RageTools: Flash-like 2D Vectors and GUI for Unity

Do you know what will be the prices for RageTools 1.1 and RageTools Pro?
Thanks.

 

Do you know what will be the prices for RageTools 1.1 and RageTools Pro?
Thanks.

 

RageTools 1.1 price is $70. It's a free upgrade if you own 1.0.6 (which's at the Asset Store now, for $50), so better hurry if you plan on purchasing it

RageTools Pro price is still unannounced, but it's in its own league of functionality so it won't cost as low as RageTools - especially since it *includes* RageTools standard.

 

Hi MaDDoX,

Just purchased RageTools and tested on few of my wife's illustrations, so far looks great...

I'm curious how is Pro coming along?

 

I'm a bit confused by the Ragetools Pro animation Video:
Is the animation solution also working with sprites (pixels) or is the whole Ragetools just for vectors of any importance?

 

Thanks Pixel Envision, if you have any problem or question don't think twice before dropping us an e-mail! I have a minor update on RageTools Pro development (nearing release) here: http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/12...animation-and-text!/page2?highlight=ragetools

RageTools Pro doesn't support any kind of pixel art (bitmap graphics).

As we extend the SVG support to also import images (as shading textures, already supported by RageSpline) we expect to have some sort of Atlas generation to make it optimal for mobile devices usage. Just plans for now, but we definitely want that in.

 

Hi Maddox,

I just grabbed RageTools and it looks great, but I can't seem to get my own SVG's working. I'm saving them from inkscape, are there some special setting you have to use when you save? I just keep getting this error...

You are trying to load data from a www stream which had the following error when downloading.
Couldn't open file

Here's a test SVG created by me (that gets the error) http://www.naffupdate.com/forumfiles/Star.svg

Thanks
Pete

 

Hi Petey, thanks for your purchase! I've tested your file and it worked first-try here, no editing needed. Normally all that's recommended is converting to curves (especially if you've created ellipses) and setting the save option as "Plain SVG", but I didn't even do that with your file.

I'd guess you're not placing your SVG file into the Ragetools "SVGFiles" folder. Alas, the current version has this limitation - although you can edit the "path" inside the RageSVGIn.cs script if you so wish. In the soon-to-be-released next version, 1.1, SVG-In can import SVG files placed anywhere in your project tree.

Hope this helps, if not just say it and I'll be glad to help. Thanks again!

 

Thats was it, thanks!
And thanks for making this awesome tool!
Pete

 

Hi there, after buying RageTools and realizing that RageSpline doesn't work in Unity 3.5, I'm wondering if I somehow can get my money back, since I obviously cannot make proper use of the RageSpline dependent RageTools. I'd gladly give you back your licence, since we decided to develop with other tools that just work properly out of the box with the new Unity release.

Before you ask me to further describe the problem and so on, I'd like to remind anybody reading this, that a paid product is not an open source piece of software. So I don't want to be beta testing if I pay for something. I don't want to offend anybody or to be rude but this is just the way I see it.


Kind regards,
Marcel Makale

 

Ragespline works perfectly well on 3.5.
We are using RageSpline and RageTools on 3.5 on a very complex project with no problem at all.

 

Hi MaDDoX, awesome estension! We are working on a complex project based on RageSpline and your SVGIn tools is helping us a lot streamlining our assets pipeline.

Just a question: do you have a tentative release date on 1.1? We want to have a demo out for the end of the month, we'll love to use the new version if it became available fast enough...

 

No problems with RageSpline here with the latest version either. Also something to let you know if you happen to be new to Unity and Asset store stuff or generally with any software development is that major version changes usually affect plugins, addons or any components made by 3rd parties in some way and that's normal that they might not be up-to-date at the parent product release date. There are plenty of addons in this asset store section that still have or might have some minor or major problems with the 3.5 version. That's why its normal to not to rush to latest version before ensuring used stuff is updated before upgrading.

For your case Asset Store might not even accept imminent refund because developers are given some grace time to get things working. For calling it a beta testing it sounds you are new to the whole industry cause its more likely called normal software development and evolving and I see this with most of the products i've used with computer (Delphi/Visual Studio components, Windows versions, Mobile platforms etc)

 

Hi Marcel. Sorry to hear that you're having problems with RageSpline. Since you don't seem willing to check for a solution - albeit, just for the record, Keely has been exceptionally responsive to any and all user issues raised so far - please contact the Asset Store since they're the ones in charge of refunds, when applicable.

Great to hear Skyrise As developers we always love to hear what you (as a developer!) misses and wants while using the product, at the very least to set our priorities straight, so feel free to drop us a line or post in this thread any suggestions you have.

