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Why is Unity 2020 so slow?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by RuneShiStorm, Aug 28, 2020.

  1. RuneShiStorm

    RuneShiStorm

    Joined:
    Apr 28, 2017
    Posts:
    264
    Just updated to 2020... Big mistake as usual since Unity seem to get worst and worst after each update...
    This time around its really bad:
    - Now I get this loading screen popping up every time I hit Play button?
    Hold On
    (LoadingBar)
    Application.EnterPlayMode

    - Also, When I change something tiny in a script it takes forever to comply it when I jump back to Unity.
    Hold On
    (LoadingBar)
    AssetData.Refresh

    - It also show me a loading screen when I want to work on a different scene.

    When I Build my project it Loads the entire Bar and then It has messages Like:
    Compiling Shaders - Wait (19s) ----
    (I dont have any shaders in my game apart from the 2D Light thing.)


    My question is:
    Is Unitu2020 importing a bunch of features I don't need? I had tons of discussing Add-Errors when I opened my project after the update and I had to Delete Add Packages from my project.
     
  2. angrypenguin

    angrypenguin

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2011
    Posts:
    15,614
    I'm 99% certain that it's just showing progress bars for stuff that it used to do silently. I don't get the impressions the waits are any longer, they're just being acknowledged now. In previous versions it just stopped accepting input for a few moments when you did those things.

    I actually like it. Now Unity is telling me what it's doing when it pauses.

    Yes, you do. Everything that draws to the screen has a shader, plenty of things you might not think of need specific shaders, and for performance things that look like one shader often get compiled into many. Even if you're using the built-in defaults they still need to be compiled to suit whatever platforms, graphics settings, etc. you're targeting, so there's definitely stuff for it to legitimately be doing there.

    The first build will probably be fairly long. Thankfully it caches the results, so subsequent builds don't need to recompile nearly as many and are much faster. If you've just changed engine versions that'll invalidate the cache, which could be why it's slower this time.

    Quite possibly. Check the Package Manager, there may be stuff in there which you don't need.
     
  3. Ryiah

    Ryiah

    Joined:
    Oct 11, 2012
    Posts:
    20,954
    This. It's not getting slower (at least not by a higher amount than any of the past releases have been). It's just admitting to the source of the slowdown which is fantastic because I can now tell if it's legitimately Unity's fault or if it's the fault of my own custom build tasks, and if it ends up being their fault I can mention the specific task in my feedback.

    Just because you haven't written them doesn't mean they don't exist. Fixed function pipelines haven't existed in hardware for many years. You can't even create non-shader content on mobile platforms thanks to OpenGL ES 2.0 (the requirement for mobile games built with Unity) removing all support for them back in 2007.

    A newer, faster computer can help immensely with this. I recently made an upgrade that is faster in nearly every way and the time I spend building went down by a very noticeable amount. Some people will tell you that Unity doesn't benefit from high core counts, but I'm constantly seeing it use all of my cores for long periods of time.
     
    Last edited: Aug 28, 2020
  4. Gekigengar

    Gekigengar

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2013
    Posts:
    738
    Yes, but if it makes something feels slower (Even if it's not actually slower), that's a bad UX design.
     
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  5. MadeFromPolygons

    MadeFromPolygons

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2013
    Posts:
    3,967
    "feels" slower is not objective, what "feels" to you may not "feels" to someone else.

    When looking at this objectively, it is a better system than before which was a lack of information. The only difference now is your attention is drawn to something that was not there and you are probably focusing on the length of time more but that will pass as you become used to the behaviour.

    BTW They didnt just add this on a whim, people have been moaning about this for years.

    Unfortunately no matter what solution is chosen it wont be perfect for everyone.
     
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  6. jamespaterson

    jamespaterson

    Joined:
    Jun 19, 2018
    Posts:
    395
    Ahem. I can think of a solution which would be perfect for everyone. Make it faster. Ideally much faster. (Grin)
     
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  7. kburkhart84

    kburkhart84

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    Apr 28, 2012
    Posts:
    910
    Sorry, me and many other people disagree with this. We much prefer to know what's going on, and more so if we can get that data without something actually being slower. I prefer the reality, not what "feels like."
     
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  8. Gekigengar

    Gekigengar

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    Jan 20, 2013
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    738
    I am not saying to fully omit them, I am saying it could be better implemented.
    This forum post is an evidence by itself. We’re not the only one perceiving it as slower because of the change.

    Show that information somewhere else like the bottom right bar, instead of glaring at the center of the screen.

    The illusion of responsiveness is important as seen in the history of game and softwares to hide feedback latency or loadings.
     
  9. Ex-Crow

    Ex-Crow

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2020
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    I'll take correct information over the right feelz.
     
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  10. kburkhart84

    kburkhart84

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    Apr 28, 2012
    Posts:
    910
    The stuff it puts in the middle of the screen is stuff that is happening in the foreground...stuff that has to complete before you proceed...that's why it is like that. The stuff that happens in the background(like the OPs compiling shaders mention), you only get a little bar in the corner of the screen, since you can continue working while that happens.

