Corona vs Unity?

Games
#81

Hi Joshua,

Just a quick question: which part of Unity allows for free IAP? I only see some 3rd-party add-ons in the Unity Asset Store, with just one solidly-rated for iOS, and one for Android which reports compatibility with Unity 3.x (but perhaps not 4.x). Perhaps I’m mistaken on this… please correct me if so.

In terms of what Corona is doing, going forward: in addition to the plugin system announced today (http://www.coronalabs.com/blog/2013/05/21/corona-weekly-update-new-plugin-partners-core-gets-lighter/), probably the most exciting thing is Graphics 2.0, which will bring Corona into the Open GL 2.0 ES world. This will offer 2.5D effects and act as a “bridge” between true 3D and traditional 2D. It will offer some great “3D-like” abilities without the sheer complexity of 3D modeling… and following in line with one of the core beliefs of Corona SDK since the very beginning, we’ll make these things as easy to implement as possible. :slight_smile:

Best regards,

Brent

#82

If you really wanted Corona Starter to match up with Unity Free you would make the 2.5D effects available to Corona Starter HINT HINT COUGH COUGH. 

#83

This will be interesting. When unity comes out with their 2d solution I think corona might regret the new pricing.

#84

[quote name=“Brent Sorrentino” post=“182758” timestamp=“1369172471”]Hi Joshua,   Just a quick question: which part of Unity allows for free IAP? I only see some 3rd-party add-ons in the Unity Asset Store, with just one solidly-rated for iOS, and one for Android which reports compatibility with Unity 3.x (but perhaps not 4.x). Perhaps I’m mistaken on this… please correct me if so.  [/quote] There are 3rd party IAP packages in unity that make it easier for you as far as doing some of the coding for you, but there is nothing to prevent you from doing the IAP yourself.

#85

Hey guys - I’ll just chime in quickly again on this.

I think it comes down to this: if you don’t think you will develop more quickly with Corona, then you absolutely should consider Unity. But if we (Corona Labs) do our job, then you will  develop more quickly in Corona (assuming you are doing 2D  - we clearly are not targeting 3D). And we believe this is very true today and will be even more so in the future.

Also, if it is imperative for you to be on other platforms today besides iOS and Android (where we believe 99% of the action is), then you should also consider other platforms. For now, we are keeping our focus on iOS and Android and we will cover other platforms when the investment makes sense. The reality is that no company can cover all computing platforms at a very high quality level, and we are choosing to focus our resources.

#86

I think the concern some of us might share is with a subscription based licensing, time (and money) is against us.

#87

Falcon777 - on the topic of subscription vs a one-time fee, just keep in mind that if you buy Unity today, it is likely you will want to upgrade to the next version (at another 50% of the original cost) in 18-24 months (perhaps less if we are closer to the new release). You may think you won’t upgrade, but mobile is moving so quickly, it is very likely you will need to upgrade.

So if you compare our subscriptions (Pro or Enterprise, which are significantly cheaper) to Unity Pro, the cost of Corona is definitely lower.

Again, Unity is a great tool and is not a bad choice. I just want to make sure people understand the differences.

#88

If development time is a concern, I can’t see how anyone would choose Unity over Corona for 2D game dev. I’ve played around with Unity multiple times over the years and in the amount of time it will take you to get comfortable with just the Unity interface, you can have a simple game DONE with Corona SDK. (Personal opinion, not scientific fact.)

If you have any kind of programming experience, even just Javascript or some PHP, you can learn enough Corona/Lua in about an hour to create a simple game. I’ve heard that from *dozens* of people who have taken my 1-hour crash course. (Which is now available on this site in the Resources area.)

 Jay

#89

By the way, the posts as “davidstarter” is from me (David Rangel, Corona staff). I am logged in as a “starter” user just for separate testing purposes. Sorry about that.

#90

Honestly, is it anyones goal to make a “simple” game in 1 hour? Such a simple game won’t even be approved on the iOS app store, nor make any money. Also if you know Javascript you can just start coding in unity right away. 

