I love Unity, I really do. It’s a tool that can let any user come in and create anything really fast. But, I am wondering is it hurting programmers who use it? Having used Unity for 3 years I can say I can do just about anything inside of the program, but transferring that knowledge to proper software development is difficult. I haven’t done proper software development in years. I have been using Unity like I said for years, but it feels like if I wanted to go into software development I would be at a disadvantage because I have gotten so use to Unity’s workflow development. What are your thoughts on Unity’s workflow vs a more traditional work flow and is it helping or hurting?
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No, the fact that you haven’t done software development for years is.
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Unity just has a scripting API. And you’ve learned to use that API, and get used to it.
It’s like with any other API out there. If you want to expand your horizons again just start using something else.
Its like riding a bike… I can not touch a language for years and completely forget everything about it including the basics, but after a day or two (maybe a week) of playing in it, I remember most of the applicable stuff…
You’re never gonna learn/use modern methodologies in Unity, but IMO it doesnt overly matter. If youre a competent coder, it wont take long to get up to speed, not that it will help you in a technical job interview.
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Yep, this.
Is Unity hurting my graphic design skills? No, the fact that I don’t practice them is. I don’t suck at Photoshop because of Unity, I suck at it because I haven’t invested time into learning it.
I’ve never understood why everyone reasonably easily accepts that graphic design, modelling, music creation, etc. etc. are all distinct skills from “Using your engine or editor of choice”, but the same isn’t true of programming. Programming and/or software engineering is as much a distinct skill just like graphic design and music composition are, and just like those things is deserving - and needing - of deliberate practice and development in its own right.
Also, as I’ve said many times: “Game programming isn’t a subset of programming, it’s a specialisation.” That is to say, if you jump straight to game programming without also learning general programming fundamentals then you’re not saving time - you’re missing out. There are really good reasons that programming courses don’t start by getting students to make games. That’s not to say that you can’t learn programming while you learn to make games if that’s what interests you, just that you should also spend time learning the programming parts of programming.
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Edit: Ugh, really didn’t like how that sounded, so I’m trying again. 
In regards to how it effects coders skill levels, I don’t think it matters too much. Ignoring what a “more traditional work flow” might actually be, as you get more skilled in programming you’ll be more able to switch between workflows anyway. And you’ve got to get your practice somewhere, so as long as you’re doing what I mentioned in the last post (re: learning general programming and not just programming for a particular tool) I see nothing against getting it in Unity as opposed to getting it elsewhere. It’s the new APIs, environments, etc. that you’ll have to learn as you move around, not the fundamental coding and software design skills.
I guess I would suggest, though, learning a bit about how game engines work so that you understand the context in which your code is running inside Unity. (So that you understand stuff like the framework in which Update() is being called.)
Unity’s empowered people with no chance to literally make over a thousand released titles, particularly mobile and so on…
It’s not Unity’s fault if you won’t actually go ahead and make a game.
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Every time I open Unity I get this stabbing pain in my side.
Don’t open it then.
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I’ve owned and operated a car for years, I used to dabble with engines but it’s been a long while and I don’t remember much, but I’m proficient at driving my car. I think if I did a little research and started looking into engines again, it would come back to me.
Everything is within the realms of your own ability and willingness to learn.
(I went full Graham Dunnett)
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Are there actual, legitimate game studios and companies (registered, profitable, and with offices) that hire Unity3d developers? I always thought gaming studios only want to hire C/C++ programmers that have the ability to make an engine like Unity3d.
Hearthstone is made by Blizzard and it was made in Unity. Gamasutra’s job listings also have a lot of listings where Unity knowledge is required, including some by 2K Games and WB Games.
Experience mostly or exclusively with Unity3d? As opposed to them wanting 5-10 years game development experience prior to Unity3d, 3 to 5 AAA titles under the belt, plus Unity3d experience?
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Thanks for the comments everyone. I just have felt Unity has gotten me spoiled over the years. When I want to make something it literally takes no time at all to get a working prototype up and running. When I started working with a more traditional C++ style engine it all came crashing down onto me that I had it made in the shade. In order to get something working I have to do so many extra steps, compile the code, fix the compiling errors, mess with the linker and libraries, run the code, open the editor and then see what I was doing didn’t work. Also the C++ intellesense is HORRIBLE! Unity has been a great tool in my programming career but now that I am not using it as my main engine I can see that someone who learns Unity first can be at a disadvantage. When I was using Unity I never really had to inherit from anything, I never had to include files, never had to override anything, didn’t use a pointer, never could use breakpoints(until UnityVS came out at least), unit testing wasn’t really beneficial, no source control unless we used Unity’s version system and I never saw the need to use a double lol(that one is more of a joke).
Anyways, Unity is a great tool and I wish more companies would use it instead of feeling the need to write their own engine that is far less useful and 10x more complicated.
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When I started working with a more traditional C++ style engine it all came crashing down onto me that I had it made in the shade.
I think that’s the false assumption you’re making. Things didn’t come crashing down. It just felt frustrating because you started learning a new skill again. All of a sudden you were a beginner again, making baby steps, and you compared it to your sprinting and running you can now do in Unity. Cut yourself some slack and try to view it from a perspective of “practice”.
[edit] And the things you’re mentioning that you’re learning now, many of them can come in handy in your next Unity project.
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Yeah I definitely wasn’t use to it, I enjoy it though. Doing something new and being a beginner again feels nice. The biggest issue I have so far is not knowing how to word my Google searches lol.
There is quite bit in japan, for all game studio focusing on smartphone game stuff.
They mostly looking for specialised unity developer with already year of experience with it
Jumping straight to a C++ engine from nothing could be a bit overwhelming depending on how much previous experience you’ve had with the language. I haven’t seen native plugins mentioned anywhere in this thread (I’ll admit that I skimmed this a bit). If you’re looking into expanding your horizons and skill set into something a bit closer to the metal then you might enjoy dipping your toes into creating some native plugins for a platform.
Yes; I work for a studio that hire’s Unity3D programmers. Development is a lot quicker with Unity; so they had no desire to build their own engine or anything. Unity FTW, Although I do know other languages like C++
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Am developing software with Unity right now. 