Dan Stopnicki & Kyle Halladay - Double Dragon

Kyle Halladay from BNOTIONS and Dan Stopnicki from SE3D Interactive will be discussing their co-collaboration SkyBound. Skybound is currently an early release mobile game, developed for the Android and iOS platform which takes the genre of infinite runners into the sky. A unique score multiplier and narrative element has also helped to define this game as both familiar yet different than similar games in the market.

The talk will centre on game production but in particular will focus on optimization techniques which helped to avoid common game design and production bottlenecks. The team will address using the Unity platform as a game development tool and focus on development challenges as they relate in particular to 3D game design.

Covering topics including kit building (modular 3D design) as an effective production tool, custom level design tools and their ability to unload level designers and how to leverage some great 3rd party tools found on the Unity app store, Kyle and Dan will share their first hand experience in mobile game production.

Transcript

1. Double Dragon: A pre-post-mortem on SKYBOUND Image: Walking Dead AMC
2. A collaboration between BNOTIONS and SE3D An infinite runner (3D) A unique control mechanic Scoped within a 6 month timeline Starfox meets ‘How to train your dragon’ Achieve a state of ‘flow’ Feel free roaming SKYBOUND
3. = AWESOME +
4. What is an infinite runner? Dr. Driving Iron Man SKYBOUND
5. Benefits: Limited Level Design requirements Easy division of labour on the art side Limited camera angles = Less design for a 3D app Reuses geometry and textures – Re: Instantiation 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments Drawbacks: Level design is challenging to Directional lighting is difficult if not impossible Risk the impression of tiling or repeating patterns
6. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
7. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
8. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
9. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
10. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
11. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
12. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
13. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
14. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
15. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
16. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
17. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
18. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
19. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments
20. 3D Modularity Using simple, repeating shapes to generate complex environments Zbrush as a mobile gaming tool:  Great sketching tool  Digital putty – Low barrier to entry Retopologizing:  QRemesher  Decimation master Image: Pixologic.com
21. Challenges Making a game is easy. Image: Some bitter artist • Making it fun is a counterintuitive freak show based more in art than science. • ART and DEV are like cats and dogs. Where both sides think they’re the dog. • Level design, game play and testing are a challenge when you don’t actually have a ‘level’
22. The artist is gone… you're safe now Image: xkcd.com
23. Custom Tools are Magic. Image: wtfcostumes.com
24. SkyBound would not be possible without the tools we built.
25. Who here does a significant amount of work in Unity? Less of Us Lots of Us
26. Automate Object Positioning
27. And other repetitive tasks…
28. Create Temporary Objects
29. Gizmos can make wireframe view wonderful
30. Automate your scene view camera
31. Automate your scene view camera
32. Be prepared to find idiosyncracies in your engine. Image: ???
33. Unity's dynamic batcher is…odd.
34. Saving prefabs doesn't happen like you think it happens. Image: totalfilm.com
35. Prime31’s UIToolkit Unity Remote Interpolate.cs Don’t Reinvent The Wheel https://github.com/prime31/UIToolkit http://wiki.unity3d.com/index.php?title=Interpolate http://tinyurl.com/unityremote
36. Thank you! Interested in being a beta tester? gamebeta.launchrock.com
37. Think of your tools as standalone products.
38. Presentation is important.
39. Building a tool should be a collaborative process. Star Wars this image is from.
40. Speaking of putting users first… (with apologies to our art team) Image: cutestpaw.com)
41. Git is not an art pipeline.
42. Git CLI is especially not an art pipeline
43. Prime31’s UIToolkit Unity Remote Interpolate.cs Don’t Reinvent The Wheel https://github.com/prime31/UIToolkit http://wiki.unity3d.com/index.php?title=Interpolate http://tinyurl.com/unityremote
44. Thank you! Interested in being a beta tester? gamebeta.launchrock.com