Game Dev Digest — Issue #48 - ML Agents, AI, Testing, Hi & Low Res, Shaders, And Much More!
Tags: gamedev, unity3d, csharp, news
Published: 2020-06-12 10:14:15

---  
date: 2020-06-12 10:14:15 UTC 
canonical_url: https://gamedevdigest.com/digests/issue-48-ml-agents-ai-testing-hi--low-res-shaders-and-much-more.html
series: Game Dev Digest - The Newsletter About Unity Game Dev
---

###Issue #48 - ML Agents, AI, Testing, Hi & Low Res, Shaders, And Much More!

![Issue #48 - ML Agents, AI, Testing, Hi & Low Res, Shaders, And Much More!](https://gamedevdigest.com/assets/social-posts/issue-48.jpg)

ML Agents and AI go hand-in-hand, and this week has both. More C# posts, more shader tutorials, more rendering pipeline stuff. And last but not least some handy assets and scripts. Happy developing!

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[**Use Unity’s perception tools to generate and analyze synthetic data at scale to train your ML models**](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/10/use-unitys-perception-tools-to-generate-and-analyze-synthetic-data-at-scale-to-train-your-ml-models/)  - Synthetic data alleviates the challenge of acquiring labeled data needed to train machine learning models. In this post, the second in our blog series on synthetic data, we will introduce tools from Unity to generate and analyze synthetic datasets with an illustrative example of object detection.
[_Unity_](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/10/use-unitys-perception-tools-to-generate-and-analyze-synthetic-data-at-scale-to-train-your-ml-models/)

[**Unity 2019 LTS is now available**](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/09/unity-2019-lts-is-now-available/)  - Unity 2019.1, 2019.2, and 2019.3 have brought lots of improvements in rendering, Editor UI, node-based authoring tools, and more. Today, we’re releasing Unity 2019 LTS, which includes all of these features, as well as additional fixes for maximum stability.
_[[Unity 2020.1.0 Beta 12](https://unity3d.com/unity/beta/2020.1.0b12) has also been released.]_
[_Unity_](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/09/unity-2019-lts-is-now-available/)

[**Practical Use of Render Textures**](https://blog.theknightsofunity.com/practical-use-of-render-textures/)  - Even before an era of SRPs (Scriptable Render Pipelines), there was a good amount of solid features like today’s topic: Render textures. In this post I’m going to explain to you how to use render textures in your game.
[_theknightsofunity.com_](https://blog.theknightsofunity.com/practical-use-of-render-textures/)

[**Shader Basics**](https://www.ronja-tutorials.com/basics.html)  - Since the first few shader tutorials are probably the most important ones for many beginners and I hope I learned some stuff writing tutorials for 2 years now I completely redid them. Tell me what you think!
[_Ronja_](https://twitter.com/totallyRonja/status/1269588889997582336)

[**Writing Shader Code for the Universal RP**](https://cyangamedev.wordpress.com/2020/06/05/urp-shader-code/)  - A lot of shader code tutorials you’ll see online are written for Unity’s built-in pipeline and won’t really work in the Universal Render Pipeline – They’ll either produce magenta errors or at least won’t be compatible with the SRP Batcher.
[_Cyan_](https://cyangamedev.wordpress.com/2020/06/05/urp-shader-code/)

[**Determine Unity’s Rendering Pipeline at Compile Time**](https://programinprogress.com/?p=81)  - Putting this all together, we can check the current pipeline and add or remove from the list of defines. Then we can wrap any code in our new #define directives wherever they are needed.
[_Curtis Aube_](https://programinprogress.com/?p=81)

[**How To Select The Graphics API Based On The Current Android Device**](https://medium.com/@chen_jd/unitytips-how-to-select-the-graphics-api-based-on-the-current-android-device-691886cc640)  - With more and more Android phones supporting both GLES and Vulkan, mobile game developers often face a problem, can we select which Graphics API to use when the game is launched on a specific device? The short answer is YES.
[_Jiadong Chen_](https://medium.com/@chen_jd/unitytips-how-to-select-the-graphics-api-based-on-the-current-android-device-691886cc640)

