Unity is Coming to the iPhone!

From our press release sent out today:

As with our Nintendo Wii announcement this is likely going to generate a lot of interest and a lot of questions from folks. Please do not hesitate to ask your questions, we'll do our best to answer them as we too are quite excited about this news. For us this is exciting not just because it's about the iPhone, but also because it marks another key point in Unity's history: it's our first foray into the mobile and devices space. Unity FTW!

To preemptively answer what is likely to be the first question: we do not yet have any pricing or licensing information to share, we are simply announcing the fact that we will be implementing support for iPhone content creation. Please stay tuned for that sort of information as time rolls on.


We're expecting some news coverage on this and so I'll do my best to keep this post updated with the various outlets covering our announcement:

prweb.com:
Unity To Deliver High-end 3D Games To The iPhone

emediawire.com:
Unity To Deliver High-end 3D Games To The iPhone

pocketgamer.co.uk:
Console game engine Unity3D adds iPhone support

iphoneworld.ca:
Unity engine to bring 3D games to the iPhone - beta support program now open

thecareergamer.com:
Unity game engine coming to your iPhone

gamasutra.com:
Unity 3D Engine To Support iPhone

news.yahoo.com:
Unity To Deliver High-end 3D Games To The iPhone

ipodobserver.com:
iPO Scoop - Unity Coming to Apple iPhone

tuaw.com:
Unity engine to power iPhone gaming

macsimumnews.com:
Unity coming to the iPhone

iphonefreakz.com:
Develop your own 3d iPhone Games

gadgetspire.com:
Unity3d coming to iPhone!

ilounge.com:
Mix: Unity, Marathon, Apple brand

casualconnect.org:
3D iPhone Gaming Through Unity Technologies

macrumors.com:
Unity Game Engine Coming To iPhone

developmag.com:
Unity3D adds iPhone support

insidemacgames.com:
Unity Coming To iPhone

macworld.com:
Unity game engine coming to the iPhone

pcworld.com:
Unity Games Coming to the iPhone

iphonematters.com:
3D Games Coming Soon

kotaku.com:
Velociraptor Safari On iPhone?

maclife.com:
Unity Comes to the iPhone


Edit: I think I'm done adding press links as I trust we've all got the point, this news made a big splash.

 

Is this the right place to ask?

The two questions that first come to my mind: What about networking on the iPhone? GPRS/UMTS have terrible lag, so that probably won't work for anything but turn based games (which could be a lot of fun, too, of course). I've read that Bluetooth on the iPhone is somewhat crippled, i.e. it only allows pairing with a headset. Bluetooth obviously is the "hottest" technology for mobile networked games because it allows "quick sessions" with people that are nearby. Is there any way for Unity to make Bluetooth networking possible, or does the SDK not provide access to Bluetooth? If it's possible - is it also planned to implement that?

Same with WLAN... I think right after Bluetooth, that's the second coolest option for networking (and for many kinds of applications, it would probably even be better than Bluetooth). Is it possible, and if so, is it planned for "iUnity"?

Ah, a third question comes to my mind: What about persistent data storage. I have one application that I'd like to port to the iPhone which needs the possibility for me to store files that I download (it's kind of like a persistent cache). All I need is just some way to store some files away and get them back (in the current application, which is a J2ME app, I'm using RMS, which is about as simple as it gets ;-) ... the files are GZIPed ).

I really like the idea of getting Unity for the iPhone because it kind of bridges two worlds I live in (one is games, the other is very secret, haha ... let's say it's one of the dinosaurs of entertainment ;-) ).

Sunny regards,
Jashan

 

When can I purchase shares in Unity?

 

Exciting news! I can't wait to see this

 

Wow! This is the news I have been waiting for. A few questions spring to mind:

1) Will this provide all the access to the SDK that say Sega have? Their monkey ball demo was awesome and it would be good to be able to replicate this in unity!

2)Will there be an option to publish a Web Player that Safari on the iPhone can load or is it simply a case of depolying to iPhone in the build settings and feeding it through Xcode somehow?

3)Not really a question, more of a statement, please please please make this a feature of the Indie release, you know it makes sense! :wink:

PS. Just think how this could work with google maps! Click on a location and be taken down into a 3D walkaround world!!

 

Hmm, these questions have more to do with what Apple is providing than Unity.

I think internal storage is done through an SQLite interface. Haven't looked into it much. If you can store your zipped file in a SQLite database... On this Unity might have to provide some new hooks... not sure.

Haven't looked into networking at all, but you can get web/internet access from the apps, of course.

