HORIZON[ON] - Bridge the gap between the sky and your scenery.

I just answered a mail to a user regarding this:
I think it is because of unitys changes in the cg include files. I believe it is not a problem of horizon itself but of the shaderforge tree and building shaders that i made for horizon. These shaders were made with a shaderforge version prior to unity5.3 and all it takes is to recompile them with the latest shaderforge version. I uploaded the fix to the assetstore some time ago but it is still pending. For now try to import Horizon but make sure to exclude the tree and building shaders. Then import the updated shaders, here is a temp download link until unity changes the assetstore version: https://www.dropbox.com/s/c6urqgha23cm4bu/Horizon[ON]_BuildingAndTreeShaderUpdate.unitypackage?dl=0

I hope that will do the trick

Apart from that, the upcoming update changes the materials on the transition prefabs(in the current version the transition sky prefab has the transition terrain material which is wrong), You should check that the materials are assigned correctly. Another fix, the transition terrain prefab also has the compensate z-fighting script attatched but it is deactivated by default (you have to collapse it in the inspector to reveal the checkbox and enable it).

All that is fixed in the hopefully soon available update on the store. Let me know if you still have troubles.

 

Yes thanks that was me - i've tried this and no joy, it just won't import if player is on iOS. it stops on Importing small assets. it is possible to half import and when unity crashes force quit and restart finishes importing but it just creates blank prefabs that crash when you try to use them.

I almost had it working but when compiled on the device the frame rate is super low, from 60fps to 10-19 fps and then i started getting this error - not even sure what it means never seen it before

The file 'MemoryStream' is corrupted! Remove it and launch unity again!
[Position out of bounds!]

The error remains until you delete the entire horizon folder - i'm stumped i will wait for the updated version. Thanks for the support

 

So you excluded the building and tree shaders from import and it still crashes? If that is the case the update wont help as it must be related to something else then. I will try to recreate the issue on my side tomorrow, hopefully i am even able to switch to ios platform on a pc... got no iOS device to test on either, only tested on android and let a friend confirm that it builds on iOS. I hope i can track down this issue soon as it sounds concerning. Haven't seen this error before either.

I have the suspicion that it might be a unity bug in asset/shader importer.

 

yeah definitely unity bug of some kind - on my system it is affecting other assets, particularly shaders not working and crashing for no apparent reason.

I have tried starting a new project importing horizon and building and this works as expected but when you try to switch platform if fails or it you start a new project import after switching build to iOS it also fails - I haven't tried it with android because I'm iOS only but it has to be something to do with unity iOS 5.3.1

 

Was it ever established whether Horizon[ON] would work with Curved World 2 to get a curved horizon?

 

To be honest, i have no clue... I don't know of anybody who tried it.
I guess it would need some kind of injection of the curved world shaders into the vertex program of the horizon shaders and well tesselated meshes. So i would say no, at least not without some research. How difficult it would be i cant tell.

 

I just purchased this asset. I have the latest Unity 5.3.1f.1. I imported the asset and launched: ExampleScene(Gamma) and it looks like there is an issue with the Horizon[ON] tree cut out shader.

I just get the fuchsia/pink color, usually due to missing textures, for all tree group objects under HorizonDecorationObjects. I checked and all textures appear to be found in Materials >> Textures & Maps and are assigned in the shader for each game object.

Is this a shader compatibility issue based on some project setting I could look at? Under Project >> Settings >> Player, it has Color Space = Gamma. I haven't reviewed the shader code yet.

Also, it would be huge if you could do at least a getting started video. Yes, I can read the manual but that just touches the tip of the iceberg. I haven't cast my vote yet on Unity for this asset. I want to give it 5 stars, please help me get there. Thanks.

 

Here is a temp download link to the updated shaders for 5.3:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/c6urqgha23cm4bu/Horizon[ON]_BuildingAndTreeShaderUpdate.unitypackage?dl=0

Apart from the tree and building shaders the upcoming update changes the materials on the transition prefabs (in the current version the transition sky prefab has the transition terrain material which is wrong), You should check that the materials are assigned correctly. Another fix, the transition terrain prefab also has the compensate z-fighting script attached but it is deactivated by default (you have to collapse it in the inspector to reveal the checkbox and enable it).

i hope unity puts the update live soon, i have already the next one in line and i can't submit because it would drop the update in queue.