I think the vast majority of us are concerned with making medium, to high end games.  Is there a development time boost to games that aren’t endless runners, or angry birds alternatives? 

#91

Yeah this is interesting news and Unity is something i might play around with later. For me personally, because my focus is on 2D games and apps, Corona is my choice of framework but should i ever try a 3D game i think i will use Unity.

Cheers

#92

I was just reading the responses to the unity announcement on unity’s site and here was one of the responses:

Thank you so much Unity! I was recently looking to choose between Unity and Corona for my game development needs but was going to go with Corona yesterday because it was a few hundred cheaper.

Now I’m switching focus all to Unity and will get started with it ASAP! Thanks for making this happen!

#93

Bummer :slight_smile: Looks like “JD” will spend more time developing his apps :wink:

#94

Don’t get me wrong, I think corona is a great 2d mobile product and right now it its much better at 2d than unity. I’m just curious to see if unity will soon put in a competitive 2d system, and if they do, what will it mean for corona?

#95

Hi Paul,

I view it as “wait and see” at this point… i.e., when they release this 2D framework, how it works, and how it will be priced (meaning, for clarification, Unity iOS “free” does not offer all of the features as Unity iOS Pro, and I assume their 2D platform would follow suit, similar to free Corona Starter vs. Corona Pro).

If they do this, I imagine some people will use it, and some will switch from Corona to that… it’s an inevitable part of this business and always has been. However, I don’t believe that most developers who have used Corona for some time, learned it, improved their skills, and increased their time-to-production would switch the Unity 2D simply because it has the “Unity” stamp on it. A crucial point for the “time=money” developer is that doing so would require them to potentially learn an entirely new language, adapt to a possibly more-complex working environment, learn entirely new APIs and methods, etc… so there would need to be a compelling reason to switch. At this point, nobody really knows what that might be and only time will tell.

Brent

#96

I wrote that based on the assumption that at least some of the previous posters were beginners. “Time to competence” is a big thing if you’re actually going to learn a framework/platform well enough to finish a game. It’s hard enough to get a game 100% done without putting artificial roadblocks in your way. To me, Unity (for 2D games) is a huge roadblock. 

 Jay

#97

Personally I do not think Corona has to support 3D, Not all GREAT games are 3D or 3Dish…

But what Corona ABSOLUTELY needs to do is start supporting Windows 8 and Windows 8 Phone… Like YESTERDAY…

More other platforms are using Javascript html 5 like createJS along with Box2dWeb, they are gaining ground and fast!!!

I have been to several meetups and people are shifting to those platforms because they can release on all OS’s / Devices.

Yeah I know they can’t do what Corona can do, but not everything is always needed to have something really payoff.

Larry

#98

That’s why I am switching to Lanica. They are javascript and knowing Carlos from back when Corona was great, I bet you they will have a few surprises up their sleeve when they release. I look at tweets and I know some people on the beta and are super happy with it and they were very surprised by something yesterday with the product. I’m not on it yet but I’ve applied and will be happy to share my thoughts when approved with anyone here who is interested, so long as it doesn’t violate beta rules.

#99

Aren’t they latching on to another SDK called Titanium?

I am part of a HTML 5 Gaming group and we are reviewing HTML 5 for cross platform apps / games.

But If Corona Supported Windows 8 and Windows 8 Phone well then HTML 5 Javascript would take a hit in users because what corona can already do now and compiled to the native code, would blow the HTML 5 stuff away as far as speed goes.

Dont get me wrong there are some AWESOME lib’s out there for JavaScript and HTML 5 now. I have been looking at several, I just think a compiled app that can use the devices GPU ( if it has one ) will have happier users.

My .02 :smiley:

Larry

#100

There is a big difference, and I don’t think it was “your lead”. 

They didn’t make it free and double the price for paying customers.  They just made it free.  That’s a big difference, because your best customers (the ones that pay) got screwed in this deal.