Next-Generation Casual Entertainment

TextureBogusExtensions | Unify Wiki

TextureBogusExtensions | Unify Wiki

2011-Sep-30

Matt maker: /* TextureBogusExtensions.cs */


== Usage ==

Drop this somewhere in your project as TextureBogusExtensions.cs, and you will be able to do things like:
<csharp>if (myTexture.isBogus()) { //code here that uses some other local default texture instead }</csharp>

== TextureBogusExtensions.cs ==
<csharp>
using UnityEngine;
using System.Collections;
using System.Text;

/// <summary>
///
/// Add a feature to the Texture class which allows you to detect the case when you have attempted to download a bogus WWW Texture.
///
/// by Matt "Trip" Maker, Monstrous Company :: http://monstro.us
///
/// TODO could also use the filesystem cache to keep the example error image between runs.
///
/// from http://unifycommunity.com/wiki/index.php?title=TextureBogusExtensions
///
/// </summary>
public static class TextureBogusExtensions
{
public static bool ready = false;
private static Texture _bogusTexture = null;
public static Texture bogusTexture {
get {
return _bogusTexture;
}
set {
_bogusTexture = value;
}
}

public static bool obtainExampleBogusTexture() {
Debug.Log("obtaining an example bogus texture by trying to load an HTML page as a texture");
bool keepgoing = true;
float timeoutAt = Time.time + 10.0f;
_bogusTexture = new Texture();

WWW www = new WWW("http://monstro.us");

// Wait for download to complete
float elapsed = 0.0f;
while ( Time.time < timeoutAt && !www.isDone && keepgoing)
{
elapsed = elapsed + 0.01f;
}

if (www.error == null) {
_bogusTexture = www.texture;
Debug.Log("bogusTexture " + _bogusTexture.name +","+ _bogusTexture.height +","+ _bogusTexture.width +","+ _bogusTexture.filterMode +","+ _bogusTexture.anisoLevel +","+ _bogusTexture.wrapMode +","+ _bogusTexture.mipMapBias);
return true;
}
return false;
}

/// <summary>
/// The easy way: compare to a saved version of the question mark image, expressed here as an array of bytes.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="tex">
/// A <see cref="Texture"/>
/// </param>
/// <returns>
/// A <see cref="System.Boolean"/>
/// </returns>
public static bool isBogus(this Texture tex) {
if (!tex) return true;

byte[] png1 = (tex as Texture2D).EncodeToPNG();
byte[] questionMarkPNG = new byte[] {137,80,78,71,13,10,26,10,0,0,0,13,73,72,68,82,0,0,0,8,0,0,0,8,8,2,0,0,0,75,109,41,220,0,0,0,65,73,68,65,84,8,29,85,142,81,10,0,48,8,66,107,236,254,87,110,106,35,172,143,74,243,65,89,85,129,202,100,239,146,115,184,183,11,109,33,29,126,114,141,75,213,65,44,131,70,24,97,46,50,34,72,25,39,181,9,251,205,14,10,78,123,43,35,17,17,228,109,164,219,0,0,0,0,73,69,78,68,174,66,96,130,};

return Equivalent(png1, questionMarkPNG);
}

/// <summary>
/// The hard(er) way: compare this texture to the result of a deliberately failed texture download attempt.
/// note that this may block during the first access, while the error image is downloaded and cached.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="tex">
/// A <see cref="Texture"/>
/// </param>
/// <returns>
/// A <see cref="System.Boolean"/>
/// </returns>
public static bool matchesCurrentErrorImage(this Texture tex) {
if (!tex) return false;
if (!ready) {
Debug.LogWarning("TextureBogusExtensions matchesCurrentErrorImage was called before the error image had been cached. To avoid this, call TextureBogusExtensions.Init() earlier in your code. If the error texture has been successfully cached, TextureBogusExtensions.ready will be true. We will now block for a moment while caching the error image.");
Init();
}

byte[] png1 = (tex as Texture2D).EncodeToPNG();
byte[] png2 = (bogusTexture as Texture2D).EncodeToPNG();

return Equivalent(png1, png2);
}

/// <summary>
/// Compare two byte arrays.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="bytes1">
/// A <see cref="System.Byte[]"/>
/// </param>
/// <param name="bytes2">
/// A <see cref="System.Byte[]"/>
/// </param>
/// <returns>
/// A <see cref="System.Boolean"/>
/// </returns>
public static bool Equivalent(byte[] bytes1, byte[] bytes2) {
if (bytes1.Length != bytes2.Length) return false;
for (int i=0;i<bytes1.Length;i++)
if (!bytes1[i].Equals(bytes2[i])) return false;
return true;
}

