Game Dev Digest Issue #181 - Procedural Generation, Multiplayer, and more!
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This article was originally published on GameDevDigest.com

Long and short tutorials this week, and tons of great free and discounted assets. Enjoy!
Runtime authoring in projects using ECS for Unity - ECS for Unity introduces a clean separation between Authoring Data and Runtime Data. Through the baking process, a majority of your GameObjects are transformed into Entities โ a different data representation that has nothing in common with its GameObject source. To help you manage this new duality of data and build a better authoring experience on top of it, we are introducing a pattern called Data Modes.
Unity
Introduction To Unity Unit Testing - Learn all about the Unity Test Framework and how to set up Unit Tests in your Unity projects.
kodeco.com
Key takeaways from the quest design of Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 - CD Projekt RED quest director ๏ปฟPaweล Sasko highlighted the most important lessons learned from developing these two prolific RPGs at GDC 2023.
gamedeveloper.com
Games Can Make Statements โ but Should They? - Do you have a theme or issue you want to explore in your game? Do you want to tell players what you think about something? Well, donโt. Telling people things is for other media, not ours.
Warren Spector
Videos

The Ultimate Multiplayer Tutorial for Unity - Netcode for GameObjects - If you liked this video please like and subscribe as it helps me a lot, and consider joining my Patreon or becoming a YouTube Member :)
samyam
How to Create Interactive Books in Unity using Text Mesh Pro (Like in Morrowind or Skyrim) - In this Unity tutorial, you will learn how to create interactive books with Text Mesh Pro just like in Elder Scrolls: Morrowind or Skyrim. You will learn how to use the Overflow method to display text on multiple pages, how to code the book's setup and contents, and how to add pagination.
Christina Creates Games
Unity VFX Graph - Fire Attack Effect Tutorial - Now you can spitfire however you want! Enjoy this Stylized Fire Attack for your games!
Gabriel Aguiar Prod.
Show LOOT & ENEMIES Behind Walls (Unity URP) - Lets look at occluding objects behind walls, this is a great way to create a gameplay scenario where you can scan for loot, enemies or other things that maybe behind walls. This could help you create an outline or transparent materials. This could work in Unity URP or HDRP.
SpeedTutor
Procedural Generation in Unity - Join us on this PCG adventure and learn how to create unique and interesting experiences with procedural generation!
TNTC
A new way to generate worlds - This is my first time messing with Wave Function Collapse and I think I've got some tweaks to make, but it looks pretty good so far. Make sure to stay until the end for the music sample!
Watt Designs
Easy MATCHMAKING in Unity! (Skill based, Platform, Region - Tutorial) - Let's learn how to use Unity Matchmaker to easily add Matchmaking to your multiplayer games. It is an extremely versatile tool, you can define rules with as much or as little complexity as you want. You can make a Ranked Queue and a Casual Queue, make one for Solo and one for Teams.
Code Monkey
Assets

