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Train2Game News Guide on Unity VR

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Explore the latest features of Unity 2018 to create immersive VR projects for desktop and mobile devices using this practical guide written by Jonathan Linowes.

The second edition of this popular how-to book has just been published. It has been updated, revised and expanded to 200 more pages than the first edition.

Unity has become the leading platform for building virtual reality games, applications, and experiences for this new generation of consumer VR devices.

Unity Virtual Reality Projects walks you through a series of hands-on tutorials and in-depth discussions on using the Unity game engine. With its practical and project-based approach, this book will get you up to speed with the specifics of Virtual Reality development in Unity. You will learn how to use Unity to develop VR applications that can be experienced with devices such as Oculus, Daydream, and Vive. Among the many topics and projects, you will explore gaze-based versus hand controller input, world space UI canvases, locomotion and teleportation, software design patterns, 360-degree media, timeline animation, and multiplayer networking. You will learn the Unity 3D game engine via the interactive Unity Editor as well as C# programming. By the end of the book, you will be fully equipped to develop rich, interactive virtual reality experiences using Unity.

What You Will Learn

  • Create 3D scenes with Unity and other 3D tools while learning about world space and scale
  • Build and run VR applications for specific headsets, including Oculus, Vive, and Daydream
  • Interact with virtual objects using eye gaze, hand controllers, and user input events
  • Move around your VR scenes using locomotion and teleportation
  • Implement an audio fireball game using physics and particle systems
  • Implement an art gallery tour with teleportation and data info
  • Design and build a VR storytelling animation with a soundtrack and timelines
  • Create social VR experiences with Unity networking

To order your copy: https://goo.gl/iLuVf4

Train2Game News BAFTA Young Game Designers Game Jam

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Multi award-winning games studio and creators of the Total War franchise, Creative Assembly, invited local students into their Horsham-based studio and turned their game concepts into reality in a first-of-its-kind game jam.

Students from the West Sussex all-girls school Millais, created their own game concepts as part of an exercise to help inspire them about the opportunities within the fields of science, technology, arts, engineering and math (STEAM), through the process of game design. The activity was hosted in partnership with BAFTA’s Young Game Designers initiative.

This is the first time a studio has developed student concepts into playable games. Nine teams of expert developers from Creative Assembly spent an hour sitting down with the 14-year-old students to understand their concepts as part of the discovery process. The teams then had 48hrs to create the games, ready for the students and their parents to play.

Creative Assembly has published a short video documenting game jam here: http://bit.ly/CAgamejam

Tim Heaton, Creative Assembly’s Studio Director and EVP of Sega Studios, said: “Working with BAFTA, we’ve been able to challenge students’ perceptions of games and give them a valuable first-hand insight into the development process. We know that diversity breeds innovation and we want to inspire more young people from all backgrounds to consider careers in the games industry and to recognise that it is an incredibly creative and professionally rewarding place to be.”

Melissa Phillips, Games Event Producer at BAFTA, said: “It has been fantastic to work alongside Creative Assembly to bring the BAFTA Young Game Designers initiative to Millais School. It is so important to provide visible role models for young people and encourage them to express their creative ideas. We’ve enjoyed helping to connect the students with industry professionals to turn their game concepts into reality.”

Sammi McEwan, Concept Artist at Creative Assembly, said: “Meeting the students from the local girl’s school was a great experience. When I was their age, being in the games industry was my dream so I wanted to share some of my experiences with them and give them some advice. It was fun to meet them and I hope that they liked the game we made.”

Zongyi Chen, Lead Character Artist at Creative Assembly, said: “It was an absolute joy to meet the students at the end and see how pleased they were with what we made for them. This game jam has been such an incredibly positive experience for us and I really hope it has made a difference to how these young people see the industry.”

Creative Assembly’s game jam, FrancoJam, is now in its 4th year but 2018 is the first time it has included an educational aspect, as part of the studio’s commitment to UK STEAM education via its Legacy Project.

The UK continues to face a digital skills gap with Engineering UK estimating the shortfall of UK engineering graduates to be 20,000. Additionally, only 8% of the UK’s current engineering workforce are women – the lowest number across the whole of Europe. Creative Assembly’s Legacy Project aims to educate and inspire young people into the industry through a number of initiatives with local schools, leading UK partners like BAFTA and Digital Schoolhouse, and on University-level curriculums, like the East London Academy of Music and Arts.

Creative Assembly has written about the digital skills gap and their work to address this as part of the Legacy Project here: bit.ly/gameseducation.