1. My guess is that Unity would provide everything that the Monkey Ball example used. How they give access to the accelerometer data is up to them, but there would be nothing restricting them from doing so. With a little know-how, acceptance into the iPhone developer program and $100 you can access it yourself. There's no reason I can think of that Unity couldn't accomplish everything that any app made with Xcode and the new iPhone SDK can do. (In a quote in one of those articles, it is mentioned that Unity will have a new Input API for iPhone specific input.)

2. My understanding is that it's not about a web plug-in. I would say that's an unlikely step as the plug-ins in Safari seem to be under tight control by Apple. I suppose it's possible, but the ability to sell my game through the iPhone App Store is much more exciting to me. I'm not even sure why you'd want it in a web page on a small device like that. :?

I imagine Apple will probably provide a way to hyperlink from a web page right to your app on the app store as is done with iTunes. Since you can make apps available for free, this is almost as good.

 

this is so huge.

a very exciting time in the unityverse : )

 

Wow! I was hoping Unity could squeeze into the terms of Apple's dev program, but didn't expect an answer to that question so soon!

Now all my hours of Unity handheld game daydreaming are potentially less of a waste

No mention of the iPod Touch, but I'd love an excuse to get one for research and testing purposes....

Good thinking. I bet you're right, that will be doable.

 

I am dancing a happy dance inside.
Thank you Unity!

 

I'm just wondering if the iTouch is supported as well? I actually just ordered one but I've been waiting on the next gen iPhones. I can't see why it wouldn't work since they are effectively the same device less the phone and camera. I just thought I should ask to be sure there wasn't an issue.

 

The iPhone and Touch are the same OS, and you develop with the same SDK. They also both will use the AppStore.

 

That is going to make Cocoa Touch Games sooooo much easier (and I;d started to learn Xcode and all).

I'm also picturing a whole "zoo" of possibilities coming ... Ron?

PS. Is a sharp pain in your left arm normal? Man, these Danish guys just keep making the dreams come true. Brilliant.

 

This is a killer feature, with the iPhone having had such a huge impact. Awesome.

 

I knew it was comimg..... Just not this soon. Yay!!

 

Huzzah! Long live UT!

 

As a Unity pro licensee I would like to ask if this is going to come as a plugin to the current development environment or as a separate toolkit.
Thanks

Eugenio

 

I have to second dingo's comment... please try to talk the underwriter into a small pool of shares for pre-Unity-IPO customers to purchase! :wink:

Excellent announcement!!!

Ricko

 

my first question: what is the iPhone capable of in 3d?

 

Wow, this announcement is listed on the sidebar of Macrumors.com twice. Good going, Unity Technologies!

I can only hope this leads to Unity becoming a more widespread force in the industry. I really love using it, and it would be great to be able to find work using Unity all over the place.

 

Thanks for all the replies folks. I know there are lots of questions here and we will get to them, bear with us just a tad longer.

Thanks!

 

Hi,

Congratulations,it's definitively the way to go.
I love Unity, and I will love to developp my app for the IPhone. After the Wii, it's a perfect platform for what I'm trying to do.

When can I buy parts of Unity ? javascript:emoticon(':wink:')
Wink

Long life to Unity !

Twintower

 

I'm SO glad you made this announcement before the 4/1 deadline. If you'd announced on April Fool's Day I wouldn't have believed it

My plan was to A) work hard this winter on client stuff that pays immediately, and then B) move to my own projects and spend long hours each day in Unity. Plan A has gone well, and this is great motivation as I move into phase B!

I wonder if making Unity iPhone games will involve a combination of Unity with Xcode?

 

I'm very happy to learn this great news !
Congratulations and thank you

I subcribed to the pre-release program !

First questions : what is the estimated price of this solution or it will be included in the pro license ?

 

ALL YOUR IPOD ARE BELONG TO US!

Realizing the pure market potential of the iPhone/iPod, I had looked into doing viral app development for it as a best bang-for buck marketing strategy. But honestly, Objective-C is a -itch. It makes C++ seem user friendly. Any kind of SDK that makes it easier to publish on that platform will be worth its weight in gold. (Hmm.. how about worth _my_ weight in gold.)

Even mac-haters know iPhone/iPod will be king. Now, pretty much all that remains (following IDE deployment to PC) is an SDK for (#2 sad looser) Windows Mobile.

Shares in UT? You betcha. Just waiting for the IPO. That "fourteen hundred dollar license to print money" is working out nicely.

 

ROFL!

pretty exciting UT! the news is all over the place too. look forward to seeing where this goes (no doubt a good place!)

