1. Use prefixes – Be specific. A name like BP_Enemy_Zombie tells you way more than Thing3.
2. Avoid diacritics, accents, and spaces – Use PascalCase or snake_case. Unreal will throw a tantrum otherwise.
3. Never use default names like NewBlueprint – That’s how legends of pain are born.
4. Be descriptive, not dramatic – BP_PlayerShootsBigBoom is funny, but not helpful six months later.
5. Don’t repeat yourself – Blueprint_BP_Sword is just sad.

📘 The Almighty Prefix List

Below is your go-to cheat sheet of all the standard Unreal Engine asset prefixes. Memorize them. Tattoo them. At least bookmark them.

Asset Type	Prefix	Example
Blueprint Class	BP_	BP_EnemyZombie
Blueprint Interface	BPI_	BPI_Interactable
Blueprint Function Library	BFL_	BFL_GameUtils
Component (Blueprint or C++)	COMP_	COMP_HealthRegen
C++ Class	C_	C_PlayerCharacter
Enum	E_	E_WeaponType
Struct	F_ / S_	F_PlayerStats
Data Table	DT_	DT_EnemyStats
Curve (Float/Vector/Color)	Curve_	Curve_HealthOverTime
Gameplay Ability (GAS)	GA_	GA_DashAbility
Gameplay Effect (GAS)	GE_	GE_BurnDamage
Gameplay Cue (GAS)	GC_	GC_DamageFlash
Gameplay Tag Config	Tag_	Tag_Ability.Fireball
Input Mapping Context	IMC_	IMC_PlayerControls
Input Action	IA_	IA_Interact
Widget Blueprint (UI)	W_	W_MainMenu
Texture	T_	T_Concrete_Diffuse
Material	M_	M_ConcreteTiled
Material Instance	MI_	MI_Concrete_Red
Material Function	MF_	MF_BlendTextures
Static Mesh	SM_	SM_Barrel01
Skeletal Mesh	SK_	SK_HeroCharacter
Physics Asset	PHYS_	PHYS_Hero
Animation Blueprint	ABP_	ABP_Hero
Animation Montage	AM_	AM_HeroAttackCombo
Animation Sequence	A_	A_RunForward
Pose Asset	PA_	PA_RifleAiming
Blend Space	BS_	BS_RunWalkBlend
Sound Cue	SC_	SC_Explosion
Sound Wave	S_	S_StepGravel
MetaSound	MS_	MS_ProceduralGunshot
Niagara System	NS_	NS_ExplosionFire
Niagara Emitter	NE_	NE_SmokeTrail
Behavior Tree	BT_	BT_EnemyAI
Blackboard	BB_	BB_EnemyData
AI Controller	AI_	AI_EnemyBasic
Nav Mesh Bounds Volume	NAV_	NAV_ForestVolume
World Partition Data Layer	DL_	DL_UrbanProps
World Partition Runtime Cell	WC_	WC_CityBlock_A1
Level (Map)	L_ / Map_	L_Forest_01
Level Instance (Sub-Level)	LI_	LI_HouseInterior
Level Sequence	SEQ_	SEQ_IntroCinematic
Cinematic Shot Track	SHOT_	SHOT_HeroCloseup
Camera Actor	CAM_	CAM_BossFightIntro
Light Actor	LIGHT_	LIGHT_TorchStatic
Decal	DECAL_	DECAL_BloodSplat_01
Font Asset	Font_	Font_MainTitle
Save Game Class	SG_	SG_PlayerData
Media Texture / Media Player	Media_	Media_IntroVideo
Http Request Class (Plugins)	HTTP_	HTTP_LeaderboardRequest
Online Subsystem Class	OS_	OS_SessionManager

📘 Recommended Suffixes for Unreal Engine 5 Assets

Quick Tips:

• Suffixes can be combined: e.g., MI_MetalScratched_HD_Inst, BP_IntroCam_SP_Final
• Avoid contradictory combos (no BP_Enemy_MP_SP)
• Use suffixes when they clarify, not just for decoration

