what is an actor?

In Unreal Engine, an Actor is a base class for all interactive objects within the game world. It is a fundamental building block of any game or interactive experience created using the engine.

In simpler terms, an Actor is any object that can be placed in the game world and can interact with the player or other objects. Examples of Actors include characters, enemies, weapons, doors, and other interactive objects.

Actors can have different properties and components that define their behavior, appearance, and interaction with other actors in the game world. For example, an Actor can have a mesh component that defines its visual appearance, a collision component that determines how it interacts with other objects, and a script component that controls its behavior and interactions with the player.

Actors are often used to represent the different entities in the game world, and they are managed by the engine's Object System, which provides a flexible and efficient way to handle and manipulate them.