[**Making of The Heretic: Digital Human Character Gawain**](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/10/making-of-the-heretic-digital-human-character-gawain/)  - Gawain is the main character from The Heretic, the real time short film made in Unity, written and directed by Veselin Efremov. This article will cover the creation of the character and give some insight into the different aspects of his production.
[_Unity_](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/10/making-of-the-heretic-digital-human-character-gawain/)

[**Recreating Alyx-Style Bottles in Unity**](https://80.lv/articles/recreating-alyx-style-bottles-in-unity)  - Gil Damoiseaux has shared a series of experiments with liquids in Unity.
[_80 Level_](https://80.lv/articles/recreating-alyx-style-bottles-in-unity)

[**Water Simulation Cases In Houdini, Unity & Unreal**](https://80.lv/articles/water-simulation-cases-in-houdini-unity-unreal)  - Today we're going to look at some of the most advanced water simulation cases inside Houdini, Unreal Engine, Unity, and other toolkits.
[_80 Level_](https://80.lv/articles/water-simulation-cases-in-houdini-unity-unreal)

[**The right way to pause a game in Unity**](https://gamedevbeginner.com/the-right-way-to-pause-the-game-in-unity/)  - In this post, I’ll be exploring what is and is not affected by a time scale pause, how to exclude certain objects from being stopped as well as helping you to avoid some common pitfalls when pausing and unpausing your game.
[_gamedevbeginner.com_](https://gamedevbeginner.com/the-right-way-to-pause-the-game-in-unity/)

[**C# Delegates with IoC Containers and Dependency Injection**](https://christianfindlay.com/2020/05/15/c-delegates-with-ioc-containers-and-dependency-injection/)  - Developers are usually encouraged to do dependency injection with interfaces. Some developers don’t know that they can do dependency injection with delegates, and there are good reasons to do this.
[_Christian Findlay_](https://christianfindlay.com/2020/05/15/c-delegates-with-ioc-containers-and-dependency-injection/)

[**C++ For C# Developers: Part 4 – Functions**](https://jacksondunstan.com/articles/5547)  - The series continues today with functions. These are obviously core to any programming language, but it’s not obvious how many ways they differ from functions in C#. From compile-time execution to automatic return value types, there are a lot of differences to cover today.
[_JacksonDunstan.com_](https://jacksondunstan.com/articles/5547)

[**A Multithreaded Sorting Attempt**](https://coffeebraingames.wordpress.com/2020/06/07/a-multithreaded-sorting-attempt/)  - This attempt turned out to be better than I expected so I have used it as the sorting algorithm in our game for now.
[_Coffee Brain Games_](https://coffeebraingames.wordpress.com/2020/06/07/a-multithreaded-sorting-attempt/)

[**Introducing Unity MARS – a first-of-its-kind solution for intelligent AR**](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/08/introducing-unity-mars-a-first-of-its-kind-solution-for-intelligent-ar/)  - Unity MARS provides augmented reality (AR) creators everywhere with specialized tools and a streamlined workflow to deliver responsive, location-aware AR experiences into users’ hands.
[_Unity_](https://blogs.unity3d.com/2020/06/08/introducing-unity-mars-a-first-of-its-kind-solution-for-intelligent-ar/)

[**Editor Iteration Profiler (EIP)**](https://forum.unity.com/threads/introducing-the-editor-iteration-profiler.908390/)  - if you want to figure out what is delaying your Editor iteration times (Enter/Exit play mode, compilation, assembly reload) in Unity3d? The Editor Iteratation Profiler is here to help! We're looking forward to your feedback.
[_Martin Schmitz_](https://twitter.com/Skiri_ki/status/1270368777247612928)

