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PlayMaker - Visual Scripting for Unity

Discussion in 'Assets and Asset Store' started by Alex-Chouls, Dec 31, 2010.

  1. josemoreira

    josemoreira

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    Hi Alex, i am trying to deploy a game to the flash exporter, but i am getting a ton of errors. Do you know any way to make it work?
    BTW, when do we get an updated roadmap? :)

    Thanks.
     
  2. LaneFox

    LaneFox

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    This is an awesome tool FYI for anyone considering it. The video tutorials cover enough of the Actions to do just about anything you want and get comfortable with the tools, after that you get the hang of it and just start looking for actions on your own to do what you want.

    It's really easy to understand, easy to use and can be so fast it's almost laughable. I've been using it for a a little over a week constantly with no bug errors, crashes or any failure at all on the part of the plugin. If you struggle with programming or don't know any at all but can understand how the 'logic flow' should be then this will literally unleash your ability to create. It's basically figuring out how it works in your head, selecting the actions and plugging them in... All with drag-n-drop ease.

    I've got pretty customized player control with a unique feel, working interchangeable weapons, working shops and I'm looking into inventory using absolutely nothing but PlayMaker. I highly recommend it for anyone fitting the above description and more so since it's half price.

    - Lane
     
  3. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Unfortunately we don't support building for Flash yet. The Flash exporter is a preview that still doesn't support a lot of Unity systems. But we're working with the latest Flash exporter betas to get Playmaker working with it as quickly as possible...

    Umm, yes, the roadmap... :) Will try to find some time to update that...
     
  4. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Thanks Lane! Glad you're having fun with PlayMaker! :)
     
  5. Qrion

    Qrion

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    I noticed that since the last update having the PlayMaker Editor window opened on a second monitor while running the game on the first causes a high amount of lag/spikes in the game. Just closing the editor window or dragging the console over it seems to resolve this. Any more reports about this problem?

    Actually seems to be the same problem as having the global variables or the variables tab opened while running the game.
     
    Last edited: Jul 26, 2012
  6. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Hi Qrion, we're looking into this... One thing you can try is disabling Debug Flow in Preferences. > Debugging.
     
  7. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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  8. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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  9. RandAlThor

    RandAlThor

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    Can not see the video in germany because of the music rights :(
     
  10. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Sorry about that! I just linked to the video on the site. You might want to let devotid know...
     
  11. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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  12. atmuc

    atmuc

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    @alex when will you support flash?
     
  13. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    @atmuc We're still waiting on some features in the Flash Exporter. It looks like major work on the Flash Exporter isn't happening until Unity 4.x, so it might be a while. We're exploring some workarounds for the missing features, but there's no telling if that will pan out... Wish I had a more definitive answer, sorry! We are working with the Unity 4 beta, so we'll let you know as soon as we get something working...
     
  14. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Just caught this on Twitter, a fantastic looking game being developed with Playmaker:



    You can poke around Twitpic to see other shots:
    http://twitpic.com/ahqr6x
     
  15. atmuc

    atmuc

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    @Alex
    is unity 4 beta ready?

    with 3.5.5 there are build errors like Network components. i do not use network components but i can not build my project. can you reduce features on flash build to provide build ability?
     
  16. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    So far in our tests Playmaker works fine with the Unity 4 beta. Are you using the Unity 4 beta?

    When trying to build for Flash? Or another platform? Playmaker requires some basic reflection features that are not supported in the Flash exporter yet. Unfortunately it's not as simple as pulling out features... But we are exploring workarounds...
     
  17. atmuc

    atmuc

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    where is this unity 4 beta? :) where did you download it?

    yes i try to export to flash.
     
  18. KRGraphics

    KRGraphics

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    Hey Alex, would you make sure to add a FixedUpdate function for those who are using Cloth Simulation?
     
  19. inkbirdstudios

    inkbirdstudios

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    Hey alex , i was looking at that video you linked from devotid's racing game, how do you make a screen transition like he did in the beginning with a screen with just his developer name and it faded to a screen with a main menu?
     
