Book Image

Getting Started with Unity 2018 - Third Edition

By : Dr. Edward Lavieri
Book Image

Getting Started with Unity 2018 - Third Edition

By: Dr. Edward Lavieri

Overview of this book

The Unity game engine has revolutionized the gaming industry with its complete set of intuitive tools and rapid workflows, which can be used to create interactive 3D content. With Unity, you can scaffold your way from the basics and make make stunning interactive games. This book will guide you through the entire process of creating a 3D game, from downloading the Unity game engine to publishing your game. It not only gives you a strong foundation, but puts you on the path to game development. Beginning with an overview of the Unity engine and its interface, you will walk through the process of creating a game environment and learn how to use built-in assets, as well as assets created with third-party 3D modeling tools such as Blender. Moving on, you will create custom scripts to control non-player character behaviors and gameplay. You will master exciting concepts such as Heads-Up-Displays, mini-maps, game navigation, sound effects, and lighting effects. Next, you’ll learn how to create your first VR experience, right from setting up the project to image effects. You'll be familiarized with all the tools that Unity has to offer to create your own immersive VR experiences. Each section is a stepping stone toward the completion of the final game. By the end of the book, you'll have learned advanced topics such as cross-platform considerations which enable your games to run on multiple platforms.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)
Title Page
Dedication
Packt Upsell
Contributors
Preface
Index

Understanding the non-player characters


Non-player characters, commonly referred to as NPCs, are simply game characters that are not controlled by a human player. These characters are controlled through scripts, and their behaviors are usually responsive to in-game conditions.

Our game's non-player characters are the Cucumber Beetles. These beetles, as depicted in the following screenshot, have six legs that they can walk on; under special circumstances, they can also walk on their hind legs:

Cucumber Beetles are real insects, and are a threat to cucumbers. They cannot really walk on their hind legs, but they can in our game. 

In the next section, you will import a Cucumber Beetle asset package prepared specifically for this game. There will only be one beetle in that asset package. We will, through scripting, make multiple copies of the beetle. 

Before you move on to the next section, you should open your Unity game project. Alternatively, you can download theStarting-Chapter-08 Unity project...