I will make a video of the getting started guide but it will cover the same as the written version...
Not sure what else to put in there that is horizon specific...

Cheers,
Peter

 

Thanks for the shader fixes Peter. That was the number one issue I had. Are you sure that was the complete fix though? I imported the shaders and the pink is gone but the terrain sits like a square patch and is not at all blended as I would have expected. (Example, the corner protrudes out over the lake...its all square and obvious.) Also, the hills and cliffs all move around in play mode.

My other concerns had more to do with a lack of updated documentation and no video tutorials. Reading through the document helps get you started, if your familiar enough with Unity, but there are some discrepancies.

Also, the getting started project ends up looking nice because I'm using your assets and terrain. How would I go about creating a color map that works with my terrain? Is there a method for creating those layer diffuse (large scale image) maps so they end up blending nicely with my custom terrain?

If you are going to do a video tutorial (highly anticipated), can you demonstrate how you did this in WorldMachine (if that's the tool you used) or provide a link to something online and free to use perhaps? The document provides little more help for the features and how to use, than an in app tool tip. The screen shots are out dated (example the features section).
It would be nice to see you go into an example of what "Enable Water, Snow, Fog" checkbox does and how to do it.

Anyway, I like the tools simplicity, flexibility and effect a great deal. I was able to go through the document "Getting Started". Now I just wish I understood it all better so I can do my own stuff without having to spend days or weeks messing around hoping I'm doing it right (which I'll do anyway...just wish there was better information available).

I'll go ahead and change my comments in the store and give 4 stars because I like what you did, I appreciate your quick response and the shader fix! I'll give you 5 stars and a rave review once you get that video done brother (or updated document with greater detailed examples) ;-) Thanks again Peter!

 

Quick Question:

Can anyone tell me if point lights affect the terrain mesh in the example scene? 5.3.1 with deferred/linear? Thanks

 

Indeed i missed to update the features section screenshot(a enum popup is shown that has been removed in the current version), i will fix it. If you encounter anything else in the documentation that is out of date i will gladly fix it

The terrain mesh is using a Horizon[ON] material that i adjusted to look like a terrain, so, no only one directional light is supported. You should use a terrain shader for you terrain. I had the choice of using default unity terrain(which does not look as good as i want) or to install a free 3rd party terrain shader(e.g forst's aka lars bertram) but that would lead to a whole set of other problems like update issues or overwriting stuff you might already have in your project.

 

ok - thanks

 

For anybody who does not have it already RTP is on 24h deal! Also there is a new update!
https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/5664

My biggest recommendation! It is definitely the most powerful terrain shader out there!

 

The maker of Curved World 2 has tried combining it with Horizon[ON] and says it works and is easy to do.

Here's the post on the Curved World 2 thread.

 

Thanks for pointing me to it

 

No problem. I think many of your users would like to have horizon curvature if it was easy to do it.

 

You mean to mimik the curvature of the earth?

 

Yes. Especially as one ascends / descends, as might happen in a spaceship.

I gather the horizon appears flat at the common altitudes humans experience. But I'm thinking of possibly making a feature by which the camera moves out toward a more orbital position, and I'm trying to figure out if I can handle the transition.

 

This might work, you could even try to increase/decrease the mask tiling so you dont need to make a planet true to scale, which would be impossible anyway (at least without some fancy tricks).
Keeping the camera at a certain height and change the tiling while animating the curvature to fake a decent/ascend...
Atmosphere would require some other shader tricks but that would be doable too with a nice shader.
I wonder if the curved world shader actually warps the normals too so that the lighting is correct.

You got me intrigued .

 

@Becomming - thanks for the reply I seemed to adjust tint values just nice to match my terrain. While it's still on super-alpha stage, it'll do for now just fine.

