Unity Shaders and Effects Cookbook

Discover how to make your Unity projects look stunning with Shaders and screen effects

Overview

• Learn the secrets of creating AAA quality Shaders without having to write long algorithms
• Add realism to your game with stunning Screen Effects
• Understand the structure of Surface Shaders through easy to understand step-by-step examples

In Detail

Since their introduction to Unity, Shaders have been notoriously difficult to understand and implement in games: complex mathematics have always stood in the way of creating your own Shaders and attaining that level of realism you crave. Transform your game into a highly polished, refined product with Unity’s post-processing effects.

“Unity Shaders and Effects Cookbook” is the first of its kind to bring you the secrets of creating Shaders for Unity3D – guiding you through the process of understanding vectors, how lighting is constructed with them, and also how textures are used to create complex effects without the heavy math.

Starting with essential lighting and finishing up by creating stunning Screen Effects alike those in high quality 3D and mobile games. Discover techniques including Normal mapping, Image based lighting, and how to animate your models inside of a Shader. Explore the secrets behind some of the most powerful Shaders including skin and hair! With “Unity Shaders and Effects Cookbook” what seems like a dark art today will be second nature by tomorrow.

What you will learn from this book

• Use textures to create complex lighting without the need for complex and performance-heavy lighting rigs
• Master the art of using math to construct shiny objects as well as soft objects
• See what it takes to create more complex surfaces like skin and cloth
• Take a look at why a Shader is expensive and what works well for mobile platforms as opposed to PC platforms
• Enter the world of creating post effects and make your game look visually stunning
• Understand what goes into the structure of Shaders and why lighting works the way it does
• Build your Shader knowledge by understanding how Diffuse and Specular work and understand how to use them in creative ways

Approach

Unity Effects and Shader Cookbook is written in a Cookbook style, teaching you to create stunning Shaders and effects through step-by-step, illustrated examples.

Who this book is written for

Unity Effects and Shader Cookbook is written for developers wanting to create your first Shaders in Unity3D, or who wish to take their game to a whole new level with effects. No previous Shader writing experience is necessary to use this book, though a solid understanding of Unity is required.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Diffuse Shading
Chapter 2: Using Textures for Effects
Chapter 3: Making Your Game Shine with Specular
Chapter 4: Reflecting Your World
Chapter 5: Lighting Models
Chapter 6: Transparency
Chapter 7: Vertex Magic
Chapter 8: Mobile Shader Adjustment
Chapter 9: Making Your Shader World Modular with CgIncludes
Chapter 10: Screen Effects with Unity Render Textures
Chapter 11: Gameplay and Screen Effects