Unity GDC 2016 Special Event: UE4 in my Unity 5

This year at GDC 2016 Unity did not give any huge announcements. Most of the new stuff was just advancing the previous features of the engine, taking them to the next level. However, those advancements seemed to have really taken Unity 5 into an absolutely new level. It’s a huge improvement. The kind of games that Unity has in its portfolio just amazes us: Firewatch, Homeworld, P.A.M.E.L.A – these games are amazing. Plus the new Adam demo looks great. Here are some of the biggest highlights of the past event.

Unity made some announcements during its GDC Special Event. Unity launches two new versions, Unity collaborate feature and the Unity developer certification program.

2016​­ Today Unity Technologies announced the availability of two new versions. Unity 5.3.4 gives developers focused on a product launch the latest set of features and tools in a stable environment. Unity 5.4 offers a set of in­development features ideal for developers in experimentation and prototype mode. Unity also announced that moving forward, beta releases will be made available to personal edition users. 5.4 is focused on new visual features, improved performance,

We remain focused on democratizing development, solving hard problems and enabling success. I’m proud of the success that Unity has achieved in the last year. To achieve 30 percent share of the top 1000 grossing games is unprecedented and a testament to the creativity of developers using Unity. The two new versions we are launching today will provide something for all developer needs and set a more stable baseline for future innovation.

John Riccitiello, CEO, Unity

After a Beta phase that saw Unity Analytics integrated into 60,000 games, Unity today announced that its Analytics service is moving out of Beta and is available to all developers. Analytics is built into Unity, no SDK required, providing easy one­click integration. Included are heatmaps, data exploration and integration of in­app purchasing for multiple app stores including newly added support for Amazon Appstore, Device Intelligence, a feature of Unity Analytics, empowers developers to make data­driven technical decisions about what hardware to focus efforts on. Its value comes from the insight derived from the 1.5 billion devices seen by the Unity network.

If developers are interested in using the new service, they can email analytics@unity3d.com for more information. Now in closed Beta, Unity Collaborate is a simple way for small teams to save, share and sync their Unity projects in the cloud. To apply to the program, please visit unity3d.com/collaborate.

Unity also announced the Unity Certification Program and Unity Certified Developer Courseware. It’s a program designed to give developers the opportunity to prove their skills in Unity, achieve a qualification and use that to further their careers. Courseware will be available for purchase online soon and certification exams will be made available at Unity­hosted events worldwide. More informations is available at Unity increased the number of supported platforms to 25 across 2D, 3D, VR and AR. Unity for Microsoft Hololens Tech Preview will ship on March 30 as well as upcoming new support for Amazon FireOS. To facilitate amazing games and experiences in VR, Unity will support NVIDIA VR WorksTM, including VR SLI and Multi­res Shading, as well as AMD LiquidVRTM, offering developers access to the latest GPU capabilities.

Unity Technologies have rightly spotted the gap in the market and have managed to address it with a suitable approach that solves many issues for evaluating Game Design and Development skills of individuals. This is especially useful for graduates, as they can officially demonstrate their skills to prospective employers. It also reduces the risk of employing developers and graduates as they can now support their CVs with an official evaluation. Finally, this approach also helps the Higher Education to align their focus with the industry standards.

Dr Damon Daylamani­ Zad, Senior Lecturer Department of Computing and Information Systems, University of Greenwich

Unity Technologies is also offering the Unity Certified Developer Courseware, an online learning program that directly maps to preparation for the certification exam. Courseware will be available for purchase online in Q2 2016. Initially, both the exam and courseware are offered in English, however, multiple languages are planned to ensure candidates across the globe have access to certification materials in their native language.

Democratizing development and enabling success are core principles at Unity, and creating a certification program is one of best ways to drive those ideas forward. We’ve developed a program based on learning science, that supports the way educators teach and students learn. This will help create a path to give students marketable, valuable skills, seeding the future workforce of the industry.

Megan Stewart, Head of Global Education, Unity Technologies

If you are at GDC 2016 in San Francisco, you can visit Unity at booth # 1402.

Source: official press release