We're working as hard as we can to get RageTools Pro as optimized as (reasonably) possible, RageTools 1.1 will share the same code base - and, like I mentioned before, has a chance to break compatibility if you're using Edgetune - and will be released a couple days before RageTools Pro itself. An educated guess is "next week". A few highlights of RageTools 1.1:

* Group Style - Easily apply fill, outline and other styling settings to a group of splines, with optional name filters. With this option you can easily have the so-called "team colors" - for example, a vector character where you only change the shirt color for each of its instances.
* Group Physics - Automatically add box colliders and/or rigidbodies to a number of splines, for one-click scene setups.
* Root-Objects Pivotools option - Assigns geometric-center pivot to every root object. Great for fractured geometry and other objects with tons of segments .
* Auto-Pivots Pivotools macro - Assigns the pivot for each group or shape that has "_pivot" in its name. This one is a huge time saver, you can basically set all your pivot centers straight in Inkscape or Illustrator, using tiny disabled (invisible) circles. Then import with SVG-In, with the "Auto Pivots" toggle on. Presto, ready to animate! If you already have imported art from previous versions, and later edited it with RageSpline, no problem, there's a Macro that does the same - simply select the root game object and run it from the RageTools menu.
* Improved Canvas Align - Sensible performance improvements, now has a new "start only" option, perfect for mobile devices where the canvas resolution never changes (so it only adapts to it in the very first execution frame).

That plus some major performance improvements with all real-time tools! This will surely be the best RageTools release ever, sit tight.

Thanks for the great supportive words guys, that's what keep us motivated to keep pumping out those enhancements for you!

 

The issues got resolved, bad review deleted and therefore no refund wanted/needed anymore. I'm now really looking forward to see RageSpline and RageTools work in concert. Thanks for the reply anyways.

 

Hi All,

I was just having a mess around with RageTools and it looks great but I have a few questions.

It seems that when you import your SVG, it's imported position doesn't take into account the parent gameobject's Position/Rotation or Scale.
Since they'll usually need to be repositioned and re scaled into their final positions in the game, you won't be able to update any changes in the source SVG without reseting the parent gameobject's transfroms first. Which seems like a shame.

Also is there anyway to set an import scale? And possibly to center the imported SVG to the parent gameobject?

Anyway, it roCks! Just thought i'd throw in my thoughts.
Thanks
Pete.

 

If I recall correctly it uses world coordinates, yes.

Not sure if I get your point here. For instance, suppose you have a character translated to 200,-300 (x,y). You can re-import your model, parent it to the previous version game object and reset the transform (of the new version). That'll place, rotate and scale it exactly like its parent. Then you re-parent it to the world or whatever and delete the original object. A couple steps indeed, and something I don't do often (never needed to actually) but which could be turned into a macro in no time if people really think it's needed.

No import scale as of now, could be a worthy addition, noted. Remember you can use the parent/reset/unparent trick I've outlined above to get a similar effect after the import. As for centering the imported SVG to a parent gameobject, quite easy, just use pivotools. Check the docs, if you find any difficulty just say it.

Thanks for the comments and suggestion Pete, always welcome

 

Hi Maddox

I'm interested in the SVG-in functionality, I would like to ask about it's performance on the mobile devices (iPhone Android (high low end devices))
also, would it generate everything on the fly ? or it would build prefabs then use them ? (performance storage space wise)

also, would it automatically take care of the resolution changes while keeping the aspect ratio ?

I would also like to ask if it supports tinting (or simply darkening/returning to normal) the images.

also, to confirm that I understand this correctly, this is RageTools the pro version is still to come, is that right ?
what's new in the pro version ?

do you have any tutorials/documentation you can redirect me to ?
(in order to learn more about the tools their workflow any limitations)

my current thinking: I would use the RageTools RageSpline for the story part of my game use other tools for gameplay.

 

Performance is as good as you'd get for a regular polygon art, which's quite good on most modern mobile devices. The more detail you want, the more taxing it gets, of course. We've been testing many different scenes with really good performance (30+ FPS) in a Xoom Android tablet.

Importing SVGs isn't super-slow but it's also not fast enough for mobile applications. We recommend using either prefabs or prototypes (pre-instantiated and disabled Game Objects).

Yes, that's what "Edgetune" does for you. Its new "start only" option makes sure it's only executed in the very first frame, ideal for mobile devices which have fixed resolution.

Next version will have a form of "team color" to override a certain shape (selected through a filter) style with another style.

Exactly.