/// <summary>
/// Express the texture in the form of the C# code that would be necessary to represent a PNG of it.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="tex">
/// A <see cref="Texture"/>
/// </param>
/// <returns>
/// A <see cref="System.String"/>
/// </returns>
public static string asPNGDeclaration(this Texture tex) {
StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
byte[] pngBytes = (tex as Texture2D).EncodeToPNG();
sb.Append("new byte[] {");
for (int i=0;i<pngBytes.Length;i++) {
sb.Append(pngBytes[i].ToString()).Append(",");
}
sb.Append("};");
return sb.ToString();
}

/// <summary>
/// Get an example of whatever the current "error" texture is. (At the time of this writing, an "upside down red question mark on a white background".)
/// </summary>
public static void Init() {
//Debug.Log("Init");
ready = obtainExampleBogusTexture();
}
}
</csharp>

Cg Tutorial to Unity | Unify Wiki

Cg Tutorial to Unity | Unify Wiki

2011-Sep-30

Ippokratis: /* Shader C3E3 texture sampling */


[[Category: Unity 3.x shaders]]
[[Category: Cg shaders]]
=Description=
[[User:Ippokratis|Ippokratis]] 11:07, 30 September 2011 (PDT)<br>
This is a port of the source code from Cg tutorial ( http://developer.nvidia.com/node/76 ) to Shaderlab.<br>
Users are expected to read the original material and find here some help and explanations
on how this code could be ported to Unity.<br>
For each pair of vertex and fragment shaders, a unity shaderlab is provided.<br>
There are some caveats in porting, hopefully here we will overcome some.<br>
If you find this code useful, please consider a donation to my site : http://ippomed.com<br>
Thanks !

=Chapter 2=
In chapter 2 the code is in the examples 2-1 and 2-3.

Example 2-1
<shaderlab>
struct C2E1v_Output
{
float4 position : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C2E1v_Output C2E1v_green(float2 position : POSITION)
{
C2E1v_Output OUT;
OUT.position = float4(position, 0, 1);
OUT.color = float4(0, 1, 0, 1); // RGBA green
return OUT;
}
</shaderlab>
Example 2-3
<shaderlab>
struct C2E2f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C2E2f_Output C2E2f_passthrough(float4 color : COLOR)
{
C2E2f_Output OUT;
OUT.color = color;
return OUT;
}
</shaderlab>
The above two pieces combined to obtain a unity shader C2E1:
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1 means that the shader name is C2E1 and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C2E1"
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
#pragma vertex C2E1v_green
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
#pragma fragment C2E2f_passthrough


struct C2E1v_Output
{
float4 position : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C2E1v_Output C2E1v_green(float2 position : POSITION)
{
C2E1v_Output OUT;
OUT.position = float4(position,0,1);
OUT.color = float4(0, 1, 0, 1); // RGBA green
return OUT;
}

struct C2E2f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};
C2E2f_Output C2E2f_passthrough(float4 color : COLOR)
{
C2E2f_Output OUT;
OUT.color = color;
return OUT;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}
</shaderlab>
To see the above shader in action do the following :
*In the Project View
** Create a new shader, name it C2E1 and copy / paste the above code
** Create a new material, name it C2E1 and assign to it the above shader
*In the Hierarchy View
** Create a cube and drag the C2E1 material on it.
The expected result is to see a green rectangle.<br><br>
[[File:C2E1.png|caption]]