  20. atmuc

    atmuc

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    @alex
    as i add more state fsm becomes more unreadable. can you add a feature that boxes some states. so we can collapse and expand this node.

    also can you add last modification date for custom actions package on your site? like this page; https://hutonggames.fogbugz.com/default.asp?W717
     
  21. frozenoj

    frozenoj

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    Will any issues occur if I remove all the "watermark" textures that come with playmaker?

    Example:skulls, moneybags, etc
     
  22. nipoco

    nipoco

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    It is a closed beta. Only for invited people.
     
  23. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    I'll make sure these are in the update - thanks for the reminder!
     
  24. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    I'm not sure how devotid did this. Maybe with Draw Texture and Set Material Float to change the alpha...? I would ask devotid on his thread :)
     
  25. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    You should be able to remove all textures except playMakerLogo.
     
  26. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    To celebrate UNITE 2012 we're offering a 50% sale on PlayMaker during the conference!

    This will likely be the last sale for a while, and will last one week only!
     
  27. I am da bawss

    I am da bawss

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    Hey Alex, I am having a strange error lately.
    I installed the latest Unity 3.5.5f3 few days ago. Now every time if I create a new project, PlayMaker would show up at first, then disappear completely when I open the project later. If I go to Components -> PlayMaker, the two options would grey out (PlayMaker FSM and PlayMaker GUI). I have check the error console but nothing relate to PlayMaker. The other extensions I loaded have no problem (uScript, Antares Univerese).

    I am wondering if you have seen this happening before? Because its happening quite consistently for me now.
     
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2012
  28. xefhs

    xefhs

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    Hi Alex,

    I hesitate to make my game with PlayMaker, not because I don't like it, but rather because if overnight you decide to stop working on it, I cannot use newer version of Unity and I'm afraid I have to recode all my game.

    I ask you that because I already see nice projects on asset store that have been abandoned.

    So what happen to PlayMaker if you stop working on it ?
     
  29. jzhang1

    jzhang1

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    Would it be possible to add support for Arrays as FSM variables?
     
  30. atmuc

    atmuc

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    hi alex, is there any progress? :) i have to work with flash platform. i solved many problems to work with flash except playmaker. to make my scripts compatible with flash, i faced difficulties, so i understand you. if you supply simple features it is enough for me. if you need help on some coding points i am ready for it.i am good at c#.
     
  31. nipoco

    nipoco

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    Bought it some hours ago.

    Great addition for us non-programmers :)
     
  32. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Hi, there are a couple of threads about this on the Playmaker Forums.

    It seems the most common causes of this are:
    • An error in the Unity Console that stops unity compiling editor scripts. NOTE: Most of the time this is not a Playmaker script error! Double check that you have NO errors in the Unity Console.
    • An incomplete download of the Playmaker Unitypackage. This seems unlikely in your case...?

    If you track down the problem, please post the solution. I'd like to know all situations where this might happen...
     
  33. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    All I can say is that we're very committed to Playmaker and Unity development. I personally love working with Unity, and use Playmaker in my own projects. We work with the Unity betas to stay ahead of Unity updates. Right now Playmaker already works with Unity 4.0...

    I would also hope that our support for Playmaker to date would encourage some faith in its future.

    But it is a risk you take when using middleware (even Unity!), so you need to weigh the pros and cons for your particular situation (length of the project, size, cost etc.) Personally I feel if you're working on your own projects the bigger risk is procrastination and not finishing what you start. Just do it! Then re-evaluate when you start your next project. Repeat.
     
  34. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Yes, this is planned. Hopefully will be in 1.5.
     
  35. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Right now our Plan A is to wait for reflection support in the Flash Exporter. We're dependent on Unity for that.

    Plan B involves some messy workarounds that you'd need Playmaker source code to play with.

    Thanks for your offer to help! I'll let you know as soon as we have something to test or work on...
     
  36. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Thanks! :)
     
  37. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Playmaker got a nice mention in the Unite 12 Keynote - thanks Unity!