Find out more about BAFTA’s Young Game Designers Competition and discover resources on how to come up with your own game concept at http://ygd.bafta.org/

Train2Game Fight in the streets again

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Hadoken your way through gaming history with Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection, now available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC.

This collection of 12 arcade-perfect Street Fighter games encapsulates a walk down memory lane with the video game phenomenon that impacted arcade culture, established the fighting game genre, and paved the way for esport events such as Capcom Pro Tour.

Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection marks the first time many of these arcade essentials are playable on consoles and PC. Street Fighter players can recreate the classic arcade gaming experience by competing against the CPU and friends locally, or challenge an opponent online in four online-supported games. An ultimate tribute to Street Fighter arcade legacy, this all-in-one package includes 12 classic titles with arcade-perfect balancing including:

Street Fighter
Street Fighter II
Street Fighter II: Champion Edition
Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting*
Super Street Fighter II
Super Street Fighter II: Turbo*
Street Fighter Alpha
Street Fighter Alpha 2
Street Fighter Alpha 3*
Street Fighter III
Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact
Street Fighter III: Third Strike*

*Online play and Training Mode supported

While the collection stays true to the original arcade experiences, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection also includes some new features and options. New since the original arcade versions is a robust Training Mode that offers numerous options for players to customize their experience and train more effectively for their next match. Some of the options that are universal amongst all four games are the ability to turn on damage display, input display, dummy controls, and more.

When players need a break from the action, the collection invites fans to explore the franchise’s history with early game design documents, see how their favorite characters have evolved through character bios and sprite viewers, and even listen to some of its most memorable soundtracks via the game’s built-in music player.

Train2Game News Square Enix work potential

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Square Enix® Montréal, the award-winning and critically acclaimed mobile games studio, has announced that it is attending Casual Connect in London on May 29-31, 2018, and will be located at booth #206.

The studio will be a Gold Sponsor of the conference and has recently made the move to the freemium mobile game development model. As a result, Square Enix is actively looking to fill new positions within the Montréal and London mobile studios. Key members of the Square Enix Montréal and London mobile teams will be available at the booth to discuss any of the available positions, spanning Creative, Analytics, Product Management, and beyond.

As well as sponsoring this year’s ‘Best Kids and Family Game Indie Prize Award’, Square Enix Montréal’s Head of Studio, Patrick Naud will join fellow industry experts to discuss Live Operations on the ‘Live Game Ops Power Panel’ at 4pm on May 30, 2018 in the St. James’s suite. Senior Producer Dominic Allaire and Lead Game Designer Jean-Francois Dugas will deliver their ‘Live and Kickin’ presentation covering the evolution of Hitman Sniper at 11am on May 30, 2018 in the St. James’s suite.

“We’ve always strived to provide the highest quality experience for mobile players and premium was the most appropriate format for us to do so initially in order to prove our know-how,” said Patrick Naud, Head of Studio at Square Enix Montréal. “While we remain absolutely committed to delivering innovative experiences to our existing IPs, we also want to make original games that are accessible to all players, hence we are now fully embracing the freemium format, while being mindful that we continue to provide the mobile gaming community with unforgettable experiences; a value central to every Square Enix Montréal title.”

For more information regarding the ‘Live Game Ops Power Panel’ and ‘Live and Kickin’ presentation: http://europe.casualconnect.org/schedule.html

Casual Connect will be held at The Queen Elizabeth II Centre, Broad Sanctuary, Westminster, London, SW1P 3EE. Square Enix Montréal will be located at booth #206.

Train2Game News Bandai Namco raise $20k for charity

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Leading anime video game developer and publisher BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. announced today it has raised and is donating over $20,000 to Gamers Outreach in support of the foundation’s mission to provide recreation and entertainment to children recovering from the treatment of long term illnesses in hospitals through the power of video games.

The donated funds will go directly to the creation of additional “GO Karts” or Gamers Outreach Karts – portable, medical-grade gaming kiosks which healthcare staff can use to transport gaming consoles and games to children who are not able to leave their rooms during their recovery. GO Karts have already been stationed at nearly 50 hospitals around the United States and support over 450,000 children annually during their recoveries.

“As a video game company, BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America is excited to see the power of video games brighten the day of a child recovering from illness. Video games can transport children to distant lands for grand adventures, empower them with super powers, and most importantly, deliver a simple smile and some comfort.” said Denny Chiu, Director, Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility at BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc.

“By lifting their spirits, we hope to help these brave young patients through their healing process and provide a semblance of fun and normalcy to their day. We also want to thank our generous fans who donated funds during our livestream, our combined donations will surely add a boost to help Gamers Outreach in its mission of bringing joy, creating smiles, and making the day special for countless kids.”