RageText and RageMagnet are the "stars" of RageTools Pro. You can watch its teaser video and read more about it here:
http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/12...ector-animation-and-text!?highlight=ragetools

Sure, you can find an intro video and the downloadable PDF docs here:
http://www.freakow.com/ragetools.html

Thanks for your interest, if you have any further questions, fire it away

 

If you bought or know someone who has bought RageSpline during March, I would really like to get in touch.

 

Hey Maddox,

Thanks for the response!

I guess what I was thinking of was maybe an option to update the existing imported SVG.
At the moment if you make a tweak in your SVG, you have to delete the current imported SVG from Unity, re-import a new one and re transform the new one. Just feels like a lot of extra steps that make that workflow a little clunky.

P.

Hey Keely, I just bought RageSpline about a week ago.

 

Can you check if it's on February or March?

 

Oops sorry it was 29th of Feb.

 

8<Snip>8

 

Now I get your point. The way I work, I simply touch up whatever I need right inside Unity, directly through RageSpline, it's more than capable for those small tweaks. Makes sense in most cases since you sometimes have to work out this or that problem specific with the way the vector shapes convert to polygons, and you're already in your project etc.
Now, to make what you're saying truly optimal, we'd need an "SVG-Out" as well. We've thought about it but tbh currently I don't think there's sufficient demand for it.

 

Hey guys! Just a small update on RageTools Pro, I'm getting many e-mails asking about its release, especially after the new iPad announcement and the Asset Store madness promotion by Keely which sold RageSpline copies like hot cakes

So, even with all the pressure, we're decided to stick to our high quality level and fix all known bugs before release (a huge feat after all the additions and tweaks), but we're zooming in real close now as the worst is past. The beta deformation performance got actually very poor with Unity's 3.5 release, while it was very fast on 3.4. We've already fixed that of course and are now consistently getting very high (100+FPS) frame rates in that "Vilas Walk" scene you've seen in the RageTools Pro video (a scene with 8k triangles and lots of room for density optimization). Due to many quality adjustments which were consolidated into RageGroup, it's now all up to the artist how much performance vs quality he wants. This is a change that cascades down to standard RageTools in its forthcoming 1.1 release - which should go live right next to RageTools Pro.

Not set in stone since like I said our focus is on quality, but our best guess for the release date (ie. have it available at the Asset Store) is at the end of next week.

 

Hi Breno,

Thanks for the update... I've been holding of my next app and waiting for some info, and that sounds great! You'll still have an upgrade option for standard RageTools buyers, right?

 

Hot indeed!

 

Is it necessary to completely remove RageTools in order to do a webplayer build? I don't mind switching project types from standalone to webplayer, but I don't want to break all the SVGs I've imported and tweaked, and I may need to tweak them some more. What's the best workflow for this?

 

Are you going to be announcing the pricing for RageTools Pro prior to the release?

 

Yeah, we have a second product called "RageTools Updater" which does exactly that - upgrades RageTools Standard to RageTools Pro. In practice it's just a handful of extra files and components, so it should be smooth as butter for anyone - anyone but the Unity Asset Store testers that is, I can already imagine their "WTF" face when they get the package and read its pre-requisites

I'll make sure our main product store art makes it *extremely* clear that you shouldn't buy RageTools Updater if you already own RageTools Pro, and that it doesn't work without RageTools Standard installed.

No, after version 1.06 (latest one in the Asset Store) you can simply build from your project. At least in our tests it worked fine. Maybe you have an older version an haven't updated them?

After RageTools 1.1 release there will be some backwards compatibility breaking (not down to the pre-imported RageSplines though), in any case it's highly recommended to backup your projects. This will be re-iterated when 1.1 is released, but it's never too early to warn it ofc.

The Asset Store market "behavior" is changing really quick, and there are some factors going into consideration right now about it, so although we do have a price in mind we'll probably keep it to the last moment.

 

Hello!

Is there any limited or trial version of RageTools?
We are considering buying it, but we have some complex illustrator images and we wanted to know how well they would be imported.


Thanks very much,
Fernando.

 

Will this be supported in the new Unity Flash build? We're currently in the middle of a project thats being released via the Unity->Flash platform, and much of our UI is vector to begin with, so it could help with crispness and clarity vs. an imported graphic.

Nathaniel
SiXiTS

 

Hi Breno, any updates on 1.1 pro ?