## Videos

[![Unity ML-Agents 1.0 - A.I. Shooting Game (FULL WALKTHROUGH)](https://gamedevdigest.com/assets/images/e39ce56eb7eeb61650c99d5efaa411ec.png)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OVf3FBHzHI)
[**Unity ML-Agents 1.0 - A.I. Shooting Game (FULL WALKTHROUGH)**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OVf3FBHzHI)  - Unity's ML-Agents Machine Learning framework is a great way to get started with the topic. Many people have requested a shooting style game, so here it is.
[_Sebastian Schuchmann_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OVf3FBHzHI)

[**I made an AI which Plays a Game in Unity - Machine Learning**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgFu50UpLF0)  - Finally It's here my new unity Tutorial. This time I made an ai which plays a game. So I did this using Genetic Algorithms in unity3d. It's a simple game in which player has to dodge obstacles and reach a destination.
[_AeroBlizz_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgFu50UpLF0)

[**Adaptive Enemy AI Patrol System - Complete Unity Game Dev Tutorial**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHkbDn-KQ9E)  - In this Unity game dev tutorial, you will learn how to setup an Enemy Patrol system, which uses Raycast / linecast to see walls and the floor.
[_Lost Relic Games_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHkbDn-KQ9E)

[**Evolving game graphics with the Universal Render Pipeline - Unite Now**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvl9rCVbMas)  - Take your cross-platform game visuals to the next level. This video goes in-Editor to show you how to use some of the newest and most popular graphics features and tools that are sure to improve your game.
[_Unity_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvl9rCVbMas)

[**Achieving High Fidelity Graphics for games with the HDRP - Unite Now**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqCHiZrgKzs)  - In this video, you'll learn how to create AAA-quality visuals for current and next-gen games. We’ll also show you HDRP’s key rendering features and how to tune settings for anti-aliasing, lights, shadows, exposure, and more.
[_Unity_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqCHiZrgKzs)

[**The Easiest Way to Achieve a Low-Res Look in Unity**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHPo3vmoNi8)  - In this Unity tutorial we find out how to get a convincing low resolution look like in the game a short hike.
[_DevOrenge_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHPo3vmoNi8)

[**Unit Tests in Unity**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDYB32qAsLU&amp;feature=youtu.be)  - In this video I'll show you how to write more effective Unit Tests in Unity. More importantly, I'll demonstrate how valuable Unit Tests can be for Unity projects of any size and Unity developers of any skill level.
[_Infallible Code_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDYB32qAsLU&amp;feature=youtu.be)

[**Unity Custom Inspectors in 100 seconds**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_Q6Bpk4XDc)  - I show you the basics of creating a custom inspector without wasting any time!
[_Kemble Software_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_Q6Bpk4XDc)

[**How to make a 2D Wall Jump & Wall Slide using UNITY & C#!**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCzEnKLaaPc)  - In this Unity tutorial, you'll learn how to make a simple 2D wall jump and wall slide mechanic using C#!
[_Blackthornprod_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCzEnKLaaPc)

[**Creating 2D Materials in Unity with URP! | 2D Shader Basics**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZY9tnxlOEs)  - This video series is going to teach you various parts of 2D Shaders in Unity, using the Universal Render Pipeline, or URP for short! In this video, we're going to take a look at the basics of creating and rendering 2D Materials in Unity.
[_Unity_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZY9tnxlOEs)

## Assets

[![Battle Royale UI System - FREE](https://gamedevdigest.com/assets/images/224cb249-f3da-43eb-bd8a-7a4e7e55ebf5.jpg)](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/battle-royale-ui-system-free-168575?aid=%201011l8NVc)
[**Battle Royale UI System - FREE**](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/battle-royale-ui-system-free-168575?aid=%201011l8NVc)  - The Battle Royale UI System is a complete template for implementing your very own version of a Battle Royale mode. It features a customisable armour, health and cash system. Teaching you the basics of implementing these features and more!
[_SpeedTutor_](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/battle-royale-ui-system-free-168575?aid=%201011l8NVc) **Affiliate**