==Code analysis==
The code provided in chapter two comprises two shaders:
*a vertex shader called C2E1v_green
*a fragment shader called C2E2f_passthrough
To construct from them a shader in unity, we will first analyze them.<br>
Vertex shader takes data from Unity, processes them and passes them down to the graphics pipeline. ( Simplified view )<br>
What data get in ? Vertex data. Each vertex in the mesh has attributes. Those attributes are :<br>
<shaderlab>
//From UnityCG.cginc
struct appdata_full {
float4 vertex : POSITION;// The position of the vertex in object space
float4 tangent : TANGENT;// The tangent of the vertex
float3 normal : NORMAL;// The normal of the vertex
float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;// base texture uv coordinates of the vertex
float4 texcoord1 : TEXCOORD1;// second texture uv2 coordinates of the vertex
fixed4 color : COLOR; // vertex color
//As long as you call one of the semantics that unity supports, POSITION, TANGENT, NORMAL, TEXCOORD0, TEXCOORD1, COLOR it's ok.
};
</shaderlab>
We can feed with some of this data the vertex shader.<br>
The vertex shader has a "main function" that processes this data.
It runs once for each vertex and it fills a struct with data to be passed down to the graphics pipeline.
In this example, the "main function" is :
<shaderlab>
// function name : C2E1v_green,
// takes a float2 named position with a POSITION semantic
// and outputs a C2E1v_Output ( see below ).
C2E1v_Output C2E1v_green(float2 position : POSITION)
{
// Create a new struct of type C2E1v_Output named OUT
C2E1v_Output OUT;
// Fill the position member of the OUT struct
// with a float4, first two floats are from Unity app ( the "float2 position : POSITION" )
// other two are 0, 1
OUT.position = float4(position,0,1);
// Fill the color member of the struct
// with a float4, whose value corresponds to green
OUT.color = float4(0, 1, 0, 1); // RGBA green
// // return the OUT with new data.
return OUT;
}
</shaderlab>
To send this data down the graphics pipeline you create a struct that describes what gets out.
<shaderlab>
//Declare a struct called C2E1v_Output
struct C2E1v_Output
{
//This struct has two members.
//First member is a float4 ( type ), called position, that has the POSITION semantic
//Refer to http://http.developer.nvidia.com/CgTutorial/cg_tutorial_chapter02.html for an explanation on
// what is the meaning of identifier, semantic, type is.
float4 position : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
//As long as you call one of the semantics that unity supports, POSITION, TANGENT, NORMAL, TEXCOORD0, TEXCOORD1, COLOR it's ok.
//Remember to place the colon ";"
};
</shaderlab>
So, for each vertex, we retrieve its position and assign a color.<br>
The fragment shader gets data from the vertex shader, processes them and sends them to the frame buffer.<br>
This fragment shader " main function " is described below :
<shaderlab>
// function name : C2E2f_passthrough,
// takes a float4 named color with a COLOR semantic
// and outputs a C2E2f_Output ( see below ).
C2E2f_Output C2E2f_passthrough(float4 color : COLOR)
{
// Create a new struct of type C2E2f_Output named OUT
C2E2f_Output OUT;
// Fill the color member of the struct
// with the float4 color from function input
OUT.color = color;
// return the OUT with new data.
return OUT;
}
</shaderlab>
The data is packed in a struct
<shaderlab>
//Declare a struct called C2E2f_Output
struct C2E2f_Output
{
//First member is a float4 ( type ), called color, that has the COLOR semantic
float4 color : COLOR;
};
</shaderlab>
And it is send down to the frame buffer.
==Code porting and tweaking==
We have already integrated the above code in a Unity shader.
Now we will see another example that does the same thing but uses a different naming approach,<br>
along with some minor tweaks. This approach is nearer to the style that many people in the forums<br>
choose to code.
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1tweaked means that the shader name is C2E1tweaked and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C2E1tweaked"
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Refer here : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
// Makes sense to name it vert
#pragma vertex vert
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
// Makes sense to name it frag
#pragma fragment frag

// Declare a struct that gets data from application (Unity) to the vertex shader
// called a2v
// Refer : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-VertexProgramInputs.html
struct a2v
{
//a little catch : the identifier for the POSITION semantic must be vertex only
// for NORMAL normal only etc.
// Refer : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-VertexProgramInputs.html
// ( second paragraph, after the first example )
float4 vertex:POSITION;
};
// We call the struct that takes data from vertex to fragment v2f
struct v2f
{
float4 position : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
};
// The vert function takes a a2v struct called In and returns a v2f struct called Out
v2f vert(a2v In)
{
v2f Out;
Out.position = In.vertex;
Out.color = float4(0, 1, 0, 1); // RGBA green
return Out;
}
// It is not necessary to declare a struct for the fragment output
// We specify instead that the frag function takes a v2f struct that we name In
// ( contains the data from the vertex shader v2f Out )
// and returns a float4 with a COLOR semantic
float4 frag( v2f In ): COLOR
{
return In.color;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}
</shaderlab>
=Chapter 3=
In chapter 3, there are 7 new fragment and vertex shaders.<br>
Remember, the f ( e.g. C2E2f_passthru ) means they are fragment shaders,<br>
while the v ( e.g. C3E1v_anycolor ) means they are vertex shaders.
After having a look at the examples in the Cg toolkit ( not the manual, the file ),
they are combined in 6 unity shaders in the following way :
{|style="color:black; background-color:#ffffff;" cellpadding="20" cellspacing="10"
|
*C3E1 : uniform parameter
**C3E1v_anycolor
**C2E2f_passthru
||
*C3E2 : varying parameter
**C3E2v_varying
**C2E2f_passthru
||
*C3E3 : texture sampling
**C3E2v_varying
**C3E3f_texture
|-
||
*C3E4 : vertex twisting
**C3E4v_twist
**C2E2f_passthru
||
*C3E5 : two texture accesses
**C3E5v_twoTextures
**C3E6f_twoTextures
||
*C3E6 : two texture double vision
**C3E5v_twoTextures
**C3E7f_twoTextures
|}
<br>

==Shader C3E1 uniform parameter==
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1 means that the shader name is C2E1 and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C3E1"
{
Properties //Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Properties.html
{
//There is some conflict when naming this to constantColor
// so we choose the _constantColor name instead
_constantColor ("Refraction color", Color) = (.34, .85, .92, 1) // color
}
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
#pragma vertex C3E1v_anyColor
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
#pragma fragment C2E2f_passthrough


struct C3E1v_Output
{
float4 position : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C3E1v_Output C3E1v_anyColor(float2 position : POSITION,
uniform float4 _constantColor)
{
C3E1v_Output OUT;
OUT.position = float4(position, 0, 1);
OUT.color = _constantColor; // Some RGBA color
return OUT;
}

struct C2E2f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C2E2f_Output C2E2f_passthrough(float4 color : COLOR)
{
C2E2f_Output OUT;
OUT.color = color;
return OUT;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}
</shaderlab>
<br>
==Shader C3E2 varying parameter==

