Category: Game Development

Today Epic Games have announced the acquisition of Cubic Motion, a real-time facial animation capture company.  Cubic Motion’s technology has been used by several of the most successful games of the current generation including SpiderMan and HellBlade, as well as powering several of Unreal Engines previous GDC and SIGRAPH presentations.   This company is a good fit for Unreal Engine and 3Lateral, the 3D character creation company Epic acquired last January.

Details of the acquisition from the Unreal Engine blog:

Today we are thrilled to welcome Cubic Motion to the Epic Games family. Cubic Motion is a longtime Epic partner and a leading provider of automated performance-driven facial animation technology and services for video games, film, broadcast, and immersive experiences. By joining forces, our teams are solidifying our commitment to advancing the state of the art in the creation of believable digital humans for all Unreal Engine users.

Cubic Motion’s talent will work hand in hand with 3Lateral, developer of innovative technologies that enable digitization of human appearance and motion at unprecedented levels of realism. 3Lateral joined the Unreal Engine team in January 2019 to lead development of the state of the art in real-time capabilities for the creation of virtual humans and creatures.

“We are delighted to be joining Epic Games and look forward with excitement to this next chapter in our story,” said Cubic Motion CEO Dr. Gareth Edwards. “Together, we are uniquely positioned to push the boundaries of digital human technology, bringing ever more realism and immersion to all forms of visual entertainment.”

“Digital humans are not only the next frontier of content creation, but also the most complex endeavor in computer graphics. With Cubic Motion bringing their computer vision and animation technology and expertise to our digital human efforts, Epic along with our team at 3Lateral are one step closer to democratizing these capabilities for creators everywhere,” said Tim Sweeney, founder and CEO of Epic Games.

Cubic Motion’s existing Persona facial capture technology is currently unimpacted by the acquisition.  You can learn more about the deal in the video below.

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GameDev News Unreal

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Fanatical are running a pair of new deals of interest to game developers.  The first one is a straight forward collection of ebooks from Wiley Press on the subject of Linux, both programming and operations.  It is organized into tiers, where buying a higher value tier get’s you all of the books in the tiers below it.

The other deal being offered is a build your own bundle with a selection of Zenva courses, including:

• Bite-Sized HTML
• Bite-Sized CSS
• CSS Flexbox for Beginners
• The Complete Beginner’s JavaScript Course
• Discover Developer Tools for JavaScript Apps
• Bite-Sized Python
• C++ Programming for Beginners
• Machine Learning for Beginners with TensorFlow
• Web Scraping with Python and BeautifulSoup: https://academy.zenva.com/product/web-scraping-with-python-and-beautifulsoup/
• Godot Game Development for Beginners
• Beginning SQL – Store and Query Your Data
• The Complete Python Data Visualization Course
• Intro to Game Development with Unity
• Learn C++ by Making a Text-Based RPG
• Unity 2D Projects – Super Plumbers
• Build a First-Person Shooter with Godot
• Build a Micro Strategy Game
• Create a City Building Game with Unity
• Create a Road Crossing Game with Phaser 3
• Develop a Top-Down Action RPG with Phaser 3
• Build a Tower Defense Game with Phaser 3
• Intro to Augmented Reality
• AR Game Development – Space Shooter
• Build a Micro-VR Game:
• VR Projects – First-Person Shooter

In this bundle you can buy a single course for $1.50, 5 courses for $6, 10 course for $11 or all 25 of the courses for $25.  Additionally Fanatical are still offering a collection of ebooks from Packt on topics including Unity, C++, Blender and Unreal which we discussed here.  It is important to note the Humble are currently running a similar Zenva course bundle, so be careful that you don’t purchase the same course twice!  All of the above links contain affiliate codes that help support GFS if you purchase using them (and thanks if you do!).

You can learn more about the Linux Wiley Book Bundle and the Build Your Own Zenva Course bundle in the video below.

GameDev News Book Sale

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Today Unity have announced they have acquired Artomatix, the Dublin based company behind ArtEngine, an AI powered material creation software.

Details from the Unity blog:

At Unity, we have talented developers working to solve problems using AI and machine learning. This talent, combined with the solution-oriented and production-validated approach of the ArtEngine team, means we can accelerate our ability to build an exceptional set of tools that help artists and creatives in many different ways. Content creators can expedite their process and get infinite variations of their materials in the blink of an eye. Immediate benefits apply to every industry exposed to 3D content, regardless of platform or engine.

We’re very excited to have the ArtEngine team join Unity. They have a great approach to solving the difficult challenges faced by artists, and we can’t wait to see what we can build together. Stay tuned as we combine forces to explore all the ways that AI-driven assisted artistry workflows can help artists deliver exceptional content.

The acquisition however did not just occur, as it was first reported on in December of 2019 by the Irish Times:

Artomatix, an Irish software company that has developed artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which can automate the creation of 3D content, has been acquired in a deal believed to be worth up to $60 million (€54 million).

The buyer’s name has not been disclosed but industry sources described it as a well-known Silicon Valley-based company that does not currently have a base in the Republic.

The transaction, which closed late last week, is valued at between $50 million and $60 million, leading to a significant return for Artomatix’s backers, which include Sure Valley Ventures and Enterprise Ireland.

Today we have learned that Unity was indeed the buyer.  There is good news for the Irish technology sector, as (again) the Irish Times have reported Unity intends to hire over 100 employees:

Unity Technologies, which recently acquired Irish software company Artomatix in a deal valued at up to $60 million (€52.8 million), is to create 100 jobs in Dublin over the next two years.

The move comes after Unity announced a new office in the Docklands area of the capital after recently completing the acquisition.

