The always community-based Epic Games have seen fit to release their famed Unreal Engine to the public today, allowing anyone with a powerful PC and some technical know-how to make amateur games or even full-scale works with enough time and effort.

The engine, which has powered games like Mirror's Edge, BioShock, and of course, the Unreal series, comes to us in the form of the Unreal Development Kit (UDK), complete with its own website and tons (tons) of support should you need it. More, they plan to release free updates and builds over time.

Basically, it's blowing PC development wide open -- definitely a boost the gaming and education communities could use (the editor is already used in over 100 academic facilities).

Epic seems happy to announce the kit includes all the latest technology, some of which is even yet to be seen in an Unreal Engine-powered title. Hundreds of video tutorials on how to use it are available on 3D Buzz; we've got a demo video of sorts here, featuring some tasty-looking gingerbread men:

For those that want to take their efforts commercial, there's licensing options available, for which they note finances are a minimal barrier thanks to the structuring.

Console gamers are out of luck with this one for the moment, but Epic notes they are considering a version for you. However, if you happen to be approved for the creation of PS3 or 360 games (lucky dog), send an e-mail this way to get started with UDK.

The official website is below, complete with the not too steep system requirements.

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