<br>

==Shader C3E3 texture sampling==
<br>
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1 means that the shader name is C2E1 and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C3E3"
{
Properties //
{
decal ("Base (RGB)", 2D) = "white" {}
}
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
#pragma vertex C3E2v_varying
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
#pragma fragment C3E3f_texture



struct v2f
{
float4 position : SV_POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
float4 texCoord : TEXCOORD0;
};

struct a2v
{
float4 vertex : POSITION;
float4 color : COLOR;
float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;
};

v2f C3E2v_varying(a2v In)
{
v2f OUT;
OUT.position = float4(In.vertex.xy, 0, 1);
OUT.color = In.color;
//o.uv_MainTex = TRANSFORM_TEX(v.texcoord, _MainTex);
OUT.texCoord = In.texcoord ;
return OUT;
}

struct C3E3f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};

C3E3f_Output C3E3f_texture(float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0,
sampler2D decal)
{
C3E3f_Output OUT;
OUT.color = tex2D(decal, texcoord.xy);
return OUT;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}
</shaderlab>
<br>
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1 means that the shader name is C2E1 and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C3E3tweaked"
{
Properties //
{
decal ("Base (RGB)", 2D) = "white" {}
}
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
#pragma vertex vert
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
#pragma fragment frag



struct v2f
{
float4 position : SV_POSITION;
float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;
};

struct a2v
{
float4 vertex : POSITION;
float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;
};

v2f vert(a2v In)
{
v2f OUT;
OUT.position = float4(In.vertex.xy, 0, 1);
OUT.texcoord = In.texcoord ;
return OUT;
}

struct C3E3f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};


sampler2D decal;
float4 frag( v2f In ): COLOR
{
float4 color = tex2D(decal, In.texcoord.xy);
return color;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}
</shaderlab>
<br>
<shaderlab>
//Shaders start with the Shader keyword followed by shader's name in ""
//Custom/C2E1 means that the shader name is C2E1 and is placed in a shadr group called Custom
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Shader.html
Shader "Custom/C3E3tweaked2"
{
Properties //
{
_MainTex ("Base (RGB)", 2D) = "white" {}
}
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-SubShader.html
SubShader
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-Pass.html
Pass
{
//Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/SL-ShaderPrograms.html
CGPROGRAM
// The vertex shader name should match the vertex shader function name
#pragma vertex vert
// The fragment shader name should match the fragment shader function name
#pragma fragment frag
#include "UnityCG.cginc"


struct v2f
{
float4 position : SV_POSITION;
float2 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;
};

struct a2v
{
float4 vertex : POSITION;
float4 texcoord : TEXCOORD0;
};
//Necessary for line 48 to work
float4 _MainTex_ST;
v2f vert(a2v In)
{
v2f OUT;
OUT.position = float4(In.vertex.xy, 0, 1);

//From unityCG.cginc : Transforms 2D UV by scale/bias property
// #define TRANSFORM_TEX(tex,name) (tex.xy * name##_ST.xy + name##_ST.zw)
// when user enters TRANSFORM_TEX(texUvCoords, texName) process it as (texUvCoords.xy * texName_ST.xy + texName_ST.zw)
// This way, we can use the offset - tiling properties of a material
// Reference : http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Components/class-Material.html
OUT.texcoord = TRANSFORM_TEX(In.texcoord, _MainTex);
return OUT;
}

struct C3E3f_Output
{
float4 color : COLOR;
};


sampler2D _MainTex;
float4 frag( v2f In ): COLOR
{
float4 color = tex2D(_MainTex, In.texcoord.xy);
return color;
}

ENDCG
}
}
}

</shaderlab>
<br>

==Shader C3E4 : vertex twisting==
<br>
==Shader C3E5 : two textures accesses==
<br>
==Shader C3E6 : two textures double vision==
<br>

Sony braced for impact of weakening Euro

Sony braced for impact of weakening Euro

2011-Sep-30

Sony has warned that it expects the continuing weakening of the Euro to severely affect its finances, saying that the European economic crisis will have a "huge impact" on its business.

Because the technology giant exports so many of its goods to European territories, any weakening of the Euro has direct fiscal consequences. Should one of the EU countries currently teetering on the brink of defaulting on an international loan do so, the Euro would fall ever further.

"There are no countermeasures that we can take for the moment," said Sony's corporate treasurer Hiroshi Kurihara told Bloomberg. "There is a huge impact on our earnings."