Suffix	Meaning	Usage	Example
_Master	Base or master version	Materials, Blueprints, SoundCues	M_Wood_Master
_Inst	Instance	Material Instance, Blueprint	MI_Wood_Wet_Inst
_Var	Variation	Mesh, Texture, Material	T_BrickWall_Var01
_HD	High resolution	Texture, Material	T_CharacterSkin_HD
_LOD0	LOD level 0 (highest detail)	Mesh, Skeletal Mesh	SM_Tree_LOD0
_Mobile	Mobile-optimized version	Shader, Texture, Material	MI_UI_Glow_Mobile
_Preview	Preview or temporary version	Any asset	BP_UIOverlay_Preview
_WIP	Work In Progress	Any asset	BP_MechBoss_WIP
_Final	Final, production-ready	Any asset	SEQ_Intro_Final
_Temp	Temporary (placeholder)	Any asset	T_Diffuse_Gray_Temp
_Proxy	Simplified geometry (e.g., for collision)	Mesh	SM_House_Proxy
_Col	Collision version	Mesh	SM_Crate_Col
_NoCol	No collision	Mesh	SM_Lamp_NoCol
_Static	Static variant	Mesh, Light	SM_Lamp_Static
_Dynamic	Dynamic version	Blueprint, Light	BP_Light_Dynamic
_Anim	Animated version	Widget, Blueprint	W_Button_Anim
_Icon	Icon asset	Texture, Widget	T_Health_Icon
_Loop	Looping (sound or animation)	Audio, Animation	S_AmbientWind_Loop
_01, _02, _03	Numbered sequence	Texture, Audio, Mesh, Sequencer	T_GlassCrack_02
_UI	UI-only asset	Texture, Blueprint, Widget	T_Heart_UI
_FX	Visual effect	Niagara, Blueprint	BP_Explosion_FX
_MP	Multiplayer-specific	Blueprint, Logic	BP_PlayerController_MP
_SP	Single-player-specific	Blueprint	BP_IntroCutscene_SP
_BPOnly	Blueprint-only utility	Function Library, Debug	BFL_DebugTools_BPOnly
_Editor	Editor-only utility	Editor Tools, Widgets	W_SceneManager_Editor
_VR	VR-specific asset	Mesh, Input, Widget	W_HandsOverlay_VR

Pro Tips You’ll Thank Me For

🔹 Make Names Human-Readable

Bad:

BP_1  
BP_NewChar2  
BP_TheBigGuyMaybeBoss???

Good:

BP_Enemy_Melee_Heavy  
BP_Enemy_Ranged_Boss  
BP_Player_Companion_Doggo

🔹 Use Suffixes for Variants

MI_MetalScratched_HD = High-res material
BP_EnemyBoss_MB = Multiplayer variant
T_UI_Icon_Health = Texture used in HUD

🔹 Capitalization Helps

Stick to CamelCase or snake_case. Never ever use alllowercase or MIXEDUpCASE.

📁 Project Structure That Won’t Make You Cry

/Blueprints
  /Enemies
    BP_EnemyGrunt
    BP_EnemyBoss
  /Player
    BP_PlayerCharacter
    BPI_Interactable

/Materials
  M_Concrete
  MI_Concrete_Wet

/Meshes
  /Static
    SM_Weapon_Sword
  /Skeletal
    SK_PlayerHero

/Animations
  A_Run
  AM_SwordCombo
  ABP_PlayerHero

/UI
  W_MainMenu
  W_PauseMenu

/Data
  DT_Weapons
  E_WeaponType
  F_WeaponStats

Stick to a layout like this and Unreal won’t fight you during packaging. Bonus: your content browser won’t look like a crime scene.

🛠 Tools That Help When You Inevitably Screw Up

• Fix Up Redirectors – After moving files, clean up references
• Asset Audit – For dependency checks and memory use
• Source Control + Code Review – Let someone else catch your crimes

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Final Thoughts

Naming conventions might feel like annoying paperwork when you’re just trying to “make cool stuff,” but they’re one of the few things separating functional devs from sleep-deprived chaos monsters. Unreal Engine is powerful, but it does not suffer naming fools lightly.

Treat your naming like part of development, not an afterthought. Build habits now, and your future self—or your teammates—won’t want to throw a keyboard at your head later.