Unity's popularity is still rising. The active development, new features, the fact it's multiplatform and recently even the increased effort to fix all the bugs and tie the loose ends, this all makes Unity the number one choice for many developers. And the new 2D tools included in the standard package help to bring even more developers who used to work with 2D only engines to Unity. And just in time, Packt released a new book about making 100% 2D games in Unity.

The new book is thinner than other books from Packt on engines and it is also a bit cheaper. It reads well, but it feels too short and it doesn't explain much of the code.

The author used a different narrative than most other technical books. It will certainly appeal to those who prefer a more friendly and less technical approach, but unless you can read the code well, you might not understand everything.

The book is full of illustrations and code examples and at the end of the book, the readers will end up with an almost finished game ready to be shipped. The code examples in the book and the code attached is C# only, but the code is simple and it was easy to understand for me.

Summary

The new book about Unity 2D from Packt is easy to read quick guide that will teach you to create a simple and functional 2D game. It is written in a friendly and approachable style but it somewhat lacks important explanations. It's keenly priced right now, so it might be worth the buck. It's available on Packt website and also Amazon as always.

Free e-book giveaway

Thanks to the kind people in Packt I have three copies of the e-book to giveaway (with source codes). Submit your name and email here if you want to enter the contest.

Three lucky winners will be picked randomly on 19th June and Packt representative will send them access to the Packt library. Visit Packt website for more information about the book.

Unity is probably the most popular game engine for mobiles right now. There are a lot of books and online tutorials on this topic, so what does this one offer? Unity Android Game Development by Example Beginner's Guide will give you exactly what the title promises - beginner's guide. And it does it well.

This book should be the first one you read before you start developing games for mobiles. It will tell you all the general information about mobile games starting from the platforms available, how to assemble a team followed by description of each part of modern games such as graphics, music, sounds, user interface and it ends with the most important part - how to design games to be fun.

The book will also tell you how to monetize your mobile game and it describes different business models. It has as a basic the introduction to mobile market and gamers demographics.

A lot has changed since I started this website in May 2013. From a humble blog it grew into a website with hundreds of readers daily. Kulíš Android now features blog entries, game reviews, Android game development tutorials and other resources for indie devs. I also created a Facebook page and Twitter account. Since Google+ was kind of forced on us (users in general), the blog has been partly migrated there as well.

I'd like to thank everyone for their support in 2013. Here is what you can expect in the year 2014.

Book reviews and giveaways

If I get my hands on any Android books that could help the game devs, I am going to review them. I  have also made a deal with Packt Publishing and you will see more of the e-book giveaways during this year (one is in progress right now). Packt published a range od Android books, including but not limited to these:

• Unity Android Game Development by Example Beginner's Guide
• Learning Android Canvas
• Voice Application Development for Android
• Mobile Game Design Essentials
• Practical Game Design with Unity and Playmaker 

If you are developing Android games in AndEngine and you already have some experience under your belt, this book can help you master your skill and create even better games. Thanks to the book's publisher Packt, I got my hands on three free e-books and one of the copies including the MagneTank source code can be yours. If you are interested, read on!

As I said, the cookbook would serve you better if you have already tried making a game in AndEngine. It can be used by beginners, too. However it expects you to grasp the basic concepts quickly without much explaining. On the other hand the book is packed with extremely useful recipes and patterns that you should be using in your games.