Open Grant Proposal: Unity Game Engine Support Plugin
Name of Project:
Proposal Category:integration-adoption
Proposer:ericvanderwal
(Optional) Technical Sponsor:DeveloperAlly
Do you agree to open source all work you do on behalf of this RFP and dual-license under MIT, APACHE2, or GPL licenses?: Yes
Project Description
Unity Game Engine is the world's most popular game engine and has a market share of over 50% as of 2020. Unity Game Engine publishes games to Steam, iOS, PCs, Macs, Android, WebGL, and consoles.
We will bring a simple-to-use plugin (asset) to the Unity Asset Store for free (as well as release the entire code base under a dual MIT and APACHE2 License) that brings access to IPFS technology on any gaming platform.
In fact, the first phase of the project has already been completed and showcased in both talks (and applications) at Blockjam Hackathon 2022, Moralis x Filecoin Hackathon, and India's first Blockchain Gaming Conference. More educational pieces are planned for 2023 and beyond.
Integrations will include support via code in C#, custom Unity Engine Editors, and Unity Game Engine's most popular visual scripting solution (Playmaker).
Value
Access to filecoin/IPFS through the world's most popular game engine and the largest cohort of game developers ever.
Support for PC, iOS, Android, WebGL, and all major consoles through a single code base
Code released entirely open source, free to use, mix and modify
Ease of use from both native coding in C# but also visual scripting solutions for artists and creatives
Challenges:
Maintaining backward compatibility for older versions of the Unity Game Engine
Support for both multi-threaded and non-multithreaded devices in a single SDK
Deliverables
Both editor and runtime integration, where appropriate
Support for PC, iOS, Android, WebGL, and all major consoles
Helper and sample functions to ease the development process, such as taking screenshots and uploading IPFS pinning services
Built-in easy low/ no code editor windows
Support for NFT.Storage and Web3.Storage data pinning and retrieval
Gateway support for private and public gateways such as Cloudflare, Pinata, Infura, Web3.Storage, NFT.Storage. This includes read and write, authentication, various resolution styles, and real-time switching to create a more secure solution.
Learning materials, clear documentation for ease of use and sample projects will be prioritized.
Development Roadmap
Development for the project will take an agile approach which always leave it in a working state. Phase 1 (MVP) stage has been launched and is being used in production projects. Phases 2 - 4 will continue similarly. 16 weeks total is allocated to development. With additional time for post-launch support and bug and Unity Engine Asset Store Maintence
Phase 1 - MVP
Project available on GitHub
MVP Project release
nft.storage integration
threaded and multi-threaded support platform support
PC, iOS, Android, WebGL, major consoles (Playstation, Nintendo, Xbox)
Simple sample projects for screen captures and data uploading
Helper functions to deal with image capture and management within Unity
Time: 4 weeks
Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 2 - Gateway Phase
Improvement of gateways support
Support for authenticated (private) gateways
Gateway support for public gateways
Editor management of gateways with no code solutions
Helper function to support JSON and bitarray data
Helper functions to upload both raw data and NFT metadata conforming to commonly used standards
The first version of the documentation to ease the onboarding process
Time: 4 weeks
Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 3 - Pinning Phase
Support for alternative pinning services
Web.Storage
Pinata
NFT.Storage
Visual scripting integrations
Playmaker (Unity's most popular visual scripting solution)
Time: 4 weeks
Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 4 - Final Release
Submit to Unity Asset Store (always available for free)
Direct editor support through custom unity editors
Completion of documentation
Video demonstrations to support other learning styles
Time: 4 weeks
Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 5 - Post Launch Support
Bug removal and community support as necessary via the Unity Forums and discord as required
Time: Ongoing
Cost: 10,000 USD
Total Budget Requested
$90,000 USD over 16 weeks for development costs, documentation, and recorded video series.
Maintenance and Upgrade Plans
Based on the market trends and requirements, we will regularly update the platform along the maintenance for a minimum period of 4 years. This includes each major LTS release of the Unity Game Engine
Team
Team Members
Lead Developer - Eric Vander Wal
Eric has over 20 years of combined web & game development, management, and software engineering experience with a focus on easy-to-use technology and content management systems. This led to his focus on the C# Microsoft .Net ecosystem, Rust, Javascript, and Blockchain!