[**Shapes**](https://acegikmo.com/shapes/)  - a real-time vector graphics library for Unity by Freya Holmér After Shader Forge, I wanted to make something different. It has bothered me for a long time that for some reason, html5 canvas is better at drawing primitives than Unity. I really wanted something to help us make html5 canvas style crisp lines, discs, polylines and, well, Shapes! so, here we are~
[_Freya Holmér_](https://acegikmo.com/shapes/)

[**AI4Animation**](https://github.com/sebastianstarke/AI4Animation)  - Bringing Characters to Life with Computer Brains in Unity. Over the last couple years, this project has become a modular and stable framework for data-driven character animation, including data processing, network training and runtime control, developed in Unity3D / Tensorflow / PyTorch. This repository enables using neural networks for animating biped locomotion, quadruped locomotion, and character-scene interactions with objects and the environment, or sports games.
[_Sebastian Starke_](https://github.com/sebastianstarke/AI4Animation) *Open Source*

[**Unity Scene Switcher**](https://github.com/coryleach/UnitySceneSwitcher)  - Editor extension for quick scene switching.
[_Cory Leach_](https://github.com/coryleach/UnitySceneSwitcher) *Open Source*

[**Smooth Scene Transition**](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/smooth-scene-transition-55812?aid=%201011l8NVc)  - Simple, smooth transition between scenes. Now with VR support! It only takes one line to execute. Fully customizable loading screen.
[_Ketos Games_](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/smooth-scene-transition-55812?aid=%201011l8NVc) **Affiliate**

[**Clean Title Transitions - Pro**](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/clean-title-transitions-pro-112869?aid=1011l8NVc)  - Clean Title Transitions is an animation package that gives you beautiful, smooth, and modern motion graphic animations. All made with default Unity components.
[_Michsky_](https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/gui/clean-title-transitions-pro-112869?aid=1011l8NVc) **Affiliate**

[**Change Camera Aim On Start**](https://openupm.com/packages/io.megamiley.change-camera-aim-on-start/)  - Ever wanted to start your game from the scene views position instead of the camera position? Look no further!
[_Miley Hollenberg_](https://openupm.com/packages/io.megamiley.change-camera-aim-on-start/) *Open Source*

[**Rigidbody Center Of Mass Editor**](https://openupm.com/packages/io.megamiley.rigidbody-center-of-mass-editor/)  - Allows you to change the center of mass of Rigidbodies within the Unity editor
[_Miley Hollenberg_](https://openupm.com/packages/io.megamiley.rigidbody-center-of-mass-editor/) *Open Source*

[**QuickEvent**](https://bitbucket.org/ArielSchoch/quickevent/src/master/)  - Based on the UnityEvent class, QuickEvents allow you to assign persistent event handlers through the inspector, passing either static or dynamic values to fields, properties and methods. Features include: Reorderable list of event handlers. Support for targeting a component of which there are multiple instances on a single game object. Pass multiple arguments using the AdvancedEvent class. Control over which types of members are listed using the EventFilter attribute.
[_Ariel Schoch_](https://bitbucket.org/ArielSchoch/quickevent/src/master/) *Open Source*

## Spotlight

[![Dino Dungeon Demo](https://gamedevdigest.com/assets/images/08118dac67368bd2b5b60093d808bd5b.png)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjgSj8ZHwWI)
[**Dino Dungeon Demo**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjgSj8ZHwWI)  - You and your Dino buddies must work together if you are to find your way home! Switch between Dinos in this 2D physics puzzle platformer. Run, Jump and Kick your way through the dungeons, stepping on each other to freedom! 

Play it at [https://neenaw.itch.io/dino-dungeon](https://neenaw.itch.io/dino-dungeon)
[_neenaw_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjgSj8ZHwWI)



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