January and TBTK v2.1 update

Time flies. Feels like it was new year yesterday and now January is gone. Well I like to think the month is well spent. I've spent the month working on TBTK, giving it the same face lift I've done to TDTK.

The update (version2.1) has since gone live on AssetStore a few days ago. So basically the new update has got:

• Major restructuring of most of the framework
• New and improved UI
• New Editors (more intuitive, undo/redo support, multi-instance editing, etc.) 
• Added support for square grid diagonal neighbor
• Added new ability: overwatch

It's a lot more work than TDTK. For a start the base game logic is more complicated. Took me quite a while to restructure and optimize it. But the end result has enabled me to add the new feature. I've been wanting to do that but the old code is just a little bit too complicated for more complexity. 

Then there's the UI. Unlike TDTK, I've reskin the it on top of remaking it with new code. I really enjoy making new aesthetic for the UI. And because I've done that, the UI in the demo (campaign mode) has to be redo too for consistency sake. 

All in all, I think it's worth the effort. Hopefully all you user (or potential user) will enjoy the effort I've put in.

Now that both TBTK and TDTK has been updated. The next thing I would like to do is update the art asset for both of them. The vehicles and turrets set I've been using have started to look a bit dated. And if I'm honest, they are not very well done and I recon I can do a better job this time round. So following image is a sneak peak of what's coming next. Keep in mind that it's very much a work in progress, not everything will make it to the final build.

Now while I'm here, I would like to announce that I will be away for two weeks starting on February. I'll be carry on working on this as soon as I'm back. Until then, please don't hold your breath.

Happy 2016! (and new TDTKv3.1 update)

It's a new year and boy I'm glad that I'm here.

Since the release of the new TDS-TK (TopDownShooter-ToolKit), I've been busy working on giving TDTK a overhaul. I know, my packages naming is getting a bit silly but whatever. At least they are adequately named. Back to the point, TDTK is now ready for another update to version3.1. I've made so much changes in the new update that I'm a bit tempted to version it as 3.5. But I will have to say very little of those change applies to gameplay and mechanic.

First, all the editors has been rewritten to improve its usability. Most noticeable would be the layout. I've put a lot of attention into making the editor more intuitive and explaining what each setting does. Then there's the detail like better integration between different editor windows and undo/redo, multi-instance editing for certain prefab and so on. Have to say, the most important of this all is that the code will be much easier to maintain and expand in the future.

The new UI

The next big change would be the new UI. The old UI is a bit clunky if I'm honest. It's done in the earlier days of unity GUI when I just started to getting the hang of it. Some of the code is even obsolete post Unity5.1. So the new UI, it's cleaner in term of code and better organized when it comes to arrangement in hierarchy. Not to mention it's marginally better looking (in my opinion). At any rate, any user who intend to modify it will have an easier time. Or at least it will serve as a better example for anyone who wants to make their own UI

Finally, lots of changes has been applied to the existing code base. Most of these are to simplify and optimize the code, or at least have it make more sense structure wise.

In a nutshell, I would say that all these have pretty much laid the ground work for TDTKv4.0. I cant tell you how much I have fight the urge to simply carry on, give everything a face lift and simply make it 4.0. But that would be a task for some other time.

So now that the update for  TDTK is done (It's now live on AssetStore). Moving on to TBTK.