One really quick question - what can be causing positioning issues? I understand it will turn out to be the lamest question ever, but my terrain is located at 0-0-0 position. Whenever I add Horizon elements (master, transitions, displacements etc) - they are positioned at same 0-0-0 coordinates but appear to be somewhere away. If my terrain resolution is 5000x5000, I then have to manually move horizon master to 2500x2500 and then tediously move it pixel-by-pixel along the Y axis.

 

So your horizon elements are wrongly offsetted on the y axis while their transforms are (0,0,0)? That is surprising to me.
Maybe it has something to do with your heightmap? Go to the displacement settings in the horizon master and bright the height value down to zero and see if it helps, although it should not be the case on the transitions(they dont use displacement), so that is what puzzles me. Maybe your terrain has a heightmap that is not normalized and therefor the minimum height is not 0...

Another thing you might check is to center your terrain(i am not sure if it is still the case but unity terrains used to have the pivot on one of their corners). so if your terrain is 5000 meters big you would need to set the transform to (-2500,0,-2500).

Can you post a screenshot of your setup?

 

Hi I recently purchased horizon for my on going project and its working great so far despite the guess along style setup I've done.

Anyway, in my project I load in terrains dynamically and while I assume I can scale horizon objects at runtime just the same as other objects; am I (via scripts) able to change some settings such as turning on and off snow etc?

Thanks
Andy

 

Sure Take a look at the example scene... its all done there! When you press play in the example scene there are buttons at the bottom that dynamically change all sorts of parameters of the horizon.

This is achieved with the "HorizonControllerExample.cs" script. I have added a lot of comments to the code in there to get you up and running quickly. This example is actually more complex than 99% of real production scenarios would require. Many functions in the script are there to show a bit of what is possible with runtime changes. I know of one user that has used it to do a farcry like drug scene where the horizon is moving, scaling, shifting colors and such...
(note: drugs are bad )

For simply changing the snow amount and making water surfaces freeze you dont need much. basically it is just to change material parameters(in a loop for all materials that are used by your horizon):

Code (CSharp):

1. public Material[] horizonMaterials;
2. float snowAmount, waterWaves;
3.  
4. void Update() {
5.       if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.Alpha3)) Snow(-1);
6.       if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.Alpha4)) Snow(+1);
7. } //==================================
8.  
9. // Function to change the snow amount.
10. void Snow(float direction){
11.     snowAmount += Time.deltaTime * 0.2f * direction;
12.     snowAmount = Mathf.Clamp01(snowAmount);
13.  
14.     foreach (Material m in horizonMaterials) {
15.         if (m.HasProperty("_SnowAmount")) { m.SetFloat("_SnowAmount", snowAmount); }
16.         if (m.HasProperty("_WaterWaves")) { m.SetFloat("_WaterWaves", 0.25f-(snowAmount*0.25f)); }
17.      }
18. }//=================================================
19.  

On page 18 of the manual you have a list of all material properties, nicely sorted by category.

 

Thats great, thank you. Ill have a good look through the example scene.

In the mean time, could I be cheeky and ask if you could post a quick snippet on how I can change the Displacement height setting from script.

Edit 1: Also the only example scene I can find that comes with doesnt have buttons along the bottom?
Edit 2: I also dont seem to have the folowing script HorizonControllerExample.cs?

Thanks
Andy

 

You are using an old version then...
Which unity version do you use?

Code (CSharp):

1. public Material[] horizonMaterials;
2. float displacementAmount = 200; // The current displacement in meters.
3. public float maxDisplacement = 200; // The maximum amount of displacement in meters.
4. public float dispChangeSpeed = 300; // How fast we can change the displacement.
5.  
6. void Update() {
7.     if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.E)) { Displace(+1); }
8.     if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.Q)) { Displace(-1); }
9. }
10.  
11. // Function to change the displacement amount.
12. public void Displace(float direction) {
13.     displacementAmount += Time.deltaTime * dispChangeSpeed* direction;
14.     displacementAmount = Mathf.Clamp(displacementAmount, 0, maxDisplacement);
15.  
16.     foreach (Material m in horizonMaterials) {
17.         if (m.HasProperty("_Parallax")) m.SetFloat("_Parallax", displacementAmount);
18.     }
19. }//=================================================

The runtime modification is almost always the same:

Code (CSharp):

1. foreach (Material m in horizonMaterials) {
2.     if (m.HasProperty("_SomePropertyAsShownInManual")) m.SetFloat("_SomePropertyAsShownInManual", theValueYouWantItToHave);
3. }

In some cases it is not m.SetFloat(...) but m.SetVector(...) you can also change the textures on some material slot like this with m.SetTexture(...) if i recall correctly.

since not all materials of horizon have the same properties it is a good idea to check if the property exists before modifying it...

