Unity 4.3 ushers in 2D game dev tools

Unity has added new 2D development tools to its game engine as part of a new wave of features and enchancements in its latest 4.3 update.

The 2D tools are designed to help streamline the 2D development workflow, and helps developers manipulate and optimise 2D assets through the addition of a new Sprite Texture import mode, automated atlasing, optimised 2D rendering and drag-and-drop functionality.

Box2D physics have also been integrated into the Unity engine to assist with performance, stability and smaller game builds.

For more information on Unity’s new 2D development tools, you can read our recent article on the matter here.

Other features in Unity 4.3 include Umbra 3 occlusion culling tools, which have been rewritten for the latest update. The tool has been designed to help bake faster and generate more accurate and better performing results.

Character animation tool Mecanim is now fully integrated with the Animation Window and its new dopesheet functionality, with added support for animation 2D sprites and new camera settings.

Improvements have also been made to dynamic Navmesh creation, the MonoDevelop editor as well as multiple shader enhancements and plastic SCM integration.

Visit the official website for more information.