 

Hi Fernando. No trial version (hard to do considering source is open..), but I'd be glad to test any complex illustrator image you have and screenshot+send you the import result. Some major rework went into SVG-In during the last couple weeks to make it able to import a full art from 'Little Things' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rf_2OcLf3Xg), and I'm glad to say that after a ton of bugfixes and enhancements it's now fully able to parse that massive amount of vector data. That's also one of the main delay reasons, and I believe it's a good one - can only imagine what the dev will be able to do when he doesn't have to resort to huge bitmaps - and zoom in on stuff as much as he wants

Hi Nathaniel, we've made it run on an early Flash beta (for the Unity competition on January) so it's definitely possible. Right now we're not "officially" supporting it since many new additions are being made to the Flash deployer overnight (and it's still beta), but we'd be glad to make it run for your needs, even share the custom-taylored Flash-deploy version we've used.

Hope to get some good news for you guys tomorrow. Sit tight, it's gonna be worth it For now, here goes a teaser for the new 1.1 "Per-Branch" pivotools option. Based on many user requests, this sets each branch's pivot to either the average of the geometric center of its splines, or to a pre-set 'pivot' named shape in each branch. After processing the temporary 'pivot' shapes, you have the option to automatically delete them out of your entire hierarchy. Easier shown than explained with words, check this screenshot:

 

So, finally code and docs revision on our side is done, for both RageTools 1.1 and RageTools Pro 1.0. There are some things to clear up regarding this mega-release, which I'll talk about now.

- RageTools Pro will be an upgrade package for RageTools, we've dropped the idea of having a full "combo" package with both. So, there won't be any separate "upgrader", would make things more confusing and harder to support in the end. RageTools Pro is the upgrade path itself, and there won't be any standalone package with both included.

- Requirements: still trying to make the previous item 100% clear, RageTools will still require RageSpline. RageTools Pro will require RageTools + RageSpline.

- For the update process to go smoothly, things have to go live in the Asset Store in a specific order. 1) A new RageSpline version that adds some refresh speed improvements needed for RageMagnet; 2) RageTools version 1.1; 3) RageTools Pro.

- The RageSpline changes have been agreed with Keely (RageSpline developer) previously, who got the proposed code changes earlier today and is currently reviewing/testing the code. As soon as he green lights and submits the update to the Asset Store, it'll be our turn to proceed with #2 and #3 above.

- As previously announced, RageTools is being sold for $50 right now, but when the new 1.1 version goes live, the price will go up to $70. It's almost a new product with all the added functionality and improvements. Most of its potential the docs can only barely stretch, so expect some new videos to expose its full power. Separate-parts animated characters and complete UI interfaces are just two of its rarely-known-of uses. We have been postponing these until Pro's release, but now the time has come for everyone to learn how to do it with our tutorials.

- RageTools Pro price will be only $80 dollars. A bargain considering it brings you more vector animation power and text generation features than competing high-end products like Anime Studio™ and ScaleForm™, costing up to thousands of dollars. Also bear in mind that there are reports about Flash-based solutions (like ScaleForm™) to under-perform on mobile devices and require a separate render pass, which's costly for a mobile GPU. Last but not least, no other vector-GUI-and-text Unity solution is fully integrated with the Unity editor, most requiring C++ .dll bridges which automatically render your game incompatible with a number of key Unity deployment platforms.

- Due to RageTools forthcoming price adjustment, if you buy RageTools up to this week, RageTools Pro total price will be $130 ($50+$80), from next week onwards it'll be $150 ($70+$80). So take advantage of this special price while it lasts!

- RageTools Pro will add these components to RageTools: RageMagnet, RageText, RageIK, RageConstraint and RageHandle helpers. Plus a number of Macros made to assist with 2D-animation rigging and the adequation of imported font-sets to the RageText font format.

Phew, that's it. A massive announcement but hopefully it can clear out most doubts about the products release process. We wish we could make this even smoother but we have to deal with the current Asset Store limitations. The approach we chose should work fine, we'll go round the clock on support (as usual) to work out any possible quirks. If you have any comments or questions, just fire'em away. Thanks!

 

I'm wondering if I can put the center of a RageSpline Object at a specific location with RageTools (or RageTools Pro).
Is this functionality already available in the current version of RageTools?

 

Can RageTools Pro import SVG animations? For example, if I fully animate in Flash, does that animation get imported, or is the in-editor deforming method with RageMagnet the only way to create SVG animations?

 

Very logical approach, I was hoping for something like that...

That's an unexpected but very welcomed bonus...

Very reasonable price for the features listed, instant buy as soon as it's out...

Nice work!

 

Sure, since the first release - through a component called "Pivotools". It's got a multitude of options, the latest of which (per-branch centering) allow centering to editor-created shapes that point where should be the pivot for each part of your art (arm, leg, etc).

RageTools SVG-In only supports SVG, not straight SWF. We keep a close eye on this free product (which is able to export SVG from Flash), but it still doesn't support SVG animation. In the future we do intend to make some bridge from SVG animation to a tweening engine like HOTween or iTween.