Code (CSharp):

1. if (m.HasProperty("_SomePropertyName")) {//do something...}

 

Yes, ive just noticed that myself. Im using 5.1, which it says is all up to date, yet it certainly isnt. So downloading latest version now.

Thanks

 

For the latest version you need to use 5.2. The very latest version with some additional fixes is pending

 

Terrain Composer is on 24h deal, a bit late notification but it is still going for 4 hours!

Here is why i strongly prefer TC over other solutions:

1) There is nothing you can not do with it, if you have an idea for your terrain you can realize it. Only TC can do that.
2) It is not limiting the visual quality by a flawed stamping method, If you want high quality you need to use global normal maps with a (much) higher resolution than your heightmaps. With stamping like on gaia you are limiting the visual quality.
(Note: I don't dislike gaia but i think for AAA it is not the right tool).
3) It can handle multi terrains very nicely.
4) Most flexible splat mapping and object placement you can wish for.
5) Fast multi resolution workflow with insane amount of control. you can preview in low resolution on only a small area and have changes updated in seconds, if you like it you can apply it to the whole terrain - which can even span 32km by 32 km(1024 km² !!!) or even more.
6) Best choice if you use world machine. Working with world machine and TC is a breeze.
7) You can use it to generate textures for Horizon[ON]
8) There is a lot more but these are the most important points in my opinion.

In all honesty i also want to point out what you have to expect: It is not the most intuitive tool, you have to learn it and you need to spend some time with it before you can use it to it's full potential. However, learning it totally pays off and if you have high quality standards, there is nothing else like it. Though be warned it is not for people who look for a one button "Make beautiful" solution. If you are serious about your terrains, get it while the price is crazy low

 

If you want visual quality, get World Machine.

I bought TC for it's ability to texture intelligently. It's really a fantastic match for World Composer. Add RTP and World Streamer and you have an undeniable killer package (well except maybe for the lack of huge LOD with WS

I haven't got Horizon to work yet, though I'm sure it's good. Video tutorials would help World Machine, RTP, Gaia, TC, WS .. they all have them

Gaia is the best single asset *in unity* for creating custom terrains. World Machine is obviously much better, of course. But pricey, slightly steeper learning curve, and doesn't auto texture / auto spawn.

Edit, I see you made point 6. yes, that's correct. Maybe make that point 1 though Comparing TC to Gaia is bit apples to oranges. They serve different people / different use cases. Sometimes you just want a nice populated terrain quickly with minimal fuss.

Without World Composer or World Machine, TC I think isn't complete.

 

Oh imho TC is much more complete than gaia, it can do all what gaia does and much more, but i dont want to start a war, rather give my personal recommendation for TC.

 

I think they both have good and bad points. TC is great and I learned how to use it and loved it...but then needed to come back to it 6 months later and couldn't remember anything. lol The thought of learning it again was overwhelming. Gaia is easier for me to use, for vegetation spawning. TC is better for tiled terrains, making color and normal maps and using with RTP. World Machine is what I use for terrains. I agree with Becoming about the resolution loss when using stamps in Gaia. I use them sometimes, but then go back into World Machine, which is really silly because I can use the layout in WM to do similar stuff and have real erosion that blends between parts. With stamps in Gaia, the erosion isn't realistic.On the other hand, for making quick demo scenes for pictures, Gaia is fast...although almost at the point of becoming too complex, imho. lol

So..I use both and am glad I own both. WM is my choice for creating heightmaps though. Very awesome.

Very disappointed in those folks who feel the need to criticize one product to build up another..and I mean the reviews for TC that were recently posted. We are fortunate to have the asset store with all kinds of tools that help us make games better. Reviews should stick to the product.