    We'll keep the Unite12 50% sale price for a couple more days... so grab it now!
     
  38. KRGraphics

    KRGraphics

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    Hey Alex, will we be able to use Playmaker and Mecanim together... I just started my control system for my game, and I would love to make sure that I will be able to use playmaker to access the states that I have in Mecanim...
     
  39. I am da bawss

    I am da bawss

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    I started a new project again and imported all the extensions I needed (including PlayMaker) and its working fine again. I have a few errors at the console (as always), but they are all related to other extensions - FingerGesture's TBdown, Unity's own Character Extension and I think that's about it. But yeh, it seems from time to time PlayMaker would just disappear from Toolbar. There is another thing, since a lot of extensions now use Toolbar - and I am on 13" MacBook Pro - I am wondering if this would cause the problem since the Toolbar would be running out of space - I have Antares and uScript as well and both of them also have their own menu on the Toolbar which makes the Toolbar very crowded. This is one of the reason I am suggesting to UT have a dedicated extension menu for all developers to put their extension in it.

    Modularize Extension/Plugin System Where You Can Turn Them Off Individually
    http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/13...stem-Where-You-Can-Turn-Them-Off-Individually
     
    Last edited: Aug 28, 2012
  40. atmuc

    atmuc

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    now i decided to wait flash release. it is not feasible to try to work with very limited features. i believe after unity release flash products like pm and smoothmoves will be flash compatible. until that date i will use unity web player.

    Alex, is it possible to package pm as one folder? as i import packages my project view becomes messy. for your package there are readme file,iTween and Gizmos.because iTween is an second product it is acceptable. can you put readme file and Gizmos folder into Playmaker folder?
     
  41. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Since iTween can be downloaded separately from the Asset Store, I put it in the same place to avoid duplicate iTween folders.
    I seem to remember Gizmos had to be in the root folder, but maybe this has changed... I'll investigate.

    The problem is there's no way to delete existing assets when importing a package, so it's hard to move assets in an update.

    But I will look into this some more...
     
  42. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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  43. mindlube

    mindlube

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    Hi Alex, the only issue with Unity4 I've noticed is that the checkboxes dont work for the Playmaker Preferences panel. All my FSMs etc seem to work fine though. Just is an annoyance at this point. I submitted a fogbugz report too.
     
  44. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Thanks! I'm looking into this...
     
  45. Alex-Chouls

    Alex-Chouls

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    Uploading some new Quicktips Videos today...

    Drag and Drop Animation States:



    Subscribe to our YouTube channel to get updates!
     
  46. KRGraphics

    KRGraphics

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    Very nice... :) Can't wait to play with Playmaker even further...
     
  47. Nezabyte

    Nezabyte

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    Just a few questions as I figure out how much I can do with Playmaker --

    -- Is there any way to set up a state in a FSM with global transition to act as a function with temporary variable parameters, or if there are any plans to add this functionality? For example, I would like use it for inventory money management, which allows for a variable amount of money to be added or subtracted at any point. Without this being possible, it might just be best to create the function in a script and is utilized instead.

    The only shoehorn way to do this that I know of would be to use a variable in either the calling or money management FSM that the management FSM looks at to know how much to add/subtract for that particular event trigger. But that sort of usage throughout the game would result in a lot of FSM variables that just act as temporary variables.

    -- Is there any way to call a function from an FSM and get a value back? Such as for utilizing a C# "get" property
     
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2012
  48. G3n3ralT40

    G3n3ralT40

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    Hello Alex,

    I just wanted some information about the "messy workaround" for building on flash via the 3.5 version of Unity. You can pm me directly if you want.

    G3n3ralT40
     
  49. DamianGto

    DamianGto

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    I am not 100% sure what you mean, but if you use global variables you always have them for your FSM. even if you change scene they still are the same.
    If your FSM use those varible you can do a lot of stuff. But depending on your project you need to figure out way to save them and reload them if needed.
     
  50. cynel

    cynel

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    can playmaker be compatible with ORK RPG?