Artomatix chief executive Joe Blake said the company, which currently employs just over 20 people, intends to “immediately triple headcount,” with other Unity divisions also planning to take on staff locally.

You can learn more about the acquisition in the video below… including a small rant on how not to run your tech company!

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GameDev News Unity

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Humble are running the Humble Learn To Code bundle.  It’s a collection of courses on Zenva aimed at teaching viewers how to code with a very game development oriented focus.  It may sound familiar as Zenva ran a similarly named bundle just over a year ago, although the contents differed.  As with all Humble Bundles, this one is organized into tiers. 

1$ Tier

• Bite-Sized HTML
• Bite-Sized CSS
• Bite-Sized Python
• Intro To Game Development with Unity
• Intro to Java for Mobile Development

12$ Tier

• The Complete Beginners’ JavaScript Course
• Bite-Sized NumPy
• Bite-Sized Pandas
• Reading Data from APIs with Python
• Create Your First 3D Game with Unity
• Intro to RPG Development with Phaser
• Kotlin for Beginners
• iOS App Development For Beginners

25$ Tier

• Responsive Web Design for Beginners
• Beginning SQL – Store and Query Your Data
• The Complete Python Data Visualization Course
• RPG Development – Quest Systems
• Mobile Game Development for Beginners
• Build a Micro RPG
• Construct a First Person Shooter
• Craft A Mario Style Platformer in Phaser 3
• Develop a Top Down Action RPG with Phaser 3
• The Complete Mobile App Development Course with Flutter

As with all Humble Bundles, you can decide how your money is allocated, between the publisher, Humble, charity and if you so choose (and thanks if you do!) to support GFS if you purchase using this link.  You can learn more about the bundle in this video below.

EDIT – I made an error in the video.  The courses are not a one year subscription, but instead you have one year to redeem your key!  Once redeemed it is a life long subscription, so even better!

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GameDev News Sale Unity Phaser JavaScript

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Every month Epic Games give away several free items from the Unreal Engine marketplace and this month is no exception.  There are 5 items that are yours free forever, so long as you “purchase” them before the first Tuesday of next month.  There is also one permanently free item.  In addition to this months giveaways, Epic are running a 50% off Flash sale until March 6th.

This months free content includes:

Free For March

• Ability Pack – Time and Space
• Android Native Goodies
• FPS Assault Pack
• Phoenyx Anim Pack 3
• Ultimate Archvis Kit

Free Forever

You can learn more about the giveaway in the video below.

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GameDev News Unreal

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Buildbox is a “no code” 2D/3D game engine for Windows and Mac, capable of targeting those platforms plus Steam and mobile.  Nearing the end of 2019 Buildbox announced a free edition with the release of BuildBox 3.

Since that update they have also announced that the Plus tier of pricing is back and cheaper than before.  Details of that announcement:

This new Buildbox Plus plan will also feature easy export to iOS, Android, and Windows. Plus, AdMob and ironSource SDK integration. Although there are no in-app purchase or custom ads options, it’s a huge upgrade from Buildbox Free, without breaking the bank. You’ll be able to make professional-looking 2D and 3D games for only $9.99 per month or $75.99 per year. All of our subscriptions are set at a 1-year commitment, which you’ll be able to later choose to opt-out of or renew.

Buildbox Plus

Buildbox Plus Plan ($9.99 per month or $75.99 per year)

• Customizable Splash Screen
• 5 World Limit
• Unlimited Scenes
• Export (iOS, Android, Windows)
• Easy Monetization AdMob and ironSource SDKs

If you’ve been wanting to upgrade from Free, but not quite ready for Pro, this plan is a great option. With Buildbox Plus, you’ll have access to the latest version of our software, Buildbox 3, which includes all of our no-code and low-code game building features from smart assets to nodes. You can create up to five different immersive 2D and 3D worlds to challenge players. There’s also 100+ preloaded assets in Buildbox 3 to help you quickly build out the levels or scenes in your game. And of course, there’s an option to drag and drop your own assets into the software to use as well.

If you are interested in learning more about BuildBox, check out our hands-on review in the video below.

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GameDev News Engine

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Due to the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19), with elevated fears of infection and quarantine, several exhibitors including Unity, Epic Games, Microsoft and Amazon all announced that they would not be attending GDC this year.  It was almost inevitable that the event itself would be cancelled or postponed, which is exactly what happened.

Details from the GDC website:

After close consultation with our partners in the game development industry and community around the world, we’ve made the difficult decision to postpone the Game Developers Conference this March.

Having spent the past year preparing for the show with our advisory boards, speakers, exhibitors, and event partners, we’re genuinely upset and disappointed not to be able to host you at this time .

We want to thank all our customers and partners for their support, open discussions and encouragement. As everyone has been reminding us, great things happen when the community comes together and connects at GDC. For this reason, we fully intend to host a GDC event later in the summer. We will be working with our partners to finalize the details and will share more information about our plans in the coming weeks.

For more information, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

From the linked FAQ come important details regarding refunds:

I am a current GDC 2020 paid conference or expo registrant – now the event is not taking place in March, can I receive a refund of my pass money?

If you are a currently registered passholder, you will be receiving an email about your registration status and any next steps regarding refunds, which conference and expo attendees will be receiving in full.

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What is the situation with hotels if I booked through the GDC hotel website/room blocks?

Individuals who have made hotel reservations inside the GDC room block will not have to pay penalties or fees associated with their reservations. More information will be available early next week on next steps.

As several smaller developers are going to be financially impacted, gamedev.world are organizing a fund raising and relief effort for impacted developers.  You can learn more about the postponement in the video below.

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GameDev News

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