I have not yet used Horizons but actually came here because I am about to dive in. I have heard great things though!

 

Thanks Teila. I too felt that the hypetrain for gaia went abit too far recently, especially with the TC bashing. I didn't mean to say gaia is bad in my last post(it sure has its place and usecases) but if i read people stating, "it is better than TC" i can not help but cringe, those statements are just plain wrong.

TC definitely has a weakness with being less userfriendly but actually if you know your way around the UI ,you can get better results, faster with TC. Also, it adapts to many different workflows. This versatility comes at the cost of added complexity, but gamedevs should embrace that in my opinion. Working in the gameindustry IS complex, at least if you want to have best possible results for your players, no way around it.

What i love about TC is that it is so flexible, you can even use TC to place houses and flatten the terrain underneath these houses, in these houses you can automatically place tables, plates on the tables, food on the plates, etc. It is just a matter of setting up the rules. Setting up rules is something gamedesigners should love, knowing that it can be complex! A setup with TC can be used over and over again in many projects. My work with TC got me a few jobs as environment artist which helped me transtioning from my 8 hour/day job to being selfemployed. I am very thankful for the tool Nathaniel has created and he became a good friend since i first asked for support. So if somebody thinks i am biased, i dont care, it is just my personal opinion and i hope that the people can take it as such.

 

I think that is fine, Becoming! I am friends with the creator of Gaia and he doesn't get mad at me, at least not too much, for my opinions. lol And perfectly okay to be biased toward tools that help you do better. I can name a number of them that helped me, and even more developers here that have helped me with issues or make something better. All that makes me a better developer. While I don't know Nathaniel or Tom that well, I know that their tools helped me a great deal when I started working with Unity. I know more now because of people like them.

 

Hi!

I bought horizon[ON] today and your plugin is amazing. I was also happy that it works with Azure[Sky].

I was looking for a good landscape for testing my plugin, and horizon[ON] is perfect for me. Thank you for creating this great asset.

Thanks
Denis Lemos.

 

Problem is to many assume they are saying a certain tool is bad, when they are just reviewing it.... People will always compare tools, like Maya Vs Max...I own Maya, but prefer Modo... XB1 Vs PS4... People should never get upset over a review when saying TC Vs Gaia...and I do not believe people are promoting one or the other... They are just comparing the two...and people will... I own them all, TC, Gaia, Horizon, WC, RTP, World Machine...I use World Machine because I have way before than others before they came out, plus I do not develop just for Unity, the other tools can't help me in other engines .. But I love TC, and I love Gaia. Period.

So people should never get upset over a review or an opinion, people have the right to it.. Again.. people need to get over it..That is the way of the world, people will always compare. /cheers.

PS: People get to upset over posts now a days lately..We are all Developers, and we all bought or plan to buy assets for our use, and to support some of the developers..I have bought plenty of tools just to support some developers and I never even use some of them... I also have supported Nath for years ..He is a great guy.. But Adam also is a great guy.. So nothing is personal.. I'm a very blunt and honest person, some hate it.. But guess what..Tough..

 

The problem was the people that where bashing TC got banned for trolling, and being idiots... But the issue was some people by accident got banned as well. People need to chill a bit....We are all here to make great games...and help one another if we can.. /cheers

 

your like to start fights with people, please do it else where.. Thanks.! By the comment you where talking about other tools. ...
Have a good day..

PS: This is not FB this a forum for Unity development.

 

I been a big support, to the developers and will continue to support them. Have a good one.!

 

Hi, i have just implemented the floating origin script into my project and I seem to be having issue with "transforming" horizon at runtime?

Even if i pause the project and try and "move" horizon, it doesn't allow me to, yet in the editor it does?

Thanks
Andy

 

Probably the horizon objects are marked as static(they are by default). uncheck static and it should work

 

Hi Becoming,

Just started using HorizonOn. It's a fantastic product and I am really happy with it. I need some advice though.

If you look at the attached image you can see that the transition layer is not visible in the game scene but is visible in the editor scene. The only thing that works to get it back is by changing the skybox to none. If I use the default skybox or any other it reoccurs.

