Unity version

Hi guys, can you still export and monetize your games to android, IOS using the older 32 bit version of Unity 5.6.7?

 

I have no idea whether you can build games for iOS using Unity 5.6.7, but I definitely know that you can't do it for Android for the simple fact that Android now requires all applications to be 64-bit and the oldest release of Unity that supports 64-bit Android is Unity 2017.4.

https://blogs.unity3d.com/2019/03/0...bit-and-app-bundles-backported-to-2017-4-lts/

 

thanks for the info ryiah..that's a bit discouraging...but would it be okay for me to continue using Unity 5.6.7 until I completed my game and have enough funds for a 64 bit pc then just do some changes with my codes to suit the newer version's coding system? Is there a huge difference? Will it be like starting from scratch? Thank you for your advice.

 

No. I'm currently with a project that started on Unity 5.6 and we migrated to Unity 2018.2 with very few changes. That said at the time it was a purely 2D project with mostly custom code. I don't know what it would have been like had we been relying on heavily on things like Unity's physics. I doubt it would be a complete rewrite though.

 

thank you so much at least there is hope I could produce a nice game lol goodluck to us both!

 

We migrated from 5.6 to 2019.1 with no issues

 

From 5.6 32 bits to 2019? Or from 5.6 64 bits?

I still resent UT ditching the 32 bits version of their engines. (Before anyone write anything about this, I've always had 64 bits computers; I am not in the least concerned by the problem but 64 bits computers users are still part of a minority, whatever people say.)

 

Im not actually sure and not at the PC to check, but we have used 64bit editors as long as they have been available, so if 5.6 had a 64bit editor, we were definately using it.

 

So, would porting a project made with a 32 bits editor to a 64 bits one be problematic?

 

Not really, going the other way would though! Although any dlls you have will need to be for correct architecture, other than that I think you will be okay

 

Not me, as I've already said.

 

You can believe this if you want to but it's a bit like believing that the world is flat and that the moon missions were faked by the government. Just looking at my own personal experience I can't remember the last time I saw a 32-bit computer that wasn't one of my own and I'm the person who is frequently running tech support for my area (rural Virginia).

 

And you obviously have travelled all around the world? You can say that for the entire Earth?

 

Travel is unnecessary, statistics exist for a reason after all, but even if it were necessary I'm willing to bet you haven't either.

I'm very much aware that some countries have extremely low incomes making it very difficult to afford new hardware and operating systems, but that hasn't stopped them from somehow having Windows 7 and Windows 10 which while they will run on 32-bit hardware are demanding enough that you generally need the 64-bit hardware to do anything practical.

https://www.businessinsider.com/the-23-poorest-countries-in-the-world-2015-7

Congo was the poorest country in the world at the time the article above was written, yet the majority can run Windows 10.
http://gs.statcounter.com/windows-version-market-share/desktop/congo-democratic-republic-of-the

Zimbabwe, second poorest, majority on Windows 10.
http://gs.statcounter.com/windows-version-market-share/desktop/zimbabwe

Burundi, third poorest, Windows 7 is almost tied with Windows 10, but Windows 10 is still majority.
http://gs.statcounter.com/windows-version-market-share/desktop/burundi

One major constant between the three poorest countries in the world is that the 32-bit only OSes are almost completely dead. Windows XP is the most common OS for people showing up here with 32-bit hardware, but these countries have almost no one running it.

Both Windows 7 and Windows 10 require memory capacities that are on the very top edge of what a 32-bit machine is capable of addressing, but neither OS is in a very usable state with just the minimum memory requirement of 2 GB. You generally need 4 GB to make good use of it and at that point you're no longer on 32-bit.

 

Valve / Steam has pretty global reach, and according to their current hardware survey stats 64bit installs account for over 98.5% of users. That's a pretty clear majority! Granted, this only considers systems being used on Steam so there's some selection bias.

Taking this from another angle, Intel haven't made a 32bit-only PC processor since 2011, and those were Atoms. So if you're targeting an audience who can't run 64bit stuff you're also aiming at really low spec hardware - netbooks, early Pentium 4s, or equivalent processors. (Or perhaps mobile devices, I haven't looked up stats for those.)

I'm interested to know where there's a majority of 32bit PCs where this is a concern, for either developers or players?

 

I haven't done this for a long time, but I don't recall any issues when we did it related to that. Generally, code written for 32bit works just fine when moved to 64bit.

The pain will be if you* happen to be doing anything in the 32bit version of Unity that has changed in the intervening years when you upgrade. Examples of things that have changed, from memory:

• The physics system got a major update, and I think some API stuff changed along with it. I wouldn't be surprised if there were also subtle behaviour changes.
• I think it was already done by Unity 5, but at some point a restriction was added that you can't change the transform hierarchy in Awake().
• Particle and Animation systems have been deprecated / removed.
• UnityScript (aka JavaScript) is now deprecated / removed. Same happened to Boo at some point.
• If you're using any 3rd party assets, dependencies there can be a real pain.
• Did the networking system get a revamp in there somewhere?
• (Can anyone think of other stuff to add to this list?)

If you're aware of that stuff then no, it shouldn't be like starting again because you can avoid the areas where you know you'll need big changes. It still could be a pain, but I have got projects which I've opened years after creation and everything is still just fine. So while there's a chance you'll still have to do some work, if you've planned things out well it shouldn't be anything like a major rewrite.

* "You" is generically referring to the people working on the project, not any particular individual.

 

MOBILE:
Apple: (iPhone)
As of the end of last year, >4% of iPhones in use were 32bit. This year(may), Apple apple store stats (pretty much THE source of data) indicate that the 94% of active phones using the store are on a 64bit OS. The remainder may support 64bit. But the bottom line, since 2015, you were not able to submit a 32bit app to the appstore. 64 is a requirement.

iPad is tricker, as folks don't upgrade as often. Submissions are the same as above, 64 only since 2015. So... really if there are people out there with older ones... you can't distribute to them anyway. (I have an old iPod Touch... the appstore is pretty empty on that little baby.

Android is a lot tricker getting decent stats due to the market structure. One thing that is important to know is that the Play store now requires a 64bit version. it will still support having a 32bit version but that is deprecated.