AOUSD unveils roadmap towards OpenUSD standardisation

The Alliance for OpenUSD (AOUSD) has unveiled a roadmap outlining its journey towards establishing OpenUSD (Universal Scene Description) as an international standard.

AOUSD's two-year roadmap is a strategic plan to make OpenUSD an international standard for interoperability in describing 3D scenes and environments.

The Core Specification working group, a key component of this roadmap, will lay the foundation for OpenUSD by defining the structure and interpretation of...

13 December 2023 | Gaming

GameMaker offers free version as ‘gift’ to developers

2D game engine GameMaker has announced massive pricing changes in what its head calls a "gift" to its loyal user base.

Starting today, GameMaker will be free to use for noncommercial, non-console game development projects in a move CEO Russell Kay says is meant to "do the opposite" of recent unpopular decisions by competitors like Unity and Unreal Engine.

Specifically, GameMaker is eliminating the $9.99 per month indie and creator subscription fee. Instead, developers...

23 November 2023 | Development Tools

Mobile game ‘mortality rate’ hits 83% within three years

A new whitepaper titled "Good Games Don't Die" reveals that 83 percent of launched mobile games fail within three years.

The study, conducted by revenue growth engine SuperScale, polled 500 developers across the US and UK to uncover issues plaguing the $96.2 billion mobile gaming industry.

The report unveils a catch-22 where 78 percent of developers prefer building new games despite a critical 43 percent failure rate during development alone.

This trend...

22 November 2023 | Android

Unity unveils AI innovations and platform updates at Unite 2023

Unity has introduced a range of AI innovations and platform updates aimed at enhancing support for game developers in realising their creative visions and achieving success in the competitive gaming industry.

One of the highlights is the early access availability of Unity Muse, an AI-powered suite designed to simplify content creation for game developers.

Muse offers features such as Muse Chat, enabling developers to source answers and resources across Unity and obtain...

17 November 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

Xbox and Inworld AI forge game-changing alliance

Xbox has unveiled a partnership with Inworld AI aimed at transforming game development using AI-powered tools.

In a blog post, Haiyan Zhang, General Manager of Gaming AI at Xbox, reflected on the evolution of gaming AI from the days of Ms Pac-Man to the present. Zhang highlighted the transformative potential of modern AI in creating living worlds, dynamic narratives, and intricate characters.

While traditional rule-based AI set the foundation, the integration of Large...

6 November 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

Unity CEO John Riccitiello ‘retires’ following controversies

Unity CEO John Riccitiello has “retired” amid controversies that have plagued the company under his watch. 

“It’s been a privilege to lead Unity for nearly a decade and serve our employees, customers, developers and partners, all of whom have been instrumental to the company’s growth,” said Riccitiello.

“I look forward to supporting Unity through this transition and following the company’s future success.”

Unity recently created widespread...

10 October 2023 | Development Tools

Unity’s runtime fee controversy: Diving into the why and how

unity game engine runtime fee controversy development coding programming

The recent rollercoaster ride of Unity's controversial runtime fee rollout has left the game development community bewildered and seeking answers.

After an initial announcement — followed by modifications and a reannouncement — Unity's President, Marc Whitten, addressed the issue in a live fireside chat on YouTube, attempting to shed light on the reasons behind this turbulent rollout.

Apologies for missteps

Whitten began by offering a heartfelt apology to the...

26 September 2023 | Development Tools

Details emerge around Unity’s fee changes after outcry

Details have emerged regarding the proposed changes to Unity’s controversial per-install fee plan for developers.

These changes come in response to the outcry and concerns raised within the game development community about Unity’s recently announced new fee structure potentially bankrupting developers.

Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier, known for his in-depth coverage of the gaming industry, has shed light on the potential modifications during a Unity all-hands...

19 September 2023 | Developer

Unity receives ‘credible death threat’ amid per-install fee backlash

Unity has been forced to close two of its offices and cancel a town hall meeting following a "credible death threat".

The unacceptable threat came on the heels of an announcement regarding a new per-install fee for developers using the Unity video game engine.

Just two days ago, Unity created widespread backlash across the gaming community by unveiling its intention to charge developers a per-install fee each time a player downloaded one of their...

15 September 2023 | Developer

Niantic 8th Wall enhances WebAR with powerful GenAI modules

Niantic 8th Wall is enhancing its WebAR platform with generative AI (GenAI) modules to revolutionise augmented reality experiences.

The fusion of technologies promises to offer developers, brands, and agencies more creative potential and improve users’ augmented reality experiences.

Over the past few months, 8th Wall developers have harnessed the power of GenAI, integrating various cutting-edge GenAI technologies into the WebAR platform.

Current integrations...

1 September 2023 | Artificial Intelligence