Unity History
Learn basics of Unity
Unity is a game engine which supports JavaScript and C# as the main programming languages. Whether you are ready to learn about Unity engine development from the beginning, or just improving coding skills to the next level, Livecoding.tv social community has all you need. First, you'll need to check this guide, then browse for Unity tutorials, videos and live streaming channels under our community, and you are ready to start developing Unity engine games.
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Introduction to Unity
Unity is one of the most modern game engines to develop games. It is cross-platform and features IDE and other tools that help develop modern games for different platforms such as mobile devices, consoles, PC, and even websites. Different companies use Unity for creating AAA games and also by indie games who are interested in entering the industry with their talent. Unity was first released for OS X platform in the year 2005. Later on, it is ported to other platforms for portability reasons. The primary programming language of Unity is Java and C#.
History of Unity
Unity started with their release of OSX in 2005. Soon, they realized that they could offer more value to the community and released multi-platform support in the years to come. Let’s go through the main events throughout its timeline.
- Unity 1.0 was released in 2005 at Apple’s WWDC.
- Unity 2.0 was released in 2007 and brought many new changes.
- With more popularity, they grew quickly and in 208 they managed to grow trice.
- In 2011, Unity decides to acquire Mécanim. They also opened Unity Canada.
- With rapid growth, they reached one million registered users in 2012, giving them new milestone.
- The rapid growth continued, and they opened new branches in Shanghai. At the same time, they also created a partnership with Qihoo 360 and China Cache.
- Unity 5 reaches the world in the year 2014.
- Later the same year, they decided to acquire GameAds services and Applifier.
Unity Tools And Assets
Unity is an ecosystem. Without a proper ecosystem, it is hard to use different programming languages, features and much more. Let’s go through some of the main tools that you can use in your game dev.
- Visual Studio Tools for Unity: With the tool, you can easily maintain Visual Studio and implement project files without any manual work. The tool also easily integrates with Visual Studio tools.
- Shader Calibration Scene (Unity 5.x): A simple to use package that helps you implement basic video playback support for textures using the Unity WebGL.
- Simple Web Sockets for Unity WebGL (Unity 5.x) If you are wondering how to implement Web Sockets in WebGL, then you just need to use this package.It comes with support for 5.x.
- The Blacksmith Demo: Atmospheric Scattering solution (Unity 5.x): The package let you use the atmospheric scattering solution used in used in "The Blacksmith" short film.
Unity Best Books
The books will help you to create unity games easily. Most of the books Unity game development, but few of them target more specific section of game development using Unity and other tools. Check them out to know more!
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Learn Unity3D Programming with UnityScript: Unity's JavaScript for Beginners
by Janine Suvak
Learn Unity Programming with UnityScript is your step-by-step guide to learning to make your first Unity games using UnityScript. You will move from point-and-click components to fully customized features. You need no prior programming knowledge or any experience with other design tools such as PhotoShop or Illustrator - you can start from scratch making Unity games with what you'll learn in this book.
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Unity 5 from Zero to Proficiency (Beginner): A step-by-step guide to coding your first game with Unity
Creating your own game can be very intimidating at the start, and quite often, regardless of your experience with games, it is sometimes difficult to find the time and motivation to get over the first barriers and to get started.
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Unity Virtual Reality Projects
If you're a non-programmer unfamiliar with 3D computer graphics, or experienced in both but new to virtual reality, and are interested in building your own VR experiences then this book is for you. Any experience in Unity is an advantage.
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Unity in Action: Multiplatform Game Development in C# with Unity 5
by Joe Hocking
Unity in Action teaches you how to write and deploy games. You'll master the Unity toolset from the ground up, adding the skills you need to go from application coder to game developer. Based on Unity version 5.
Purchase of the print book includes a free eBook in PDF, Kindle, and ePub formats from Manning Publications.
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Grome Terrain Modeling with Ogre3D, UDK, and Unity3D
Grome is an environmental modeling package that makes the creation and editing of large terrain areas an easy task. Grome has the ability to take huge datasets suitable for MMOs and simulations and this marks it as a welcome tool in a developer's toolbox.
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Unity 5.x Cookbook
by Matt Smith
Over 100 recipes exploring the new and exciting features of Unity 5 to spice up your Unity skillset.
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Unity 5 Game Optimization
Master performance optimization for Unity3D applications with tips and techniques that cover every aspect of the Unity3D Engine
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Mastering Unity Scripting
Mastering Unity Scripting is an advanced book intended for students, educators, and professionals familiar with the Unity basics as well as the basics of scripting. Whether you've been using Unity for a short time or are an experienced user, this book has something important and valuable to offer to help you improve your game development workflow
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Unity 5.x Shaders and Effects Cookbook - Second Edition
by Alan Zucconi
Master the art of Shader programming to bring life to your Unity projects.
Unity Projects
Unity is one of the most powerful game engine out there. It is used for game production by big companies. Even students use Unity to learn and experiment with games and learn different ways to tackle problems related to game development. Below are some of the amazing projects created using Unity game engine.
A great city building game. It has also won the Unity Awards 2015 golden cube.
Ori and the blind forest is created over four years of hard work.It uses Unity game engine under the hood, and have won tons of awards for its art and gameplay.
A student project that earned lot of acknowledges.
An outstanding puzzle game for iOS, all created using Unity.
An incredible card game played by millions of users. Free to play!
Unity Community
Unity has a very vibrant community, ranging from students to small indie development teams to big studios that utilize the power of Unity in creating top-of-the-line games for any platform you can think about. Unity can be utilized for creating games for PC, iOS, Android, Consoles, etc. Unity community is driven by sharing information, and creating assets, tools, and other valuable stuff for each other.
You can check the official Unity community for any informations. As you can see on the community page, it is divided into four basic sections -- forums, answers, feedback, and issue tracker. Unity also has an excellent documentation, Wiki and Chat to listen and engage.
- Unity3D & CG / Unity 3D (RU): One of the biggest Unity3D & CG community in VK.com
Unity Gurus
Unity is blessed with people who contribute their soul to the game engine. Below are some of the gurus that help Unity grow in the right direction.
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Keijiro Takahashi
Keijiro is a well-known game developer. He has worked for more than a decade and has great experience working for the industry. His experience is truly used in Unity when he joined the company in 2012. He also ensured that his knowledge is propagated to others through books, classes and great games using Unity.
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Hiroki Omae
Hiroki is yet another Japan-based programmer who has tons of experience under his belt. His 5-year experience in game dev has enabled him to work on Unity. Internal engine development is one of his specialties, and he has also worked on many indie games. His other interests are snowboarding, cycling and canyoning.
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Jay Santos
Jay Santos started working on Unity in early 2010 started using Unity in early 2010. Most of his work experience is in the mobile platforms. He is an Evangelist and Field Engineer for Latin America. Most of his work surround under universities, locals, and customers. He also works on training, presentation, and workshops.
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Carl Callewaert
Carl is currently working on Unity and loves sharing his experience. His experience includes working on AAA games and indie games. As a contract worker, he has also worked for Autodesk Education and honed his skills for the previous ten years.
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Yasuyuki Kamata
Yasuyuki is one of the main people behind the development of Unity. He joined unity as a Web Developer and showed his skills by involving in game development events especially a mobile one. His experience of social browser games development has enabled him to work on the mobile platform for Unity.
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Unity Conferences
Unity regularly holds events and conferences around the world to make sure that everyone stays in touch with what’s new and happening in the world of unity. You can check the industry events that are happening around the world.