Published on
October 30, 2009 in
3d, brighton, programming, unity, unity3d and unitybrighton.
Tags: 3d, brighton, programming, unity, unity3d, unitybrighton.
I’ve been watching Unity for several years now (thanks to James from Futurlab), but the fact that it was Mac-only was an instant turn-off. Earlier this year they released a PC version, which piqued my interest again, but I was unable to devote enough of my time to the free trial to actually learn anything. However, as of October 28, 2009, they’ve scrapped the Indie version of Unity and released a free version!
This is great news for anyone who’s been interested in creating content in Unity. Not only is the plugin just over 3MB, but it’s an almost seamless install in all the browsers I’ve tried it in.
What’s so great about Unity? Excellent 3D support, and you can use either JavaScript or C# for development, which makes transition from programming Flash games quite attractive.
Check out the island demo over on lab.iestyn.net
So, this leads me to UnityBrighton.com. Back in March I registered the domain, but did nothing with it. I’m guessing there will be renewed interest in Unity, so I’ve finally got round to setting it up. For now it’s a basic Wordpress blog and a Google groups mailing list. If you’re interested in Unity, please join and say hello!
F.A.S.T (Fleet Air Superiority Training) is a dogfighting game for the iPhone that I downloaded a few weeks back. It’s got some pretty good visuals for an iPhone game, and the controls seem to work reasonably well, using the accelerometer for movement.
However, I’m really really bad at it, and regardless of how many times I play it, I just can’t seem to stop getting blown to smithereens by enemies missiles. God alone knows how you’re ever meant to get close enough to fire the cannon.
Ah well, it does seem like a good game, if only I could get past the 3rd level. I’d say this is mainly due to my incompetence, rather than bad game design or controls 
It’s currently on the appstore for only £1.19 – definitely worth it if you like this genre.
TechCrunch reports it’s earned $1,000,000 in the first 6 weeks. Impressive going, SGN!
Published on
July 2, 2009 in
3d, 3g, 3gs, game, iphone and star defense.
Tags: 3d, 3g, 3gs, game, iphone, star defense.
If you’re a fan of tower defense games, then I can highly recommend Star Defense for the iPhone. You know the drill: Different types of turret, upgrades, waves of different enemies – it’s not deviating from the standard formula at all, but it’s presented nicely, seems quite balanced, and the 3D graphics are quite impresive for an iPhone. It’s definitely worth £3.49 – and it absolutely kills train journeys.
Published on
May 17, 2009 in
3d, game, internet, lego, star wars and unity.
Tags: 3d, game, internet, lego, star wars, unity.
LEGO.com has the best looking Unity game I’ve seen so far.
Blurring the line between console and browser
Currently there’s just one level, which is split into multiple areas. It’s a fairly simple 3D platformer – run around, collect gems, jump onto platforms, attack enemies. It won’t win any awards for originality, but graphically it’s very impressive. Try playing full-screen.
Unity can also support USB 360 controllers. I tried playing this fullscreen with a 360 controller just now, and yes; it’s almost indistinguishable from a console game from a few years ago. Really impressive work Three Melons and LEGO!
LEGO have announced they’ll be releasing a full version in August 2009, with 15 levels and 4 selectable characters.
Thanks for finding this Ed
[update] Three Melons have more on their blog.
Published on
May 4, 2009 in
3d, abstract, application, art, as3, creative, flash, flex, generative, papervision and pv3d.
Tags: 3d, abstract, application, art, as3, creative, flash, flex, generative, papervision, pv3d.
Since being inspired by Matt’s generative art session at Flashbrighton a while back, I’ve been occasionally working on a personal project. It’s a Flex application where you can generate interesting abstract images and animations. It’s tricky to describe exactly what it is and what it does, so you can see for yourselves when I release it.
It was initially a simple idea of mine to see what something looked like when manipulated in a certain way. After playing around with it for a while and adding more functionality, I began finding myself entranced by the things I/it was accidentally creating. When I’ve added a bit more functionality I’ll release it and see if anyone else finds it as intriguing as I do
If you’re interested in helping me alpha-test this, then let me know.
[Edit: By the way, it's using Papervision]
Here’s some screenshots:
Red
Lines
Rainbow
Distribution
Browns
Published on
May 4, 2009 in
2d, 3d, blurst, game, paper moon, platformer and unity.
Tags: 2d, 3d, blurst, game, paper moon, platformer, unity.
Blurst have released another great Unity game called ‘Paper Moon’. It’s a 2D platformer with a slight 3D twist to the gameplay: Pressing Space ‘pops’ bits of the scenery either in front or behind the plane of the character. If you or an enemy is in the way, then you die. It creates some interesting puzzles.
I haven’t tried it, but apparently you can plug in a (wired) 360 controller. Nice touch.
Published on
April 11, 2009 in
3d, games, internet, puzzle, puzzlebloom, unity and web.
Tags: 3d, games, internet, puzzle, puzzlebloom, unity, web.
Puzzlebloom is a good looking, fun puzzle game made with Unity. Lovely cel-shaded 3D graphics, and fun too. You play the part of a sort of tree-spirit that posesses dumb creatures and robots, and the aim of the game is to turn each dull grey level into one that’s full of life.
I’m getting more and more impressed with what Unity is capable of, and more concerned that Adobe are really losing out in the web 3D space..
Play Puzzlebloom here.
Published on
April 4, 2009 in
3d, blurst, game, gaming, internet and unity.
Tags: 3d, blurst, game, gaming, internet, unity.
Check out the stunning 3D Blush game by Blurst:
It’s a beautiful Unity game where you play a jellyfish that collects eggs. There’s a number of enemies you need to lash with your tentacles, with some great effects when they die. Check out the sea dragon for a good example.
Blurst also have a number of other good games. I quite like Minotaur China Shop.
I’m really impressed with what Unity can do. I’ve got to get a copy soon!
Published on
April 1, 2009 in
3d, april fools, browser, chrome, google and internet.
Tags: 3d, april fools, browser, chrome, google, internet.
Now you can view the web in 3D! Google have released Google Chrome 3D.
It does something with the RGB channels for every webpage. I wonder what it looks like if you’re wearing 3D glasses? Note the toggle 3D button on the nav bar.
I wonder if it’s something to do with today’s date? 
Here’s a screenshot:
Download here.
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