“We’re incredibly grateful to the team from BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America for this generous gift of more than $20,000 in support of providing entertainment devices to hospitalized children,” said Zach Wigal, Founder of Gamers Outreach.

“As an organization, our focus is to help normalize the hospital experience by ensuring games and recreation are available to patients, and easy for healthcare professionals to manage. GO Karts are a tool hospital staff rely on as a way to deliver content to patients who have limited accessibility during treatment. The GO Karts built by BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America will be making a difference in the lives of children and their families for years to come!”

Funds donated by BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. are comprised of charitable donations raised during an eight hour “Let’s Play Anime” charity livestream which raised $5,484 from viewers and fans. The livestream featured gameplay segments featuring BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment’s latest games. The livestream was hosted by BANDAI NAMCO team members and social media influencers. During the program, viewers made donations in support of the livestream to benefit Gamers Outreach. Additional funds were donated by BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. by matching the $5,484 donated by livestream viewers and with an additional $10,000 for a grand donation total of $20,968.

For more information on BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc., please visit: https://www.bandainamcoent.com . For more information about Gamers Outreach Foundation, please visit: https://gamersoutreach.org.

Train2Game News Kinect recycled for medical needs

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A new system which helps people with Parkinson’s disease overcome debilitating walking problems has been developed by researchers at Brunel University London.

Built using Microsoft’s now-obsolete Kinect peripheral, the system monitors for and detects freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson’s patients. When an occurrence is observed a laser casts visual cues on the floor according to the patient’s location, helping them release their gait and improve their movement.
It’s hoped the system, which was unveiled in the Journal of Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology and supported by Parkinson’s UK, can be further developed for installing in patients’ homes.

“Freezing of gait is one of the most disabling symptoms in people with Parkinson’s, affecting its sufferers by impacting their gait performance and locomotion,” said Dr Amin Amini, a researcher from Brunel’s Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering, who lead the research.

“It is an episodic phenomenon that prevents the initiation or continuation of a patient’s locomotion, and it may lead to a loss of independence or frequent falls.”

The system, whose prototype cost just £137 to build, excluding its controlling PC, works by monitoring a patient’s leg movements in their own home. Whilst similar systems using Kinect have been tested previously, the new system specifically monitors the angle of the patient’s knee and their head direction, offering increased accuracy and a reduction in false positives.

Initially launched in 2010, the Microsoft Kinect is a motion-sensing device developed for use with a PC or Xbox. Whilst it was originally intended for gaming, the product proved popular with researchers and developers keen to find alternative uses.

Although the Kinect was discontinued as a commercial product in 2017, they are still easily obtainable second-hand.

“The main reason that Microsoft Kinect was used is that it doesn’t require the patients to attach any sensors to their bodies in order for the system to detect FOGs,” said Dr Amini.

“The Kinect can unobtrusively detect and track subjects’ body movements without any attachments, which makes it an ideal device for such applications.”
Once FOG is detected, the system casts two laser lines on the floor, perpendicular to the direction the patient is facing. This visual cue stimulates movement in the patient and helps relieve their gait.

“We tested the system’s capabilities and detection success rate by inviting healthy participants during the prototype phase, as well as inviting real Parkinson’s disease patients to a focus group, where we demonstrated our system in action,” said Dr Amini.

“The results showed the possibility of employing the system as an indoor and on-demand visual cue system for people with Parkinson’s, that does not rely on the subject’s input or introduce any additional complexities to operate.
“Despite limitations regarding its outdoor use, feedback was very positive in terms of domestic usability and convenience, with people with Parkinson’s showing interest in installing and using the system at their homes.”

Kinect4FOG: monitoring and improving mobility in people with Parkinson’s using a novel system incorporating the Microsoft Kinect v2 is published in the Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology
For further information on Brunel’s research, please visit www.brunel.ac.uk/research

Train2Game News Personal Gaming Assistant Sam Launches

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Sam aims to enrich the players gaming experience by connecting them with their game library, friends, community as well as most of Ubisoft services.

Starting today, Sam is available worldwide in English only and is currently in BETA. Sam is a chatbot that follows your in-game progression and provides you with real-time stats and tips. Sam leverages Google Cloud’s Dialogflow Enterprise Edition, which enables it to answer a large variety of topics related to Ubisoft games and services.

Sam entered its open BETA in Canada on January 24th and has not ceased evolving since launching – thanks to the support of the community.