 

What are the requirements to use the iPhone edition of Unity?

Is there more criteria than Apple?

After the beta will anyone be able to purchase the iPhone edition of Unity? Or will it be closed/limited like the beta?

In other words will two barriers need to be pasted 1. Apples certification program, and 2. Unity Technology's certification program?

Finally, will users have to go through Unity Technology to place games on the AppStore? Thus making Unity Technology the middle man to Apple?

Will Unity be sold to anyone and we manage our own certification with Apple?(this is the best scenario in my opinion).

The excitement over Unity for iPhone is great, but it is all "moot" if everyone is not allowed to purchase it.

 

I am assuming that (UT please correct me if I am wrong) building for the iPhone will as simple as building for the PC and that anyone with a Pro license will be able to build for iPhone.

 

I'm sure there will be special concerns, due to limited RAM, CPU and GPU compared to a modern Mac or PC--but still superior horsepower to a PSP or DS, supposedly.

 

That's a pretty huge gap! Wikipedia numbers:

DS:
CPUs: Two ARM processors, an ARM946E-S main CPU and ARM7TDMI co-processor at clock speeds of 67 MHz and 33 MHz respectively.
RAM: 4 MB of Mobile RAM

PSP:
The PSP uses a 333 MHz MIPS R4000 (32-bit) CPU, a GPU with 2 MB onboard VRAM running at 166 MHz, and includes 32 MB main RAM and 4 MB embedded DRAM.

 

The iPhone sure is faster than the DS and it has a better CPU than the PSP.

Not sure about the GPU: the PSP GPU is pretty good, iPhone GPU is a PowerVR MBX Lite. It's a bit better than the Dreamcast GPU I think.
Don't know if it has the VGP, it'll be a lot better...

http://www.imgtec.com/powervr/mbx.asp

We were developing a 3d engine, but when i heard Unity was coming to iPhone...

 

Considering the Dreamcast had SoulCalibur as a launch title, I think we could expect very amazing things, if this is true.

 

Word! Back in time(dreamcast launch titles): http://dreamcast.ign.com/articles/068/068557p1.html

I still love Powerstone (first better than the second).

 

I loved SoulCalibur... and not to forget Shenmue... wasn't that the most expensive title back then?

 

hmmmm, Dreamcast.... I love my DC's!

I think I'll have to play some tonight!

 

I'm sorry for veering these posts into off-topic territory.

That being said, it would be a difficult to argue against the Dreamcast being the most awesome console ever.

Hoorah for multitouch gaming!

 

I think the best question is what will make it over and what won't. The iPhone clearly won't be able to run all of the games that people are making because it simply doesn't have the memory and CPU so there will be sacrifices made in terms of feature set of the iPhone version.

How long before we know what didn't make the cut?

 

Unity on iphone is a great marketing move but I'd prefer a PSP version.. UT, any plan?

 

Can we get a shortlist of the iPhone features that Unity will support and how?

Can we get the direction, movement? Brightness sensor? IR distance sensor? Headphone jack in/out events (I *love* that the iPhone turns off the iPhod when I take out the headphones, instead of blasting music through the loudspeaker)

How is multitouch going to be implemented in the Unity input layer?

I have a couple of ideas, but many of them depend on these things.


[/list]

 

UT now supports 3 platforms, that's impressive.
Is the same code base used and automatically updated changes across each hardware ?
How do you guys handle third party code such as physx ?

 

Mac, PC, Wii, iPhone... that's 4.

If you want to know how Unity will be limited in its use of the iPhone or iPod Touch you can start by registering as an iPhone Developer at Apple (that's the free part, where you can download the SDK and read a bunch of documentation, etc.)

You'll need to do this before you apply to be part of the iPhone Developer Program anyway. And you'll need to do that before deploying a Unity game on an iPhone or iPod Touch. $99 a year.

UT has already mentioned that there will be a unique API for the input utilizing the multi touch possibilities and presumably the accelerometer readings (there's nothing fancy to deal with there, it's just 3 numbers. )

The audio stuff I'm not as familiar with yet, but go check it out for yourself, the info is freely available from Apple and I have to imagine that UT will be trying to take advantage of every special feature Apple allows.

 

Any new information?

 

What's the dilly yo?
Now that I've finally dug out from the snowstorm of emails and whatnot I'm catching up on things and now have the time to come here and answer the questions folks have asked to the best of my abilities. Please note that there are still many moving parts and more than a few items in the "To Be Decided" category so please bear with us. We've only recently announced that iPhone support is coming and we're hard at work making that happen and we'll be rolling out more and more information as time goes on.

