Blips Blog

Flax Engine updated to version 1.6

Flax Engine is touted as the game engine made by game developers, for game developers. It was first released in 2020 and has a focus on productivity with features designed to expedite and streamline the development process, making it more efficient and agile. It was created to cater to all developers, from solo to bigger teams. Some standout features include multiple scripting options such as C#, C++ and visual scripting, open world tools including terrain, foliage and fog systems and 64-bit precision for worlds coordinates.

Published: 17. Jul. 2023

News

Godot 4.1 has been released

Around four months ago, the Godot game engine underwent a major overhaul with the release of version 4. Now, the first significant new version is out: Godot 4.1. This new update includes new features along with over 900 bug fixes reported from users using Godot 4.

Published: 10. Jul. 2023

General

The 11 most iconic video game theme songs ever

Throughout video game history there's no shortage of amazing video game scores and themes. However, there are theme songs that are so iconic that transcend gaming culture and can be easily recognized even by those who never played the games before. With this article my purpose isn't to present the best video game theme songs or the best video game soundtracks but to highlight the theme songs that can be considered the most iconic. That is, the ones that gamers and non-gamers alike can most easily recognize.

Published: 3. Jul. 2023

News

The Defold game engine adds support for PlayStation 4

Defold is a free, source available game engine for 2D & 3D game development and is marketed as the ultimate game engine for the web and mobile. The Defold foundation recently announced that the engine now officially supports development for the PlayStation 4. The publishing option is available for approved PlayStation developers. Access to the necessary tools and documentation is provided for free. If required, the full source code is provided through a paid membership tier. This is not necessary in order to release PlayStation games with Defold, though.

Published: 26. Jun. 2023

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Epic Games MetaHuman Animator now available

MetaHuman Animator is a brand-new feature set available as part of the MetaHuman Plugin for the Unreal Engine. First shown at the GDC 2023, it enables digital creators and animators to capture an actor's performance and apply it as a high-fidelity facial animation on any digital character. The process takes only a few minutes, and the capture can be done using an iPhone (iPhone 12 to 14) or a stereo camera couple. Once the data is captured, it can be effortlessly applied to any MetaHuman* character, without the need for manual intervention.

Published: 19. Jun. 2023

General

Adaptive music software: A roundup of the best options for video games

When it comes to crafting the most immersive game experiences, music plays a role of vital importance. Successful games often employ adaptive music systems of varying levels of complexity. These systems help enhance the player's immersion by modifying compositions and audio parameters in real-time during gameplay. This enables the background music to emotionally or aesthetically highlight whatever's happening in the game world at any given time.

Published: 12. Jun. 2023

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Unity 2022 LTS has been released

Unity's latest LTS (Long-term support) version as been released. LTS versions are focused on stability and bug fixes, making them suitable for projects that require a stable development environment. LTS releases are supported for at least two years through biweekly updates. According to Unity Technologies, you can rely on Unity 2022 LTS to create sophisticated DOTS-powered games, multiplayer experiences, immersive HD environments, and visuals that perform great on any platform you target.

Published: 5. Jun. 2023

General

Adaptive music in video games: What it is and how it works

The term adaptive music is used to refer to music that is designed to adapt/change based on predefined rules. It is often used in video games, virtual reality (VR) and other interactive experiences. In the context of video games, it means that the music changes/mutates based on the player's actions or game events.

Published: 29. May. 2023

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Cascadeur version 2023.1 has been released

The 3D character animation software Cascadeur has been updated. According to Nekki, the company behind the product, this is a long in the works update that brings many new features. One of the most significant new features is the Finger AutoPosing that is now available in the Pro version of Cascadeur.

Published: 22. May. 2023

News

Cyclops: A new level builder for Godot

Cyclops is a new free and open-source level builder plugin for the Godot game engine. This plugin makes the process of building environments easy by allowing you to interactively create blocks in the editor's viewport.

Published: 15. May. 2023

News

Steam introduces new trailer rules for game developers

Valve has recently changed the way visual content is presented to players on Steam's game pages. With this update there are now trailer limitations and an option for assigning specific trailer categories. There is also a new algorithm that arranges the sequence of trailers and screenshots.

Published: 8. May. 2023

General

The history of video game music

The evolution of music in video games throughout history is truly captivating as it is closely linked to the evolution of technology and the novelty of the medium. It's origins can be traced back to the early days of arcade gaming in the 70s. At that time, video games for the most part only had sound effects. However, it didn’t take long for the first musical experiments to take place and for video game developers to realize the many benefits music could bring to their creations.

Published: 1. May. 2023