Actually you can already create animations with vectors in RageTools Standard using cutout-like (separate parts) animation techniques, which's also obviously more performant. We'll have a video showcasing that, too many people ignore that RageTools can does this as well as other Unity animation tools like EasyMotion2D. The RageMagnet deformation will be much more handy (and necessary) for things like talking faces (deforming cheeks), squash and stretch animation, dancing logos, serpents and tentacles - to name a few.

Yeah, it not as easy as we'd like it to be, but as a matter of fact we can't do much better considering there's no "pre-requisites" system in place on the Asset Store.

Thanks again, bud!

 

Hi all, is their a way to import SVG files with text and complex GUI design. I understand if this isn't possible, but I have menus designed with nice text. Of course this type of thing cost a few thousand with pro type software like scale form, so it's cool if I have to wait for pro rage tools.

 

just convert your text to paths, and it'll import fine, with one caveat - it doesn't support closed shapes, so you have to take a knife tool to cut closed parts of letters.

 

Can you explain how to do this ?

 

To convert to paths in Illustrator, it's Type > Create Outlines - can't remember the command in Inkscape, but it's similar. For letters with closed paths (like an "o") you need to then take the knife tool and cut across the shape. Then use the svgimport script. You may need to iterate on it a bit to get good results...

 

Hi Breno,

I have purchased RageSpline in the Asset Store Madness, and now looking for additional tools, like Rage Tools Pro. I am especially interested in the RageMagnet deformations, like the stretches and similar features. Am I assuming correctly that with these new features developers will be able to do rubber-band like ropes, and physics based real-time deformations? A ball falling down and than makes all the necessary deforms as expected? Or, maybe a real world example: World of Goo/Contre Jour type games will be feasible using your awesome tool in Unity?

Thanks,
Gyula

 

Hi Breno,

I sent you an email 2 days ago regarding RageTools but i'm not sure if you received it.
We are looking forward to use RageTools PRO in our next game but we couldn't find a trial version. Is there any way to trial the tool? Also, we would like to know how good it performs on mobile devices like Android and iOS.

Thanks,
Gustavo

 

I'm still having trouble with this, really disapointing since this is the one thing I really need from rage tools .

 

Hi Keith, it's definitely possible and it's getting easier with each new improved SVG-In version. For instance, check this art from "Little Things", an extremely high-ranked iOS game. The author is looking into converting his art to RageTools + RageSpline so he can offer much more zoom-in freedom and sharpness with his graphics. This is the result of a recent test import we did with RageTools 1.1 (it didn't work at all with 1.0.6):



Like polytropoi said there are a number of steps you should take to optimize your art if it's complex, we've been postponing a proper tutorial video on that so we could focus on RageTools Pro, but we'll definitely have it up in the next few weeks. Meanwhile you should check the SVG-In compatibility section of the RageTools doc in pdf (available in the site).

Exactly Gyula. I admit we haven't touted or showed off RageMagnet half as much as we can/should, after all a walk cycle like the one you see in the video can be done with split-parts animation as well. Intention there was mostly to show how easy it was to set up something typically hard to "rig" (add marionette-like controls). That's just scratching the surface though, with RageMagnet it's easy to set up things like rubber-like balls that deform in contact to obstacles - think a number of magnets surrounding and joint-linked to a central magnet. We're eager to see what inventive developers like you will be able to create with it

Sorry Gustavo, too much going at once here these days as you can imagine. Alas, no trial option right now. We can assure you that the RageText performance is very smooth under all Unity-supported mobile platforms, there's a mode tuned up specifically for that. Like everything that works with polygons at the end of a mobile device render pipeline, you gotta watch out for the amount of simultaneous chars on screen, but fact is that most smart phones these days can chew up way more polygons than it can process data (or have available in RAM for texture), so that'll rarely be a bottle neck.
For RageMagnet we recommend deforming only simpler shapes for mobile devices. We've worked hard - about a month of development was just for that - to improve its performance so it's usable on mobile devices, we even have a custom-tailored refresh mode to get higher performance. That's why we depend on the new RageSpline version that you'll be getting soon, Juha found a minor bug with outline widths that I'll be fixing along the weekend.

Guys, if you find any problem with the software or with an specific art, please contact us through the contact@freakow.com email. I'm much faster to answer it for a number of reasons. I don't allow anyone to stay disappointed with RageTools for too long Thanks!

 

Well, Breno, you got a sale. Now I am looking very much to check RageMagnet, once it is released...

 

Breno, new rage spline (1.1.30) is out... so, I guess it's your turn now...