This Unity* resource page on the Intel® Developer Zone is your central location for support of x86 within the Unity game engine. Check back often as this page will be updated frequently!
Adding x86 Support to Android* Apps Using the Unity* Game Engine
Enabling existing Unity* ARM*-based Android* SDK games with native x86 support is straightforward and easy. This document walks through the steps to produce a fat APK that includes both x86 and ARM libraries from within Unity 4.6 or Unity 5 versions
https://software.intel.com/en-us/android/articles/adding-x86-support-to-android-apps-using-the-unity-game-engine
Unite 2014 - Big Android: Best Performance on the Most Devices
Unity* Optimization Guide for x86 Android*
Download the PDF of Unity* Optimization Guide for x86 Android*
To get the most out of the Android* x86 platform there are a number of performance optimizations you can apply to your project that help to maximize performance. In this guide, we will show a variety of tools to use as well as features in the Unity* software that can help you enhance the performance of the native x86 code. We will discuss how to handle items like texture quality, batching, culling, light baking, and HDR effects. Additionally, we also will show how to build an x86-specific binary for testing and other needs.
By the end of this guide you will be able to identify performance issues and what they are bound to, key optimizations, and methodologies for good game development in Unity. First we will go over some of the tools available that will make it easy to identify potential hot spots in your application.
NEWS
https://software.intel.com/en-us/blogs/2014/08/15/unity-android-support
We are pleased to announcedelivery of a piece that has been missing from the most popular game engine on the planet – support for Intel® architecture, including Intel graphics. As part of this announcement, Intel and Unity will be working together to deliver the following for the Unity3D game engine:
- Native Android* support for Intel architecture in all versions of Unity3D*
- Access to unique features of Intel graphics through Unity3D
- Access to IA's new CPU instructions and threading support
Unity has supported x86 on Windows* for a long time, but this collaboration brings native x86 support to Android* as well.
This functionality was previewed at Unite* and will be available soon with the latest version of Unity* 4 and Unity* 5. Once you have this new version of Unity, you will just need to open your existing project and create a new Android build. This will automatically include native support for x86 in addition to ARM. Your app will now have the best performance, optimized for both Intel and ARM-based devices.
Full Press Release: http://newsroom.intel.com/community/intel_newsroom/blog/2014/08/20/intel-and-unity-collaborate-to-extend-android-support-across-intel-based-devices
Missed Unite?
Big Android: Best Performance On The Most Devices
Download the presentationThursday, August 21, 17:00 - 17:30, Norcliff Room
Over 1 billion people use an Android device daily. This presentation will examine common bottlenecks and performance issues that affect Unity games on Android. Attendees will learn the best methods for reaching the highest possible FPS on the largest range of devices. We will also look at tools for low level profiling and optimization of the CPU and GPU (for ARM and x86).
Unity/X86 Labs
Intel and Unity will be teaming up to provide technical assistance to developers at the following upcoming events:
- 2015 International CES – Las Vegas, January 6-9
- D.I.C.E. Summit – Las Vegas, February 3-5
- Game Developers Conference – San Francisco, March 2-6
ISV ENTHUSIASM
Intel and Unity have given a few software developers access to a very early version of the Unity code base that supports access to Intel graphics and CPU technology. Early indications are that this announcement will cause tremendous excitement in the game developer community. SEGA is one of the companies jumping on this opportunity quickly, having already added x86 support to their Unity-based Sonic Dash* title. Chris Southall, Studio Head of Hardlight has stated, "SEGA's Hardlight is one of the very first mobile studios to utilize the x86-enabled version of Unity in one of its games. We've seen impressive performance gains by 'going native' - it's been great working with Unity and Intel on this."
Gaming companies, like Jumpstart*, want to release their software on as many platforms as easily as possible, while achieving better performance. Unity’s 4.6 release that provides native x86 support, is making these goals a reality. When Jumpstart applied the new Unity 4.5.4f1 version to their School of Dragons game, they achieved both a 146% frames per second speedup and an 87.6% lower CPU utilization simply by enabling Unity native x86 support.
Unity is making native x86 app support easy with its latest 4.6 release. Square Enix quickly saw the benefits of supporting native x86 on Android, with their Hitman GO* release developers achieved a 31.2% faster game load time to gameplay simply by enabling Unity native x86 support.