New Update for TBTK and TDTK

Following my last week post on the new asset that I've made, and the fact that I've been putting it to good use in the latest update of TDTK, I've been working on doing the same for TBTK. Now I'm pleased to announce that the asset update on TBTK is done as well. With any luck, the new update is already up on AssetStore by the time you are reading this.

Unlike the update on TDTK, this update on TBTK actually contains more. First, if you are a long time user of TBTK, remember that it use to have collectible item before version 2.0. Well now it's back again. You can now procedurally generate (during both runtime and edit mode) or manually place collectible item on the grid. I recon it has a better application than the old system. Instead of just a simple effect that is applied on the unit, you can link a collectible item to ability which can do all sort of stuff. For instance, repair all friendly unit, damage all hostile within range. You can even have a wild card item that can trigger random abilities.

Along with the collectible system, I've also added some extra 3D model. It's not as fancy as the tank or turret. They are just a series of container/parts that are meant to replace the old freighter set. Like the old asset, they can be stacked. And they works pretty well for the most part with the new vehicles.

That's about all the major stuff I've been working on for the past few days. Hope you like what you see. Now this is done, I'm going to see what sort of progression system I can add to TDS-TK.

Pretty Pretty Things! (Tanks and Turret)

So I've teased about making a new turret and unit set in my last post. This is pretty much the follow up post. In short, it's done! Voila!

 

 

 

They looked gorgeous don't you think. Well, maybe it's just me but I'm extremely pleased with what I've come up with. Objectively, there can be no arguing that they are miles better than the current tank and turret set I'm using for TDTK and TBTK.

If you are wandering, they have a very low poly count and works well with Unity's dynamic batching for the most part. You can probably tell from the images that they are modular. Parts are interchangeable so you can create different units to a certain extent. The best thing is, the color are not texture dependent. You can change both the main and secondary color on the fly in Unity. You can even apply some wacky styling by applying a 'mask' texture, with result like the images below:

At this point you may think they are great and ask if there's any chance I will release them? Yes I would. Right from the start, I plan to include the set in TDTK and TBTK as a replacement to the old unit set. In fact, I've already updated TDTK to use the new unit. Hopefully it is live on AssetStore by the time you read this. I've yet to done the same to TBTK but it shouldn't be long until I do. Just need to take care of a few other updates before I commit the update.

Anyway, the set will be available as a stand alone package on AssetStore at some point (Depend on how long the review process take). I plan to add more stuff to the set yet. Feels like there are something missing, drone or transport container for instance.

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.

TDTK v2.2.2 is out! New Asset Included!

It's an exciting and proud moment for me personally to see the latest TDTK (v2.2.2) went online. The big difference between this and all the previous update is that this update has emphasize more on addition of art asset. I've never keen to say this, but a nice graphic does make a big different. Now the demo feels more like a game than a simple prototype, in relatively term of course. It's still far from polished.

Now included in TDTK are three modular asset package I made, all which can be obtained from Unity AssetStore without TDTK. They are:

Modular Sci-fi Turret Set - link to AssetStore

Modular Sci-fi Tank Set- link to AssetStore

Modular Sci-fi Freight Set- Link to AssetStore

All the example has been remade with the new asset. I hope even for user who are not big on using generic asset, they still provide a decent examples. With that said, the demo has been updated as well. Feel free to check it out! Some of the level are not that balance, they can be a bit too easy/challenging. But they are afterall feature demo for TDTK, not TDTK the game.

I do love to add make more of this modular asset to complete the set. Building and background props comes into mind when I think of it. But I've many ideas that I like to play with as well, score-board, additional game mode. Well, we shall see.

Following is the update log of v2.2.2:

addition/change

• Added option for auto-scale ability indicator size to effective range
• Added option for realistic line-of-sight mechanism for TurretTower
• Added modular sci-fi freighter model for creep
• Added modular sci-fi tank model for creep
• All old creep using primitive mesh has been replaced by new model.
• All example has been rebuilt.
• Added support for block-able shootObject (shootObject cant shoot through obstacle/collider)
• tweak missile behaviour, new option added
• attack creep now use similar turret control model used by tower. (with barrel control and etc.)
• change the naming of PathFinding component so the package is now compatible with PathFinder

     bug fix

• fix bug in SpawnManager where Infinite spawn option will always override AutoGenerateWave
• fix bug in SpawnManager where event are not firing according to the spawnMode and spawnLimit
• fix error in UnitCreepAttack caused by animation delay
• fix bug with editors error which occur when play.
• fix setting of tower prefab, all tower prefab now batch dynamically.
• fix a few setting in creep and tower editor
• fix a bug where creep movement got distorted when pass start point in path-looping mode
• and other minor bug fixes

Modular Sci-fi Tank/Vehicle Set

An image is better than a thousand words so I'm just going to show this:

I think it's my finest asset creation yet! The TDTK demo and example will be getting a face lift with these. I'm current working my ass off on it to get the next update out asap. It wont be long now. The new demo is going to look awesome. Very exciting indeed! I hope now the visual aspect of the demo can really do the supported functionality justice.

