Here's a list of ten 2D Tools to make your workflow easier in Unity
The starting point of the Game Development, 2D, has undergone tremendous amelioration over decades. Since the 1970’s we have been experiencing the power of 2D Games. Today nearly 75% of Top Grossing games are 2D including the Mario, Tetris and many more. Game Engines are constantly evolving to support high-quality 2D features to make the finest games ever, and so does Unity. Currently, in the New Update, Unity has improved and powered the 2D features to all new different level. With robust features like 2D Lights, 2D ShaderGraph and 2D SpriteShape, Unity has got all the essential features to start making Beautiful 2D Games.
Here is the list of some 2D tools to make your workflow easier-
2D Lights
One of the most awaited features is finally live to experience. 2D Lights gives you the complete controls to make your levels more dynamic and lively. Enhance your Environment with different types of lights to improve the feel of your game.
2D Animation
With the 2D Animation, you get the power of animating the 2D Sprites directly in the Editor. You can Rig Sprites, Set up the Bones as well as Weights to smooth up the animations and get a real feel of it. You can find the 2D Animation in the Package Manager, Also you can Import your Artwork through the PSD Importer to directly get all the Layers of your Artwork in the Editor.
Sprite Shape
Sprite Shape helps you in creating rich free-form and organic 2d environments to suit all your needs. It gives you the most dynamic controls in the editor itself to build the levels using the path based splines. It also helps you get the collider in the same shape with just one click.
Tilemap
The most essential tool in the 2D Game Development World, Tilemap helps in giving you the ability to create the most efficient tile-based levels set up in the 2D Grid-based worlds. It gives you the independence to set up your own brush, palettes of tiles by reusing the sprites and saving further sprite resources.
2D ShaderGraph
Now create your own visual effects by connecting nodes in a network graph and implement it directly in your game. Easily build your own shaders in the shader graph without any code. With the two MasterNodes to create shaders for the use in 2D material, Lit and Unlit Sprite, it gives you more flexibility in getting enhanced visual effects.
Cinemachine for 2D
Stuck while scripting the Camera Movement Script? Now get the Professional Camera set up for 2D games with a lot of features to fulfill all your needs. With the ability to track the character, Cinemachine is a dynamic and procedural camera to enhance the Game Development process. Now without wasting any time on coding, You can create advanced camera controls using the Cinemachine which also includes Group Tracking and Camera transitions.
9-Slice Sprite
It allows you to repeat the specified areas of an image preserving the sprite resources and reusing it to build platforms quickly. So you don’t need to create multiple assets and can opt for 9-Slice Sprite which could potentially reduce your texture memory.
Sprite Mask
A game-changing feature for every Graphics Designer to instantly change the feel of the game and the visuals of the game. You can set the Mask Interaction to tweak between the Object visibility in the World Space. You can make certain parts of an object to either hide or reveal according to your needs. However, you can also use it in the Particle System.
Outline Editor
The Outline Editor helps you to draw the desired outline of your sprite in the Sprite Editor. You can get a detailed mesh of your sprite by drawing a precise outline of the generated sprite.
Sorting Group Component
Now you can add Several Sprites in a Single Sorting Layer using Multiple Order in Layer. It renders the set of objects even if they are in the same sorting layer. It also makes sure to sort all the children well to tackle the complex scenes.
So these are some of the enhanced 2D tools available in the Unity Editor to boost up your Game Development Process. You can always find in-depth details in the Unity Official Page, However, there are many more features yet to come. Stay tuned for more details!
With Love From VOiD1 Gaming
**VOiD1 Gaming is not sponsored by any of the above Companies. This list is in no particular order and preference of the software is solely dependent on the user interest. All trademarks appearing in this list are registered trademarks of the respective companies. Image courtesy - Unity Technologies**