Unity Arcade Sale - Itโs time to kit-bash your way to a high score! The Unity Arcade Sale launches this week with big discounts for big ambitions. Users can save 50% on select assets and packages to build top arcade-style games.
Unity Affiliate
Game Design and AI Booke Bundle - Explore the world of game design.
Discover insights from pro game designers, AI experts, and more in this book bundle from Taylor & Francis. Featuring books from the Game AI Pro series (edited by industry veteran Steve Rabin), in-depth breakdowns of video game classics, and tomes full of development advice, this library is an essential addition to any gaming and AI enthusiastโs digital bookshelf.
Plus, your purchase helps support the charity of your choice!
Humble Bundle Affiliate
Sonniss 44GB+ Sound Effect Giveaway at GDC 2023 - Every โin personโ GDC since 2015, audio provider Sonniss have given away a large collection of game ready sound effects and 2023 is no exception. The Sonniss GDC 2023 audio collection contains 44GB+ sound effects, representing over 850 individual sound effects in a variety of different environments. [Direct link to giveaway page]
gamefromscratch.com
URP-Custom-Post-Processing - A framework that intends to quickly extend volume post-processing in Unity URP. And some experimental custom post-processing implement.
SleeplessOwl0102 Open Source
Text To TextMesh Pro Upgrade Tool for Unity - Upgrade Text, InputField, Dropdown and TextMesh objects to their TextMesh Pro variants in Unity
yasirkula Open Source
BOBCheats - Unity plugin - BOB is a smart cheats system for unity games. You can create cheats and use them in-game by writing one single method.
wanakubwa Open Source
I've made a Space Kit with 90+ models you can use for free in any of your projects - 90+ models with everything you need to make a space game, animated characters, enemies, vegetation, planets and more. [Also check out the Reddit post]
QuaterniusDev
u-terminal (FREE) - u-Terminal is like a terminal in Unix, a console in Windows, and a console window in FPS games. Provides a REPL environment for receiving user input and outputting results.
Jeesu Choi Affiliate
The Maps Bonanza Encore - Chart a course for a mapmakerโs dream. Our popular fantasy map bundle returns! Prepare your adventurers to explore vast dungeons, vibrant cities, and expansive worlds with this collection of maps and mapmaking resources. Get creative with Campaign Cartographer 3+ (1-year or lifetime license), Fractal Terrains 3, and sci-fi focused Cosmographer 3, and discover a treasure trove of pre-made maps to add exciting new destinations to your virtual tabletop games. Plus, your purchase will support Cool Effect and Oceana!
Humble Bundle Affiliate
Unity Baked Volumetrics - A work in progress graphics solution for completely baked volumetric lighting, meant to be very lightweight and inexpensive for VR.
frostbone25 Open Source
Simple Voronoi Fragmenter - Unity Voronoi-based Runtime Destruction Asset
simplestargame Open Source
GiLight2D - Unity Urp Render Feature for 2D Global Illumination.
NullTale Open Source
FMOD-Unity-Tools - Audio Implementation Tools for FMOD and Unity
VilleOjala Open Source
Vector Renderer - With this package, you can draw vectors in Unity that works both in Edit and Play Mode.
UniversityOfSkovde Open Source
GPU-Spline-Deformation - Baking spline deformation to a texture then applying it to a mesh via a shader.
Roy Theunissen Open Source
Spritedow Animator - A plugin to do simple sprite animations avoiding the big and tedious Unity's Mecanim system. Oriented to programmers, if you prefer visual scripting you maybe prefer using Mecanim instead of this.
Elendow Open Source
2D Sprite Animator for Unity Engine - Tired of the "Unity Animator Hell", want more performance and faster workflow ? You've gone into the right place, this is a project i've made to replace Unity Animator usage on 2D projects, it's more performatic, simple and easy to use.
GabrielBigardi Open Source
Netly - Netly is a open source socket library for c# (C-Sharp). It facilitates the use of socket (UDP and TCP, Client and Server) with which it is compatible (Android, iOS, macOS, Linux, Windows, ...) as long as it is compiled with its destination.
alec1o Open Source
Unity UI Extensions - This is an extension project for the new Unity UI system
Unity-UI-Extensions Open Source
AICommand - This is a proof-of-concept integration of ChatGPT into Unity Editor. You can control the Editor using natural language prompts. [Also, AIShader]
keijiro Open Source
ManiaMap.Unity - Procedural generation of metroidvania style maps for Unity.
Matt Pewsey Open Source
State Machine Unity - State Machine Utility Package for Unity Projects
nicholas-maltbie Open Source
VoxReader - A C# library to read .vox files created with MagicaVoxel
sandrofigo Open Source
Vibration - Native free plugin for Unity for iOS and Android. Use custom vibrations on mobile.
BenoitFreslon Open Source
UniTyped - UniTyped is a source generator for Unity that provides strongly typed access to serialized data through SerializedObject / SerializedProperty / Material. It helps you write more concise and safe editor extension code.
ruccho Open Source
Advanced Level Editor (ALE) - Advanced, but simple to use, runtime level editor for Unity.
Hertzole Open Source
Fancy Carousel View - Carousel View for Unity uGUI using Fancy Scroll View.
Haruma-K Open Source
Procedural Stochastic Texturing - Modified Shader Graph package implementing Procedural Stochastic Texturing [Also read the blog post]
UnityLabs Open Source
Dependencies Hunter Unity3D Tool - This tool finds unreferenced assets in Unity project.
AlexeyPerov Open Source
King Of Content Creator Bundle - Become a pro video & audio creation powerhouse. Unleash the power of pro-quality audio and video with this incredible content creatorsโ bundle! Tap into the renowned video editing tools of the fast, powerful Vegas Pro Edit 18. Record, arrange, mix, and master your audio with Samplitude Pro X5. Get Music Maker Plus 2021, SOUND FORGE Audio Studio 15, and soundpools full of loops and samples. Treat your creative passion with the quality and polish it deserves, and help support Malala Fund with your purchase!
Humble Bundle Affiliate
Spotlight

Becastled - Becastled is about building and defending your castle from sieges in a fantasy world!
[You can get it now on Steam, visit their website, and follow them on Twitter]
Mana Potion Studios
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Recommended resources
Unity: recommended books and gear
Unity 2017 Game Optimization: Optimize all aspects of Unity performance
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Unity Game Optimization
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Unity Game Optimization: Enhance and extend the performance of all aspects of your Unity games
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Godot 4 for Beginners
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