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Jaakko Iisalo tells us how Rovio made the world's most successful mobile game.

No matter if you’re in an aeroplane, on the Tube or waiting in the queue at the supermarket, people everywhere are playing Angry Birds. With over 300 million downloads racked up to date, the series’ ubiquity should be no surprise. The public face of Rovio, the Finnish studio behind Angry Birds, is often the ‘mighty eagle’ Peter Vesterbacka, who joined the company after the avian-themed physics challenge became a hit.

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Capcom admits impact of PSN DRM has been minimal | Edge

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Capcom has admitted that the controversial always-on DRM it has used in recent PlayStation Network releases has had little impact, with the publisher saying it had proven "as much a hindrance as a help."
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-09-30-capcom-undecided-about-psn-drm
Eurogamer

Capcom has admitted that the controversial always-on DRM it has used in recent PlayStation Network releases has had little impact, with the publisher saying it had proven "as much a hindrance as a help."

US vice president Christian Svensson told Eurogamer: "Sony has a form of network DRM that we have chosen to use on a couple of titles, really as much as an experiment as anything else, to see what the impact was.

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Dead Island DLC delayed | Edge

Dead Island DLC delayed | Edge

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A post on Dead Island's Facebook page reveals that the game's first DLC expansion, Bloodbath Arena, has been delayed because developer Techland is still busy with the game itself.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/deadislandgame/posts/273004662722982
Facebook

A post on Dead Island's Facebook page reveals that the game's first DLC expansion, Bloodbath Arena, has been delayed because developer Techland is still busy with the game itself.

"We are working hard to make the Bloodbath Arena DLC available as soon as possible," the post reads. "However, due to further polishing of the main game the finalisation of the DLC code has been delayed.

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Mythic co-founder forms casual gaming startup | Edge

Mythic co-founder forms casual gaming startup | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Mark Jacobs, co-founder and former CEO of MMOG developer Mythic Entertainment, has formed a new studio, City State Entertainment. His new venture, which like Mythic is based in Fairfax, Virginia, will focus on mobile and social games.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/traceyjohn/2011/09/30/former-mythic-ceo-mark-jacobs-starts-city-state-entertainment/
Forbes

Mark Jacobs, co-founder and former CEO of MMOG developer Mythic Entertainment, has formed a new studio, City State Entertainment.

His new venture, which like Mythic is based in Fairfax, Virginia, will focus on mobile and social games. In an interview, Jacobs told Forbes that he was looking forward to operating independently, in stark contrast to Mythic which was acquired by EA in 2006, and to working in the lower-risk social gaming sector.

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Former Mythic CEO founds social developer

Former Mythic CEO founds social developer

2011-Sep-30

Ex-Mythic CEO Mark Jacobs has announced the foundation of a new casual gaming enterprise: City State Entertainment.

Based in Fairfax, Virginia, Jacobs' new outfit will create mobile and tablet titles for the casual market, Forbes reports.

"I'm tired of strings and being told what to do by other people," Jacobs told Forbes. "We're a very collaborative group where we talk about everything, and that's what you need if you really want to be successful."

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Unite 11 – Day 2 | Unity Technologies

Unite 11 – Day 2 | Unity Technologies

2011-Sep-30

So day two of Unite 11 has come to a close. At the time of writing I’ve just got home from the Unite Party, it was really cool and I had a great time talking to a few of the many, many attendees. At the party I met people who were working on projects for the brewery industry, all the way across to the US military. All simply incredible projects.

Without further ado, here is the link to the Keynote.

Earlier in the day we had a plethora of sessions covering topics ranging from business to art.

Highlights included a sneak peak of the new Shuriken particle system, which is shaping up to be a truly awesome new feature. We also held the Unity Road Map and Wish List session, where attendees are welcomed to quiz us about the future direction of Unity and we open up a dialog to ensure our development road map is in sync with what our users want. The Road Map and Wish List sessions for those who have never been to Unite, are unique in as much as the entire session is off the record and its a chance to talk frankly about the direction Unity is taking so this is one session that you have to be at Unite to see.

At the end of the day we held the Unity Awards. It was great fun to present and we gave out some very deserving awards.

The winners were as follows:

Best Student Game
GLiD – Spiderling

Best Cross-platform Game
Buddy Rush – Team Sollmo of Company 100

Best Gameplay
Rochard – Recoil Games

Best Graphics
Rochard – Recoil Games

Best Non-game
Virtual History Roma – Mondadori

Community Choice
Battlestar Galactica Online – Bigpoint and Artplant

Grand Prix
Battleheart – Mika Mobile

Again I would like to congratulate all the people who entered the competition. There was some absolutely tremendous work produced this year.

On a side note, we also plan to have our session videos up in record breaking time this year. So everyone in the community who was unable to make it, can check out all the cool stuff that has happened so far.

