In this article, I will aim to cover all the pros and cons of developing with Unity3D.
I figured the best way to achieve this would be to seek expert advice on the subject, so I enlisted the help of two experienced mobile game developers who also have extensive knowledge of the video game market. On the one hand we have Iván García Suber, Trinitarian Coordinator, Computer and Video Game Developers Association of Zaragoza; the other is Aitor Román Ibanez Androtiya’s game developer. Together they have made several collaborations that have appeared as apps on Android Market, including the most famous Dragon Pet. I interviewed them both about their Unity 3D user experience and they shared their knowledge with me.
As industry experts and connoisseurs of the tool, they stated that one of the biggest beneficiaries of using Unity 3D is Android. Being in the market with more users and more devices in circulation has many advantages. This is particularly evident when analyzed from a social perspective.
Aitor Román explains: “We can say that Unity3D has spent more time preparing and developing apps on the Android platform, and it shows when it has its advantages.” Google also uses these advantages when developing games with Unity3D
Unity3D Constraints
Like any tool, it has strengths but also some limitations. Expert Ivan Garcia helps us learn more about the latter.
-
The most obvious thing is that we can’t start from a basis or a template, but in other ways and you have to implement details. If you don’t do this, you’ll have to start over with each game. “As a general purpose engine, it doesn’t give you anything to work with. Some people develop games and expect everything to be drag and drop, but that’s not the engine for it to work well,” explains Ivan Garcia.
-
It also lags behind other engines such as UDK graphically. In contrast, Unity 3D allows “shaders” to be programmed, yes, from scratch. However, Ivan Garcia admitted to us that the moment of truth for small developers in the world is graphic design for smartphones
-
A level physics engine, despite using NVidia PhysX, does not offer as many functions as other tools such as UDK or CryEngine. Unity 5 is expected to update the 3.3 PhysX, specifically the performance issues, and is expected to add other functionalities.
-
The fact that there are more expensive licenses can be a limitation for freelance developers and small development groups. The most expensive licenses mainly offer graphics and performance improvements, but they’re only worth it if you have medium or large gear and an ambitious project. Also, “the developer himself depends on the developer exploiting these resources,” adds Roman Aitor.
-
There are a few obstacles to developing games with Unity specifically for smartphones. However, you do not have to pay expensive licenses. For example, Unity Free lets you publish to Android, iPhone, and Windows Phone, the most popular platforms in recent years.
Finally, I can say that Unity 3D is a solid tool for beginners and also for users who don’t have many resources to hire people for game development. It’s also this group of freelance developers and small businesses that will benefit the most from using Unity.
Thanks to Ed Ombredane | #Unity #Game #Development #Pros #Cons