As usual, all these is modular and subject to dynamic batching. However since there are too many mesh and UV to fit into one texture, two is used instead. So unfortunately the number of drawcall has been increased by "100%" from 1 to 2. Ops... But I do hope that the addition of two drones model would make up for it.

This is all for now, I hope to show them in a better light with the actual gameplay of TDTK.

Finally, in different colours:

And there are more color combinations of course.

Modular Sci-fi Freighter

The latest addition to my art-asset creation is finally done. It's slight less exciting than stuff with guns but I imagine it should be useful anyway. There's another tank set on the way so everything will compliment each other nicely. It's done with the similar style with modular turret set I've done earlier. So is the tank set which is in progress. The grand plan is to make everything that fits when place together so there's a complete asset pack that contains everything. That means vehicle, building, props, etc. The current plan is to make a mini-game using TDTK for demo purpose. But I have hope that in the near future I could utilise all this to make some kind of stand-alone strategy game. A continuation of RTS-X perhaps.

As you can probably see it's modular like the turret set and it can be mix and match in a different way. For support/transport vehicle, I guess the 3 option of each changeable part is more than sufficient to create a good variation. The container can also be used as a props so I think it's pretty cool. Like the modular turret set, it's low-poly and share single texture and material. That should help in keeping the drawcall down when used in large quantity.

This will be in TDTK in the next update, along with the tank set when it's done. I'll also submit a stand-alone package to AssetStore. Right now, I just cant wait to get the tank set done and put them all in TDTK and see them all in action. If only I can get enough time on my hand...

Status Update

I havent been working on things I intended as much as I like recently. By things I intended I mean my own project like new model and TDTK. I thought that after I release TDTK 2.2.1, I can quickly make another set of models or two to further update TDTK. Unfortunately other things like my part time job has taken much more time than I expected. It's very annoying if I'm honest.

Still, I guess I'll show what I manage so far. So I've been working on some vehicle model to be used as the sample creeps for TDTK. The idea is very much similar to the turret-set I made. Sci-fi theme, modular, low-poly, and as flexible as possible to be used in a wide variety. However I have to say these are a bigger pain than the turrets. It's hard to create a vehicle base that looks good on it's own and with a bunch of add on. I end up spending a lot more time than I do for the turrets. Here's a sneak peak:

And here's the individual part break down:

Mind you that is not all of the parts, at least I still haven't really got to the guns yet. And I think I'm still missing some elements if I'm to use this for TDTK. For instance, flying unit and splitting unit. So there's still some way to go. I've also done a lot of optimising to keep the vertices count down. All the parts, (as complicated as some of them may seem) are below 300 and thus subjected to dynamic batching when in Unity. However I don't think they will shared one material as I will certainly struggle to get all in texture in one UV map.

Well, we will see.

Modular Sci-fi Turret Set - Now On AssetStore!

It's now officially live on AssetStore!

Also, it's now included in the released TowerDefenseToolKit full version! 

This is the flexible, modular and extremely low poly sci-fi turret set I mentioned in an earlier post.

If you already owned a copy of TDTK, you can find this included in the latest version of TDTK (v2.2.1f). If not, feel free to check it out via the link above or visit the official forum support thread. You can see these towers in action in this TDTK demo.

Please post any comment/feedback regarding this turret set here at the official forum support thread, thanks!

Modular Sci-fi Turret Set

The picture has said it all, hasn't it?

Yes, this is the continuation of the modelling work I mentioned before. I've finally done the UV mapping and texturing. I'm really really pleased about it. I think it look really good. Far more better than what I expected when I first work on it. Now I can integrate this with TDTK and make a proper demo out of it. Also this means I've some what mastered the know how (in my mind), I can start making my own asset for my own game. It's an exciting prospect that's for sure. However I'm not getting ahead of myself yet. For now, I'm just gonna build some simple stuff that could goes into the demo TDTK. But who knows, anything can be useful down the line.

Anyway, regarding the turret set. I've probably said it but I'll say it again. It's made to be as modular as possible so allow mix and match of different part to create many variant of towers. Also, it's extremely low poly. The maximum vertices count for each individual mesh never exceed 300. And they all share one material. This mean they can be dynamically batched in run time when used in Unity.  See the picture, pretty awesome eh?

One drawcall! For so many things!

I've also make several textures using different color theme so when making actual prefabs, it's possible to use parts with different color for a single tower or make different towers with different color theme. In case you asked, no I didn't quite make towers using different part yet. I'm too lazy I guess.

Finally, here are all the parts in current set. As shown in the image below, it consists of one base, six turrets variant, six guns variant, 2 radar panels (or whatever you make it to be) and one special missile pod made specifically to fit in one of the turret. On a second thought, I should have make one or two more missile pod.

Anyway, I'm thinking of releasing this as a stand-alone asset package on AssetStore. We'll see.