Developing a game comes with a lot of hurdles, none bigger than deciding on a development game engine to use. Unity game development provides you with an arsenal of tools and assets to begin producing a game title quickly and of a high standard, but there is a multitude of benefits that come with using Unity for game development that this article will discuss in great detail to give you a better understanding of the platform.
There are thousands of studios using Unity for game development, but why? The simple answer is not only the quantity and quality of the resources it provides but the platform itself integrates easily with other software and provides a high level of accessibility for developers of all skill levels and experience. Let us go into some more detail about why you should consider Unity game development.
Unity – The Rundown
Unity provides a high standard of game creation capable of AAA visuals, high-quality audio, and essentially smooth gameplay. With an extensive list of tools for development in both a 2D and a 3D setting, Unity game development provides you as a developer the benefits of Unity, including but not limited to:
- Simple workflows that provide developers the tools to build scenes and customize the editor to suit them better A built-in and dynamic animation system that is capable of producing custom and natural animations in relatively short time frames compared to other suites
- Simple multi-platform support that allows you to deploy your game title across all platforms, meaning mobile game development with Unity is a breeze
- A giant selection of pre-built assets on the marketplace, which means whether you’re doing mobile game development with Unity or perhaps just Unity 3D Game development for PC, you’re able to source assets required to get your game off the ground, filling in any gaps in your production team skill sets.
- Incredibly user-friendly, Unity’s layout is customizable, meaning even at an entry-level you’re able to find your way around its tools and mechanics comfortably and for those who are more familiar with Unity game development, you can customize the layout to suit your particular development pipeline processes.
The Pros of Unity Game Development
Endless Compatibility
Unity Game development gives you the advantage of programming in C# as the main language and the benefit of that is it is a relatively low entry point and somewhat easy to grasp for even a beginner programmer. The learning curve for such a language is relatively smooth compared to other languages, which means you’ll be regularly encouraged to learn and improve further. Unity game development is designed with compatibility in mind, not just with other software and runtimes, but with people too.
See it to believe it
Unity 3D game development, in particular, is incredibly robust in its ability to assist even low-level programmers to achieve great results. The introduction of Visual Scripting allows users to create scripts without writing code in what is a node-based network. You can create outcomes linking up nodes and whilst this doesn’t provide the same level of customization and performance that standard coding does, it does allow you to develop your skills and understand the pipeline better.
Any way you want it
It is not just a Unity 3D game development agency that can benefit from the use of the platform for production, but Unity is capable of producing 2D games as well, in fact, it is the most used development tool for 2D mobile platform titles as it provides a robust ability to allow you to port to other game stores and platforms.
Unity on the move
Unity’s cross-platform development capabilities make it perfect for mobile and Android game production, as it lets you easily publish your content. The engine’s agility is definitely one of the benefits of Unity which got it to the current popularity.
Stunning Visuals
Unity offers a vigorous rendering solution, especially with its more modern approach to SRP. It delivers modularity and customization, which results in a better performance overall. The render loop customization is produced through C# script and provides two options for implementation. URP and HDRP.
URP is designed for high performance, which allows a game to function on any device, this is generally what most modern titles will use. The other is HDRP, which is aimed specifically at high-performance devices, This provides extensive visuals that frankly are breathtaking and quickly becoming sought after in the industry.
It is worth noting that custom rendering pipelines with Unity are absolutely possible, which means depending on your experience with scripting, you can create a rendering function more suited to your particular development process.
The Sky is not the Limit
Apart from its robust inbuilt tools and customizable options, Unity is known for its Asset store and package manager. The asset store is a platform where developers from all over the globe can provide their own assets to you for use. Some are premium and require purchase, others are free of cost. All assets can be customized and edited upon putting into your project, which means you have an endless collection of assets at your fingertips, which is great for smaller teams of developers that may not have accomplished modellers.
Package manager, on the other hand, is an efficient way to plugin packages into your Unity project without the burden of having to copy in those plugins and libraries. This means developers can integrate with libraries on platforms like GitHub with ease. Essentially it’s a clean and fast way to integrate plugins without affecting performance.