With that out of the way, let's dig in!


The Beta Program
There was only one question about the beta program (correct me if I'm wrong on that):

It's going to be a week or three as we have both technical and final legal details to sort out. So please be patient and hang in there. When we do get in touch with folks we'll let people know about beta program requirements, who is in and who is not, etc.


Pricing, Licensing and Requirements
Here are the questions I found relating to pricing, licensing and developer requirements:

We haven't finalized the full set of pricing and licensing options so you'll have to stay tuned for updates. I can say that you will need to be an approved Apple iPhone Developer in order to release content, but it's TBD whether we'll require that in order for your to purchase/activate an iPhone-enabled version of Unity (whether that's part of Unity Indie/Pro or as a separate license).


The Platform
I only found a pair of questions about the platform and general support we'll offer:

Given the similarties between the iPhone and iPod Touch it's looking like a solid yes that both will be supported.

The exact power and capabilities of the iPhone are still under investigation. As has been mentioned in this thread already it falls in the between a DS and a PSP, but that's a lot of territory so I don't know that such comparisons are truly useful. Clearly we do expect a decent level of ability but we'll have to wait for actual on-device tests to sort things out in fine detail.


Development and Publishing
Here are the questions that I found to be about the development and publishing process:

We won't provide you access to any SDKs, we're making a version of Unity authoring that supports the iPhone as an build output option. Separately you'll need to be an iPhone developer and as part of that you'll have access to the SDK they offer (and they offer that same SDK to everyone).

We're building iPhone support off of the same general code base yes, that's going to be true for all platforms we support. Naturally there will be platform-specific chunks of code, but in general we have one code base for our player.

Very carefully.

What we've announced is the coming ability to use Unity to build and deploy standalone iPhone content. We are not talking about a plugin for the iPhone that enables Unity content within Safari on the iPhone. Naturally that's of interest for the future but it's not part of what we're working on for now.

We're not going to require folks to have/use Xcode in any way, the goal is to have this be "just another publish option" you find in the build settings menu. We're working on both the technical and legal aspects of that and are very much in touch with Apple about it.

No, you will not go through us to place your content on the AppStore, that's between you and Apple.


Specific Features
Naturally there are a lot of questions about specific features, what will and won't be possible, etc.:

Nope, not at this time. For now we're going to shy away from commenting too much about specific features as things are still in flux. I will say that our goal is to enable as many Unity features as possible, but only time and more code writing will let us know what, if any features won't make the cut.

The goal is to expose the full range of the device's input options, naturally requiring some new APIs within Unity.

And all of those fall in that group of features I can't comment on just yet. Clearly networking support and things like persistent data storage would be key elements to have present, but I'd be out of line offering any firm in/out statements at this time.


Future Directions

We don't have any public plans to discuss at the moment, no. But I can say that we're always going to be on the lookout for potential platform growth opportunities whether on the desktop, consoles or mobile/devices.


My apologies for all the hand-waving and vague answers, I'm just presenting the information I have to share as of today. Please feel free to follow-up with any other questions and I'll keep trying to answer them.


Unity FTW!


Edit: forgot one Q&A so I added it to my post, it's the last one about future directions. Sorry 'bout that!

 

Hi Tom,

thanks for taking the time to dig out all these questions and answer them as good as currently possible (which I think is quite good, given the early stage this is in).

This is greatly appreciated!!!

Kind regards,
Jashan

 

Thanks Tom,

for the update. Your answers were great, and did not seem like hand waving.

Serious appreciation for the level of "upfrontism" that you guys give.

 

Thanks for the info Tom.

-Jeremy

 

Indeed, this is some tasty general info... looking forward to more juicy bits!

 

Brilliant!

* Remove headphone plug to fire.

* Insert headphone plug to jump.



Just kidding. I too was thinking that the prox sensor could make a kind of additional button--put your thumb over the earpiece or not.

PS, add vibration and mic to the list of desired hardware features Sorry, Touch users.

Also, since it sounds like Xcode is not involved, I'll suggest that it would be great to optionally allow Unity content to be connected to / part of an Xcode app (via WebKit and a "plugin" built into the app? who knows).

Part of what makes the iPhone great is its UI, and being able to have your game menus, typing keyboard, etc. all handled within Xcode would make a great seamless iPhone experience

If such a thing turns out to be possible.

 

Edited: Obsolete questions, I missed Tom's last posting. Sorry.

Thanks,
Martin