One last note I would like to make, is that there are plans this Friday for anyone who is around, to attend a Unity Game Jam at the San Francisco hacker space Noisebridge.
Its being organized via facebook so if you are interested in jamming, check out the facebook event

Sony: Euro slump will have "huge impact" on revenue | Edge

Sony: Euro slump will have "huge impact" on revenue | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Sony says the recent fall in value of the euro against the Japanese yen will have a "huge impact" on its revenue. Bloomberg reports that the euro fell to a ten-year low of ¥101.94 earlier this month and has fallen 11 per cent against the yen in the last three months alone. Sony's most recent earnings forecasts were based on the assumption that the euro would be worth around ¥115, meaning it faces a shortfall of over 11 per cent.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-29/sony-expects-huge-impact-on-earnings-on-euro.html
Bloomberg

Sony says the recent fall in value of the euro against the Japanese yen will have a "huge impact" on its revenue.

Bloomberg reports that the euro fell to a ten-year low of ¥101.94 earlier this month and has fallen 11 per cent against the yen in the last three months alone. Sony's most recent earnings forecasts were based on the assumption that the euro would be worth around ¥115, meaning it faces a shortfall of over 11 per cent.

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Valium Knowledge 15 | Unify Wiki

Valium Knowledge 15 | Unify Wiki

2011-Sep-30

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Activision turns to Mumsnet for Spyro campaign | Edge

Activision turns to Mumsnet for Spyro campaign | Edge

2011-Sep-30

As part of an extensive three-month marketing campaign to promote the upcoming Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, Activision is partnering with the influential, and often reactionary, parenting website Mumsnet.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/activision-partners-with-mumsnet/085648
MCV

As part of an extensive three-month marketing campaign to promote the upcoming Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, Activision is partnering with the influential parenting website Mumsnet.

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Opinion: The Holy Grail of game advertising | Edge

Opinion: The Holy Grail of game advertising | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Playing live - Thom Dinsdale looks at Microsoft's novel TV campaign for Gears Of War 3.

It's that time of year again. Shooter season is well underway and, as sure as the deluge of grey/brown, firstperson, dystopian action that floods the market ahead of the holiday season is the equally grey/brown barrage of TV advertising that comes with it.

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Bigpoint, Recoil take Unity Award honours

Bigpoint, Recoil take Unity Award honours

2011-Sep-30

Recoil Games, Bigpoint and Mika Mobile were honoured last night at the Unity Awards event, held in San Francisco as part of the company's annual gathering.

Battleheart by Mika Mobile took the Grand Prix award, while Battlestar Galactica Online from Bigpoint and Artplant was awarded the Community Choice. Rochard by Recoil Games took Best Gameplay and Best Graphics.

"The breadth of style and depth of quality in the selection of Unity-made games and apps this year was incredible," commented Unity's CEO David Helgason.

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Ogen Laseren Tips 55 | Unify Wiki

Ogen Laseren Tips 55 | Unify Wiki

2011-Sep-30

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BlazBlue Continuum Shift 2 release date announced | Edge

BlazBlue Continuum Shift 2 release date announced | Edge

2011-Sep-30

3DS and PSP fighting game BlazBlue Continuum Shift 2 will be released on November 4, publisher Arc System Works Europe has announced. The game is the third revision of Arc's stylish anime fighter, and the handheld releases will include two new story modes, all DLC from 2010 console release Continuum Shift, and a brand new Abyss mode.

3DS and PSP fighting game BlazBlue Continuum Shift 2 will be released on November 4, publisher Arc System Works Europe has announced.

The game is the third revision of Guilty Gear developer Arc's stylish anime fighter, and the handheld releases will include two new story modes, all DLC from 2010 console release Continuum Shift, and a brand new Abyss mode.

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Games at risk as HTTPS becomes Facebook standard | Edge

Games at risk as HTTPS becomes Facebook standard | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Facebook apps and games will be disabled tomorrow unless their developers convert them to support HTTPS, as the social network makes secure data transfer mandatory.
https://developers.facebook.com/blog/post/499/
Facebook

Facebook apps and games will be disabled tomorrow unless their developers convert them to support HTTPS, as the social network makes secure data transfer mandatory.

The social network announced its move to HTTPS in May, part of its bid to make the platform more secure for developers and users. It's much the same as standard HTTP, but with data passed over an encrypted system using SSL.

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PapayaMobile: 69% of our whales are female

PapayaMobile: 69% of our whales are female

2011-Sep-30

Chinese company PapayaMobile has released data showing that 69 per cent of its 'whales', defined as customers spending more than $100 in game, are women.

Despite making up only 4 per cent of the game's user base, those whales bring in 60 per cent of all revenues. Mid spenders, dishing out between $10 and $100, account for 32 per cent of takings whilst representing 17 per cent of customers.

As part of the analysis, Papaya also discovered that whales are predisposed towards buying 'perishable' and expendable virtual goods such as time or energy, rather than permanent purchases like decoration or avatars.