Sam is now available on the Ubisoft® Club mobile application, which can be downloaded on Google Play and App Store.

To learn more about Sam, have a look at our article on the ubiblog.
For more information about the Ubisoft® Club, please visit: https://club.ubisoft.com.

You can see it in action below

Train2Game News PLAY Expo London 2018

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PLAY Expo, the UK’s largest arcade, indie and retro gaming show, comes to London’s Printworks for the first time on the 11th and 12th of August 2018.

A must attend event for any videogames fan, featuring hundreds of original arcade and pinball machines, plus consoles and PCs playing a virtual who’s who of gaming classics including Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, Street Fighter, Space Invaders, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, Tetris, Super Mario Kart, Sensible Soccer, Super Mario Bros, GoldenEye 007 and Pokemon.

PLAY Expo also features a huge Minecraft zone, dedicated VR and tournament gaming areas and an Indie Zone, where you can play the best and brightest indie games of recent years. On the Expo stages you will find talks from gaming celebrities, Cosplay displays and tournaments for gamers of all skill levels! Special guests announced so far include:

Ashens Q&A, comedian, actor, author and Internet sensation
Stuart Ashen AKA Ashens will be appearing all weekend long, taking part in a YouTuber panel and Q&A. Ashens is best known for his YouTube channel, which boasts over 1.3 million subscribers. He has written two popular books about retro games – Terrible Old Games You’ve Probably Never Heard Of and Attack of the Flickering Skeletons.

Mr Biffo aka Paul Rose of Digitiser
Remember Digitiser on Teletext? Paul Rose the writer behind Digitiser is appearing at PLAY Expo to talk about his new Kickstarter project to create Digitiser: The Show – an ambitious and anarchic retro gaming series.

The Oliver Twins present ‘The Evolution of Dizzy – the UK’s 80’s Iconic Gaming Hero’
The ‘Oliver Twins’ rose to fame in the 1980s when they developed the Simulator and Dizzy games franchises. They are probably the most prolific 8-bit game developers in the world, having created an amazing 53 games – 26 of which where #1 bestsellers. They founded Blitz Games in 1990 and built it into one of the most successful games studios in the UK. In 2012 they set up Radiant Worlds with co-founder Richard Smithies, which they recently sold to Rebellion.

Sensible Software founder Jon Hare: A Life In Games 1985-2018
Jon co-founded Sensible Software in the 1980s, the company went on to produce some of the most successful games of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Notable titles include the Sensible Soccer franchise, Cannon Fodder games, Wizball, Mega Lo Mania and Wizkid. More recently Jon has worked on an updated version of Speedball 2 as well as Sociable Soccer, the spiritual successor to Sensible Soccer.

Q&A with Mike Montgomery, founder of Bitmap Bros.
“The coolest Amiga developer ever, this studio did things in the early 90s that made their peers weep with envy.” Vice. Founded in 1987, The Bitmap Brothers are the original ‘rock star’ developers: a small but highly successful development team with a history of creating unique, critically and commercially acclaimed games. Continually striving for originality, attention to detail and new levels of playability, the company has been responsible for several of the games industry’s most memorable titles including the Xenon, Speedball and The Chaos Engine games series, Magic Pockets, Gods, Cadaver, Z and most recently the critically acclaimed RTS hit; Z: Steel Soldiers.

Whether you’re a gaming enthusiast or haven’t touched a game in years, you will find yourself enthralled by the wealth of amazing gaming entertainment available at PLAY Expo. The fun starts on August 11th at London’s Printworks, SE16 and runs from 10am until 6pm on Saturday and Sunday. For more information visit playexpolondon.com, facebook.com/playexpolondon/ and twitter.com/replayevents.

Tickets cost: Adults £20, Child £14, Family (2 adults, 2 children) £58 per day or Adults £34, Child £24, Family £96 for the Weekend ticket.

Train2Game News GamerToken Crypto

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GamerToken is a new and exciting blockchain-project.

It allows gamers to truly own the virtual items they earn in-game. With the Ethereum-based token, unique cosmetic items will be made available in participating games, making it possible to reward players for exceptional in-game achievements.

The GamerToken system is the first to make in-game items truly distinctive when being equipped with unique skins, allowing players to earn recognition. Players can sell, buy and own these unique and one-of-a-kind collectibles via a secure and transparent marketplace which is based on a blockchain.

A public test version of GamerToken was launched in April in collaboration with the gamigo group, one of the leading game companies in Europe and North America.

To demonstrate the project, an ERC20-compatible test-token was implemented in a special demo version of the popular online roleplaying game Fiesta Online. In addition to this demo, a test version of GamerToken’s decentralized marketplace is available to trial. Both demos can be tried out on the GamerToken website.