I have also tried it in a new project with nothing else loaded in other than an empty terrain. It is using the multilayered components.

Using Unity 5.3.2p2, windows 10 64bit

Please advise.

Thanks

doc

 

Hey Doc,
It looks like you surround your terrain with the transition instead of overlaying it. The transition object needs something below to blend with... so you would need to extend your unity terrain(or terrainmesh) a little bit more so that the transition can cover it.

 

Hi Becoming,

I get it now. The terrain has to be the same size as the transition terrain and then the transition terrain acts as a blending type tool (I think) and not a seam tool.

I just checked you example scene again and I see how you did it different.

Once that's working the next job is to figure out how to add my scene ground textures to horizonOn.

Great tool this.

Thanks for the help.

 

@Becoming. Just seen what I needed to do clearly written in the manual. The one was following!

Moral of this story is don't learn new stuff when you're full of a cold.

Sorry I bothered you @Becoming. My brain is mumphff with this cold!!!

Disclaimer - if mumphff is a real word in any language I will be surprised and apologise if it is offensive

 

I am sorry but i did not found what i want to know about horizon with google search or via searching this thread.

So i want to use horizon together with "world streamer" ( https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/36486 ).

How should i setup the scene where i want to use a 3 by 3 terrains around the player that will use the floating point error fix system in a much bigger world with 25 by 25 terrain tiles. Around the player are only the 9 terrain visible and change when the player come to near to one side with the next terrain and unload the last one on the other side.

I do not find a tutorial or documentation on how i should set up a scene like that that will also work with horizon.

Please help. Thank you

Edit:
Do i have to set this up with all terrains in one scene at first?

 

There are muliple ways to do this but it's not something that will work out of the box. Horizon is most suited to extend a terrain(or multiple terrains that are treated like one). The problem is, there is no single "correct" way to utilize horizon with world streaming. The most intuitive way to handle world streaming, is to just surround the extents of the player accesible area with horizon and deal with the gaps in between in your own custom way(placing proxy meshes of your unloaded terrains). However, it is possible to move Horizon object and have the topology stay in place. The easiest way to see what i mean is to open the example scene and just pick the Horizon parent and move it around. You will notice that Horizon will stay in place and only the hole for your terrain(s) will move. This can be used to offset it when you load another terrain. You can also use multiple Horizons, one for closer distance and one for further distance with different height maps and textures(You'd have to duplicate the materails so each Horizon is using its own material set).

In general i have to say it is an advanced custom usecase that is definitely solvable but you have to be creative and have a good knowledge of how Horizon works. Horizon is definitely able to be used in a such a scenario but it is not a official feature that i advertise. If you like you can contact me via skype and i will try to help and give you some ideas... Just send me your skype contact via PM or email and i'll get back to you asap.

 

I love your asset it's really awesome but I have some problems adapting it to my project :/

hey i was wondering right now I'm using a set of 3x3 terrains... i see that i can scale the horizon[ON] master object to fit ... i wanted to know if that causes any problems with the horizon?

also my terrain uses more of a toon textures so how can i adapt the layer textures for that? any tips?

finally my terrain is not flat on the outside precisely because i put mountains around to occlude the borders and also my terrains are a lift up... that makes it problematic to fit Horizon[ON].

 

Argh.... you really should have a mirror for your manual... now I have time to work with Horizon but cannot get to the manual on dropbox...

Plz... could anyone send it to broesby@gmail.com

 

You can scale the parent and it should work just fine, although the correct way to do it is to scale the children. I dont think you would run into issues but maybe the culling would be less efficient(you can enable to show the bounds in the settings).

For toon textures it depends a lot on the style, is it very detailed or more flat colors? If you post a screen of the stlye you are aming for i probaby can give some tips.

About the transition, if you have already mountains that hide the transition and the player can never reach the edge you can just go without a transition and place the horizon a bit below your terrain. If the colors/textures are similiar enough it will work just fine. if you want to have a blended transition there is no other way than to flatten the terrain on the surface where the transition is overlayed.

 

sent