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Massive Damage secures $325,000 for location game

Massive Damage secures $325,000 for location game

2011-Sep-30

Mobile developer Massive Damage has secured $325,000 in seed funding for recently released location-based game Please Stay Calm.

The zombie game was launched on the Canadian App Store two weeks ago, with the funding ear-marked for continued development and marketing.

"Massive Damage has unlocked the key to location-based gaming," said Tobias Lütke, one of the angel investors involved in the funding.

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Cave announces Espgaluda II HD for iPad 2 | Edge

Cave announces Espgaluda II HD for iPad 2 | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Japanese bullet-hell specialist Cave released a version of 2005 arcade shooter Espgaluda II for iPhone last year, but is now set to release an HD version for iPad 2. While most of Espgaluda II's graphics have been remastered in HD some, including backgrounds, remain in standard definition.

Japanese bullet-hell specialist Cave released a version of 2005 arcade shooter Espgaluda II for iPhone last year, but is now set to release an HD version for iPad 2.

While most of Espgaluda II's graphics have been remastered in HD some, including backgrounds, remain in standard definition. Three versions of the game will be released - a faithful recreation of the arcade machine, a smartphone version that uses touchscreen controls, and the full version, which contains both arcade and smartphone modes.

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The Friday Game: Antagonist | Edge

The Friday Game: Antagonist | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Chris Donlan plays a web game that explores the dark side to the thrill of the chase.

Introducing Antagonist at the excellent IndieGames site, Michael Rose suggests that, “It’s a bit tense.” He isn’t wrong. From the laboured breathing of the start screen through to the crumpled bodies – marking your own failed attempts – that litter the game’s gloomy landscapes, Jonathan Whiting’s latest provides a wonderfully nervy experience.

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Dark Souls and ICO/SotC HD top Japanese chart

Dark Souls and ICO/SotC HD top Japanese chart

2011-Sep-30

The PS3 has taken both first and second spots in the Japanese software chart, but failed to translate those sales into new hardware units, remaining in second place to the 3DS.

From Software's Dark Souls, a PS3 exclusive in Japan but cross-platform elsewhere, romped home to the number one spot with over a quarter of a million sales, far outstripping the combined HD remake of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus in second with 91,902.

Gears of War managed an almost unprecedented fourth place as a 360 exclusive, outdoing MMV's gravure battler Senran Kagura in sixth but getting pipped to third by Yu-gi-oh 5D's Tag Force.

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Xaitment nets €1.2 million investment

Xaitment nets €1.2 million investment

2011-Sep-30

AI and simulation developer Xaitment has secured a further €1.2 million ($1.6m) investment from Triangle and KfW.

The software developer intends to use the funding to further behavioural modelling software for games and simulations, and expects the first fruits of the investment to launch in the first half of 2012.

"No other vendor has the ability or knowledge to develop higher level behavioural AI," commented Mike Walsh, CEO.

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Unity Asia revenue up 258.7 per cent | Edge

Unity Asia revenue up 258.7 per cent | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Though Unity's Asia boss says that much of the success is down to pirated copies.

Unity Technologies has revealed that, in terms of user sessions per month, Asian markets are its biggest.

Speaking during his keynote session at Unite 11 in San Francisco, company co-founder and CEO David Helgason revealed that the top four cities worldwide for monthly user sessions were Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai and Nei-Hu (a district of Taipei City in Taiwan).

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Webzen and Red 5 end legal dispute

Webzen and Red 5 end legal dispute

2011-Sep-30

Korean online operator Webzen and Firefall developer Red 5 have settled their legal dispute over the marketing of Red 5 in Asia, deciding to withdraw all filings and settle out of court.

Originally, Webzen had been signed by Red 5 to market, publish and operate Firefall in Korea but Webzen felt that the company fell short of its marketing obligations and sued, having attempted to curtail the arrangement.

Webzen will no longer be associated with Firefall, but will be compensated for the investment it had already made in the game, as well as receiving a portion of revenues for a fixed period.

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Stock Ticker: GAME Group

Stock Ticker: GAME Group

2011-Sep-30

This week's first half financial results for British specialist retailer The GAME Group were dreadful by anyone's measure. Talk about "tough trading conditions" only goes so far; GAME dropped 10% off its year on year sales, despite the launch of a new console (the admittedly under-performing 3DS), and its pre-tax losses doubled, topping the £50 million mark.

Yet interestingly, the stock market didn't respond by giving GAME's share price a kicking - rather, the company actually experienced a bit of a rally, with its stock price rising by a few points as the details of the financial report were processed by the market. Was there some gem of good news in there which the markets noticed but which wasn't highlighted in the media coverage?