    What's bad design about either of those things?! Unity has plenty of faults to be sure, but I don't think either of these two apply.
     
    Ryiah likes this.
  11. Tautvydas-Zilys

    Tautvydas-Zilys

    Unity Technologies

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2013
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    You can increase the timeout before the bar appears in preferences. If you don't want to see it, just increase it to some very large number.
     
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  12. Ex-Crow

    Ex-Crow

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    Aug 14, 2020
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    111
    What I meant is that I'd like to know when the editor is unresponsive, which it now communicates clearly. So I don't have to guess when I can get back to work and randomly click around in hopes the next click will respond.

    I'm not entirely sure how game feel relates to anything here. This information to me is more valuable than how it was previously. And as Tautvydas-Zilys mentioned, if you don't like the feature, you can practically disable it.

    You're going off topic here, OP thinks Unity is slower due to a placebo effect. Unity's general slowness is another topic entirely.
     
  13. AcidArrow

    AcidArrow

    Joined:
    May 20, 2010
    Posts:
    11,631
    And here I am thinking I can have a discussion on these forums.

    Yeah okay, nevermind, it's fine. Next time I'll remember to send you my bio and portfolio before making any statements, since you need my qualifications before bothering to try to understand my posts.

    Cheers.
     
    Last edited: Sep 3, 2020
    LaneFox and RuneShiStorm like this.
  14. RuneShiStorm

    RuneShiStorm

    Joined:
    Apr 28, 2017
    Posts:
    264
    you are right it is a bit quicker after the first build. I also deleted a bunch of add on packages that was added and now its finally running "faster" again. Still i dont like the Loading bar popping up in the middle of the screen :/
     
    Gekigengar likes this.
  15. Syr_2

    Syr_2

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    Jun 12, 2021
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  16. Shreddedcoconut

    Shreddedcoconut

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    Fifteen hours. It probably got stuck somewhere earlier on and just hanged there for the rest of the time.
     
  17. Barritico

    Barritico

    Joined:
    Jun 9, 2017
    Posts:
    374
    Update from version 2020.3.16f1 to version 2020.3.19f1 .... 2 hours importing and it does not take half the process.

    Too much production time spent waiting. Even more so when there is no significant difference later. unity_esperando.png
     
  18. lmbarns

    lmbarns

    Joined:
    Jul 14, 2011
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    1,628
    Entering play mode got sloooow for me in 2020-2021 but under project settings >> editor >> Enter Play Mode Settings you can disable 2 checkboxes and it's fast again for me. By default they're enabled and even though you're staring at the scene, can move objects around, every time you hit play it's reloading the whole scene.
     
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  19. LT23Live

    LT23Live

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    Jul 8, 2014
    Posts:
    83
    It definitely seems like the import process has slowed down. Along with setting up a new project. 2020.3.32
     
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  20. OS13

    OS13

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2016
    Posts:
    19
    2020.3.5f1 is still unusable and 2018 - best ever made.
     
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  21. QGGameDesign

    QGGameDesign

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    Aug 28, 2020
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    funny and absolutely awesome how this thread started off as people blindly defending unity with their guesses but by now everyone knows that "it's just showing progress bars for stuff that it used to do silently" it's just utter and complete nonsense
     
  22. tleylan

    tleylan

    Joined:
    Jun 17, 2020
    Posts:
    616
    Not intending to start an argument but if resurrecting the thread will help newcomers then so be it. Your recap of the thread seems a bit off-the-mark.

    Is it slower? Probably. Is it unworkably slow? I have 2021.3.16 and it isn't slow starting, loading, running or in so far as I can tell when doing anything else.

    The real solution is if some earlier build in 2018 has all the features you need there is and was no need to update. If one updates and finds the new version lacking (in any way) people can revert back.

    There is no magical "add more features, process more things automatically and use fewer resources and run faster" methodology that I am aware of. Seriously and I don't mean this to sound snotty but if you are professional software developer and routinely offer your clients apps with more features and the apps are always faster and take less RAM let the world in on the secret.

    Using Unity (like using any software (or hardware)) is a system of trade-offs. If it doesn't meet your needs hop over to a package that does (or write it and the world will follow).
     
  23. AcidArrow

    AcidArrow

    Joined:
    May 20, 2010
    Posts:
    11,631
    The recap of the thread is that it doesn't make much sense.

    So I'll provide a recap of the actual situation with Unity editor performance:

    It is undeniable that Unity is still in a trajectory where Editor Iteration / Load times / entering Play times / compilation times are getting slower with each version, even by Unity's own metrics, outpacing hardware improvements.

    Unity 4.x had faster iteration times on much worse hardware, and it's not like we're drowning in new production ready features since then.

    Sticking to older versions is not viable on most platforms with the exception on PC (you are reliant on Unity fixing bugs), so please stop suggesting that.

    There is no magical "make things faster" but people are not asking for magical solutions, they are asking for Unity to bother with editor performance once again, since they have clearly been neglecting that part of their software for many years.
     
    Ruslank100 likes this.