Unity Tutorial - Part 1 - Setup

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A completed version of the game we'll create in this tutorial is available at:

https://github.com/ClockworkLabs/Blackholio

Prepare Project Structure

This project is separated into two subdirectories;

Server (module) code
Client code

First, we'll create a project root directory (you can choose the name):

mkdir blackholio
cd blackholio

We'll start by populating the client directory.

Setting up the Tutorial Unity Project

In this section, we will guide you through the process of setting up a Unity Project that will serve as the starting point for our tutorial. By the end of this section, you will have a basic Unity project and be ready to implement the server functionality.

Step 1: Create a Blank Unity Project

The SpacetimeDB Unity SDK minimum supported Unity version is 2021.2 as the SDK requires C# 9. See the overview for more information on specific supported versions.

Open Unity and create a new project by selecting "New" from the Unity Hub or going to File -> New Project.

⚠️ Important: Choose the Universal 2D template to select a template which uses the Unity Universal Render Pipeline.

For Project Name use client. For Project Location make sure that you use your blackholio directory. This is the directory that we created in a previous step.

Click "Create" to generate the blank project.

Import the SpacetimeDB Unity SDK

Add the SpacetimeDB Unity Package using the Package Manager. Open the Package Manager window by clicking on Window -> Package Manager. Click on the + button in the top left corner of the window and select "Add package from git URL". Enter the following URL and click Add.

https://github.com/clockworklabs/com.clockworklabs.spacetimedbsdk.git

The SpacetimeDB Unity SDK provides helpful tools for integrating SpacetimeDB into Unity, including a network manager which will synchronize your Unity client's state with your SpacetimeDB database in accordance with your subscription queries.

Create the GameManager Script

In the Unity Project window, go to the folder where you want to keep your scripts (e.g., Scripts folder).
Right-click in the folder, then select Create > C# Script or in Unity 6 MonoBehavior Script.
Name the script GameManager.

The GameManager script will be where we will put the high level initialization and coordination logic for our game.

Add the GameManager to the Scene

Create an Empty GameObject:
- Go to the top menu and select GameObject > Create Empty.
- Alternatively, right-click in the Hierarchy window and select Create Empty.
Rename the GameObject:
- In the Inspector, click on the GameObject’s name at the top and rename it to GameManager.
Attach the GameManager Script:
- Drag and drop the GameManager script from the Project window onto the GameManager GameObject in the Hierarchy window.
- Alternatively, in the Inspector, click Add Component, search for GameManager, and select it.

Add the SpacetimeDB Network Manager

The SpacetimeDBNetworkManager is a simple script which hooks into the Unity Update loop in order to drive the sending and processing of messages between your client and SpacetimeDB. You don't have to interact with this script, but it must be present on a single GameObject which is in the scene in order for it to facilitate the processing of messages.

When you build a new connection to SpacetimeDB, that connection will be added to and managed by the SpacetimeDBNetworkManager automatically.

Click on the GameManager object in the scene and click Add Component. Search for and select the SpacetimeDBNetworkManager to add it to your GameManager object.

Our Unity project is all set up! If you press play, it will show a blank screen, but it should start the game without any errors. Now we're ready to get started on our SpacetimeDB server module, so we have something to connect to!

Create the Server Module

We've now got the very basics set up. In part 2 you'll learn the basics of how how to create a SpacetimeDB server module and how to connect to it from your client.

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