“The GamerToken has the potential to radically change the trading and perception of in-game items. The marketplace can become a secure, transparent and universal trading post for online games of all kinds”, says Jens Knauber, CEO of the Laurel Foundry.

A Marketplace to unite game worlds
Rather than replacing existing in-game economies, GamerToken’s currency and marketplace are built to compliment them with additional functionality and freedoms for the player. It is a decentralized trading system in which players can buy, sell, and borrow their cosmetic items across different games. Therefore, the player can transfer his/her digital assets in the form of GamerToken for example from an online roleplaying game to an eSports shooter, and from there to a casual mobile game, and so on. In-game markets remain stable and effectively unaffected by such transactions.

A system of ‘smart contracts’ ensures the security and transparency requisite for high-value online transactions. The marketplace has an underlying security system that ensures comprehensive protection against theft and fraud.

Benefits for developers and players
Game developers gain the ability to design skins that are exclusive for the marketplace and link them to an ERC-721-GamerToken. The ERC-721 token guarantees the validity of unique items. The entire transactional history and the current item value on the blockchain will be quick and easy to gather. GamerToken introduces new and exciting possibilities in the in-game item trade. Ambitious players can increase the marketplace value of one of their items for example through their Twitch streaming channels by performing outstanding actions. For instance, a unique camouflage suit of an eSports sniper used in a pro-gamer’s eSports career can become a precious collectible when linked to a GamerToken, just like the signed jersey of a famous football player. In design competitions, gamers can design their own skin collections for online roleplaying games in exchange for recognition within the community as well as for GamerToken on the marketplace.

Considerably more information about the entire GamerToken project can be found on the GamerToken blog and on the website.

Train2Game News Shenmue reboot comes from UK

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Growing Cheshire company revealed as the software developer studio resurrecting classic video game Shenmue and Shenmue II.

d3t Ltd has confirmed that it is the development studio responsible for resurrecting the 20 year old games, that pushed boundaries on their original release, the classic and hugely popular Shenmue and Shenmue II. d3t Ltd take client confidentially extremely seriously and the project remained top-secret until the news was announced in April at SEGA Fes 2018, in Tokyo.

Noel Austin Operations Director said, “We can finally reveal that the d3t team have been resurrecting Shenmue from the original source code written over 20 years ago! We are bringing Shenmue and Shenmue II to modern platforms: Playstation4, Xbox One and PC. It’s been a journey of discovery, delving into the original code, also an honour and a privilege to work on such high-profile titles, delivering this classic franchise to new platforms and new audiences.”

d3t is a growing tech company in the northwest of England. d3t is only 6.5 years old, founded with just 3 people, it has grown year on year to its current team of 50. d3t was created by Stephen Powell and Jamie Campbell in 2011 and acquired by Keywords Studios last year. The company is forecasting continued expansion and has recently upscaled to a larger HQ in Cheshire.

d3t stands out in the UK game development sector because it strategically does not develop its own IP, instead it exclusively delivers game and interactive projects on behalf of international clients. Household names like SEGA, Sony, the BBC and independent studios worldwide regularly engage d3t on projects and d3t provides invaluable, confidential support across the games and interactive media sectors.

This technical port of Shenmue I & II represented an enormous technical challenge for the team at d3t. Piecing together the 20-year old archives of code and source data could be termed “digital archaeology”. The re-release of Shenmue 1 and 2 will be available together as a single package later this year and will remain true to the originals.

Studio Head Richard Badger added, “A lot of the work we undertake stays under wraps, so it’s great that we can actually talk about this amazing project. The global Shenmue gaming community have shown us incredible support and we are really excited about the launch of the games later this year. We are extremely proud of our team and being able to showcase the remarkable software development talent that can be found right here in the northwest of England.”

d3t does not just deliver when it comes to resurrecting well-loved cutting-edge games. The company also provides the same level of expertise to the museum and heritage sector and have recently been involved with real life archaeology. Working as a technology partner for the amazing installation which was opened at Yorkshire Museum, by Sir David Attenborough. d3t Ltd worked with lead designer Bright White Ltd, to develop a set of digital museum exhibits for the highly esteemed “Yorkshire’s Jurassic World” d3t animated a lifelike raptor, and an augmented reality window giving visitors a unique opportunity to view some of the world’s most amazing extinct dinosaurs and sea creatures as they would have looked when they lived on earth.

To learn more about d3t you can visit their site http://www.d3t.co.uk/