Entry Point
Entry into Unity’s platform is free – in the industry these days, that statement seems surprising as most software comes with a cost. But Unity, at least the free version, allows new developers to come in and experience what it has to offer and develop their skills further. The pro version, designed for actual development and publishing, is far more robust, but the free option at least provides users with a great starting point that can get the creative and technical juices flowing. In any case, you’d better explore the general functions of the engine before you decide between Unity personal vs pro.
The Cons of Unity Game Development
Whilst Unity provides content that other platforms don’t, there are some flaws and notches in the armour of its reputation that are worth noting, especially for newer developers.
- Unlike something like Unreal Engine, Unity does not come with templates for projects, meaning you have to start from scratch for anything your produce. In terms of licenses, Unity is free however there is a paid monthly subscription that provides you with far more tools and resources for your development process and we think, is well worth the $15 a month it requires.
- A big issue you’ll hear regularly, especially if you surf game development forums is Memory. Unity has memory-related issues, and by that, we mean Unity content requires far more memory to run and develop with, which for those on lower-end systems, you may struggle when the project becomes complex.
- Not only that but there are also no external code libraries, requiring you to produce more code yourself compared to other development platforms. Unity’s backend is still supported using Mono, which is considerably powerful and yet flawed as it tends to lead to slow support and updates.
Unity 2023 Updated Pricing Model
On September 12, 2023, Unity announced a big update to the Unity pricing model.
The company introduced a new commission for developers. The size of the commission will depend directly on the number of game installations. The commission will come into effect on January 1, 2024.
The new Uniy pricing model doesn’t apply to all categories of developers. The conditions for those developers who used free subscriptions will change: Unity plans to apply the $0,20 fee per every install. It applies to the games with 200,000+ installs and $200,000+ revenue.
- Those who used Pro and Enterprise Unity pricing models will face a smaller commission after 1 million downloads and $1+ million in revenue.
- The new Unity pricing model will not apply to demo versions of games but will apply to early-access games. The charity games will also be free from commissions.
It’s also still to be decided how the new Unity pricing model will work with the subscription services like Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, PS Plus and others.
Why choose Pingle for Unity Game Development?
At Pingle Studio, we’ve successfully provided incredible game development support for dozens of studios working on massive triple-A games as well as stunning indie titles, which means one thing, we know how to get you great results for your game. At Pingle Studio, we’re made up of a passionate community of 400+ professionals and growing, our team is talented and proud of the services they regularly provide other studios. With over 80 game releases under our belt and over 15 years in the games industry, we provide a level of expertise to each project that is always incredibly valuable.
Certified to provide support for games on every platform including but not limited to PS5, Xbox Series X, Steam, Steam VR, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Android, Apple iOS, Apple Arcade, and Xbox one, we can deliver a multitude of services for your game. From assisting with assets, animations, and art direction to even assisting you with platform-specific game porting, there isn’t much that we can’t offer a service or professional for.
Speaking of Engines, we have professionals who are proficient in all the major engines including Unity and Unreal Engine – so no matter the task at hand, the team speaks your language, whichever it may be. Pingle Studio has previously provided co-development, game testing, porting, art & animation, and even in some cases, full-cycle development, so whether you need us for part of the pipeline, or you want us to assist you for the entire journey, our dynamic and friendly team have your back.
- Recently we’ve provided co-development for Team17 on their beloved game Golf with your Friends, assisting them with a DLC that received rave reviews. We’ve been met with some challenging requests from other studios and regularly overcome them with the ingenuity of our team.
- Skyhook Games released Lawn Mowing Simulator on PS4 and Xbox One, with the one goal being to maintain or exceed 25 FPS on the platforms. Our team sat down with their crew to comb through the title and refine exactly what could be optimized without losing visual fidelity to successfully deliver a fun and engaging experience on those platforms.
- Working with tinyBuild, Pingle Studio also helped optimize the UI, port key mechanics, and assist with game balance and quest logic on the hit game Undungeon. This title in particular required strict deadlines, which is something that we here at Pingle Studio never shy away from, in fact, we love the challenge and overcoming complex problems to help deliver incredible gaming experiences for the user and the development team too.
Whether you’re a major studio, a small indie team, or a lone developer with minimal Unity experience and you need advice on the development of your title, don’t hesitate to contact our diverse, dynamic, and friendly team at Pingle Studio, as we thrive on being part of the development process and love helping game developer visions come to life by providing impeccable game development services. Contact us today for more information on how we can assist you.