In short, no, there wasn't. The response of the market looks positive, but it's actually an indication of just how negative the sentiment about GAME Group is right now - investors almost certainly expected GAME's results to be even worse than they actually were, so the stock rallied slightly when the bad news turned out to be marginally less bad than anticipated. The reality is that unless they'd been vastly more awful, GAME's results were never going to move the stock price very much - the markets have already given the company a kicking over the past 12 months, and the expectation of disappointing results is very much allowed for in the share price now.

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OnLive offers free microconsole with Arkham City pre-orders | Edge

OnLive offers free microconsole with Arkham City pre-orders | Edge

2011-Sep-30

The cloud gaming service, which launched in the UK last week, is offering a free microconsole to those who pre-order the OnLive version of the upcoming Batman: Arkham City. The microconsole, which lets users play streamed games on an HDTV instead of a PC browser, normally retails for £69.99.
http://blog.onlive.com/2011/08/16/batman-arkham-city-pre-order/
OnLive

The cloud gaming service, which launched in the UK last week, is offering a free microconsole to those who pre-order the OnLive version of the upcoming Batman: Arkham City.

The microconsole, which lets users play streamed games on an HDTV instead of a PC browser, normally retails for £69.99. Members of the PlayPack scheme, which costs £6.99 a month, get a further 30 per cent off Arkham City's price.

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Side-scrolling Team Fortress 2 demake released | Edge

Side-scrolling Team Fortress 2 demake released | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Eric Ruth, creator of 8bit-style demakes of the likes of Halo, Left4Dead and DJ Hero, has released Team Fortress Arcade, which reimagines Valve's FPS as a side-scrolling brawler with guns. The game features the nine character classes from the original, is a free download from the source link below, and features local fourplayer co-op.
http://geek.pikimal.com/2011/09/29/team-fortress-arcade-releases-today-download-it-free-now/
Pikigeek

Eric Ruth, creator of 8bit-style demakes of the likes of Halo, Left4Dead and DJ Hero, has released Team Fortress Arcade, which reimagines Valve's FPS as a side-scrolling brawler with guns.

The game features the nine character classes from the original, is a free download from the source link below, and features local fourplayer co-op.

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The Silent Canary

The Silent Canary

2011-Sep-30

As much as I'm an avid supporter of the social gaming movement - which is bringing a vast new audience to the gaming medium and providing opportunities for a host of innovative new creative ideas and business models - I've hardly been a lone voice in arguing that valuations in this sector have become insanely over-inflated. In the past year, billions of dollars have changed hands in acquisitions or funding rounds for companies whose true worth is a long way from being proven, operating in a market whose true scope and potential is little understood.

Throughout all of this, one firm has stood head and shoulders over the rest of the sector, and has rebuffed all acquisition bids in favour of positioning itself for a stock market IPO. Yet as the sector's most successful and most valuable firm, Facebook game giant Zynga is also the canary in the coalmine.

This week, that canary's song faltered. Zynga's most recent financial report makes for slightly grim reading, and should serve as a warning sign to investors and executives - perhaps even casting doubt on the value of Zynga's much-delayed IPO, when and if it finally happens.

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Miyamoto’s TGS Skyward Sword presentation translated | Edge

Miyamoto’s TGS Skyward Sword presentation translated | Edge

2011-Sep-30

Nintendo Of America has released a translated version of Shigeru Miyamoto's on-stage presentation of The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword from the company's pre-Tokyo Game Show 3DS conference on September 13.

Nintendo Of America has released a translated version of Shigeru Miyamoto's on-stage presentation of The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword from the company's pre-Tokyo Game Show 3DS conference on September 13.

"I know it's strange for me to say this," the Nintendo legend says, "but I can only describe this game as amazing. Over a hundred staff has been working on it for five years. It's the biggest game we've worked on to date.

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Double Fine updates PC Psychonauts | Edge

Double Fine updates PC Psychonauts | Edge

2011-Sep-30

In an unexpected move, Double Fine has released a significant update to its much-loved 2005 platformer Psychonauts. The update, available now to Steam users, adds achievements and cloud saving, and makes some subtle tweaks to the notoriously exacting Meat Circus level.
http://www.1up.com/news/psychonauts-updated-new-features-pc-mac-now-available
1UP

In an unexpected move, Double Fine has released a significant update to its much-loved 2005 platformer Psychonauts.

The update, available now to Steam users, adds achievements and cloud saving, and makes some subtle tweaks to the notoriously exacting Meat Circus level.

As if that wasn't enough, private investors Dracogen Strategic Investments has funded a Mac port of the game, which is now available on Steam and the Mac App Store.

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Sphera | BigFish

Sphera | BigFish

2011-Sep-30

Embark on a dangerous journey with Tess, a lonely young girl, as she is transported to a world that lies within her imagination in Sphera, a fantastic Hidden Object Adventure game! Mocked mercilessly by her older brother for her eccentricity and the large glasses that sit upon her tiny head, Tess desperately wants to escape her lonely life. When she finds a mysterious marble, Tess is swept into a strange world and must help a walrus-like creature to escape!