He is the former Director of Developer Relations of the Nervos Blockchain and current co-founder of Godwoken Game+ Blockchain.
No website currently. Documentation specific for this project will be launched on Gitbook.
Relevant Experience
Eric Vander Wal is a former professional game developer who worked on integrations and advocacy for Unity Game Engines' most popular third-party plugin, Playmaker. He has over 20 years of development experience, including a lead technical position in the blockchain space. He has produced more than a dozen integrations for the Unity Game Engine to date.
I heard about the open grants program while teaching online classes on how to use IPFS within the Unity Game Engine at several events. I can be reached at tcmeric@gmail.com or on discord tcmeric#7727
Hi @ericvanderwal, thank you for your proposal and for your patience with our review. Unfortunately, we will not be moving forward with a grant at this time. Wishing you all the best as you continue to build!
Open Grant Proposal:
Unity Game Engine Support Plugin
Name of Project:
Proposal Category:
integration-adoption
Proposer:
ericvanderwal
(Optional) Technical Sponsor:
DeveloperAlly
Do you agree to open source all work you do on behalf of this RFP and dual-license under MIT, APACHE2, or GPL licenses?: Yes
Project Description
Unity Game Engine is the world's most popular game engine and has a market share of over 50% as of 2020. Unity Game Engine publishes games to Steam, iOS, PCs, Macs, Android, WebGL, and consoles.
We will bring a simple-to-use plugin (asset) to the Unity Asset Store for free (as well as release the entire code base under a dual MIT and APACHE2 License) that brings access to IPFS technology on any gaming platform.
In fact, the first phase of the project has already been completed and showcased in both talks (and applications) at Blockjam Hackathon 2022, Moralis x Filecoin Hackathon, and India's first Blockchain Gaming Conference. More educational pieces are planned for 2023 and beyond.
https://globalblockjam.com/talks.html https://moralis.io/filecoin-hackathon/ https://events.godwoken.com/
Integrations will include support via code in C#, custom Unity Engine Editors, and Unity Game Engine's most popular visual scripting solution (Playmaker).
Value
Challenges:
Deliverables
Development Roadmap
Development for the project will take an agile approach which always leave it in a working state. Phase 1 (MVP) stage has been launched and is being used in production projects. Phases 2 - 4 will continue similarly. 16 weeks total is allocated to development. With additional time for post-launch support and bug and Unity Engine Asset Store Maintence
Phase 1 - MVP
Time: 4 weeks Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 2 - Gateway Phase
Time: 4 weeks Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 3 - Pinning Phase
Time: 4 weeks Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 4 - Final Release
Time: 4 weeks Cost: 20,000 USD
Phase 5 - Post Launch Support
Time: Ongoing Cost: 10,000 USD
Total Budget Requested
$90,000 USD over 16 weeks for development costs, documentation, and recorded video series.
Maintenance and Upgrade Plans
Based on the market trends and requirements, we will regularly update the platform along the maintenance for a minimum period of 4 years. This includes each major LTS release of the Unity Game Engine
Team
Team Members
Lead Developer - Eric Vander Wal
Eric has over 20 years of combined web & game development, management, and software engineering experience with a focus on easy-to-use technology and content management systems. This led to his focus on the C# Microsoft .Net ecosystem, Rust, Javascript, and Blockchain!
He is the former Director of Developer Relations of the Nervos Blockchain and current co-founder of Godwoken Game+ Blockchain.
Team Member LinkedIn Profiles
Eric Vander Wal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-vander-wal/
Team Website
No website currently. Documentation specific for this project will be launched on Gitbook.
Relevant Experience
Eric Vander Wal is a former professional game developer who worked on integrations and advocacy for Unity Game Engines' most popular third-party plugin, Playmaker. He has over 20 years of development experience, including a lead technical position in the blockchain space. He has produced more than a dozen integrations for the Unity Game Engine to date.
Team code repositories
Current code repository but will be moved to a more IPFS agnostic one in phase 2: https://github.com/ericvanderwal/NFTStorageUnitySDK
Additional Information
I heard about the open grants program while teaching online classes on how to use IPFS within the Unity Game Engine at several events. I can be reached at tcmeric@gmail.com or on discord tcmeric#7727