DX Studio News

Upcoming v4 Key Features Announced

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

With the launch of v4 due this summer, we can now reveal the key features you can expect...

Cross platform support - players for Android, and Java+OpenGL (Windows+Mac+Linux).

Editor based mesh tweaker - for terrain finishing touches. Lets you 'soft' select vertices and raise/lower.

Light shaft effect - creates volumes of light beams.

Shadow improvements - removing judder of mapped shadows as resolution becomes more obvious.

Password protect option on build, with more seamless use of protected components.

SM2 minimum with user shader code insertion points, will compile SM3 if available.

Editor based performance monitor with pie charts showing a breakdown of time in each frame, with click-to-drilldown.

Instant edit and preview of documents. The documents are always loaded, so no need for F12. Scene editors launch without delay. Restart/pause buttons on the toolbar.

Water system - more easily add rivers and pools into your terrain.

Re-engineered scene graph - will provide a huge boost to render speed on all complex documents.

Comprehensive script commands for adding/removing any aspect (e.g. object.effectAdd), with tighter memory management.

First betas will be arriving in a couple of weeks, so if you'd like to try things out earlier, be sure to sign up (in your DX website account section).

DX Studio Service Build Released

Fri, 07 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

We're pleased to announce build v3.2.47 is now availble.

This build is a roundup of performance improvements, bugfixes and some cool new features, such as a transparent background player and multi-window support. The SDK has also been updated to allow for double precision vectors, which are now standard.

You can grab the new build now from the download page:- Download DX Studio v3.2.47 ...or discuss in the forums here.

Cross Platform DX Studio Player Announced

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Following demand especially for the Google Android platform, we are pleased to announce our Java based OpenGL/OpenGL ES cross platform player will be ready in the spring.

The functionality will be a subset of the Windows set, with the help updated to show Windows/Mac/Android functions. We'll also put in a system in v4 to set a target platform in the document properties, which will then restrict the autocomplete accordingly.

We intend to make the source code to cross platform players available, so it can be tailored with platform specifics as you need (e.g. some OS call only Android can do).

This JOGL player will also run on Windows and Linux, so will be a good base for when you need something to run on a wide range of systems.

First versions will be available in the spring.

New DX Studio Based Game Signed By Publisher

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

It has just been announced that the upcoming title Wittard:Nemesis of Ragnarok has been signed by publisher Mamba Games.

As a DX Studio based title this should hopefully encourage more of our Indie DX developers to go for a publishing deal.

Full Article

We wish Alan and the team the best of luck this year.

New C++ SDK Available

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

For Visual Studio C++ users there is now a new powerful way to connect to the DX Studio Player.

With DX Studio v3.2.6 developers can compile their own plugin to intercept any part of the update and render cycle in the main engine and insert their own C++ code (e.g. threading, DirectX SDK calls, etc). The full JavaScript scope is also made available, allowing for access to all script features from your plugin.

This DX Studio Guide Page has further technical details and a sample plugin to get started.

If you're not a C++ coder, this may still benefit you as you can expect to see some brand new effects using this new SDK coming in the near future.

All the best,
The DX Studio Team

DX User Magazine Issue 4 now available

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Just in time for the holiday period, aRa Aurasoft have launched the latest issue of their increasingly popular magazine, dedicated to all things DX Studio.

Along with the usual content, this festive edition brings us six great new tutorials, including how to make simple 2D & 3D mini games and a great introduction to using AI in your applications. There are also some exciting new projects and demos for you to check out, including details of the upcoming DXS Dungeon Crawler RPG.

Issue 04 of DXU mag (along with the previous issues) can be downloaded from the wiki here.

DX Studio v3.2 Released

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

We're pleased to announce that DX Studio v3.2 is now available for download.

Key features in v3.2 include:-

64-bit editor, with 64-bit IE plugin support.
Streaming module manager improvements - you can now just check a box on a 3D module to have it stream in and out of your scene automatically.
UI and icon refresh - improvements in both the look and functionality of UI components.
Lightweight EXE Builder - allows a small, non-admin EXE to be built for easy redistribution.
Global resource management - access resources from any part of the document from any resource manager.
Full plugin communication in IE Protected Mode and the latest Chrome and Firefox browsers.
Tighter memory management.
Core engine improvments to give a boost to FPS.
Pre-multiplied alpha support for more complex alpha blending.

DX Studio Powers Mind Control Games

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Game studios roll7 and hardware manufacturer Neurosky have announced the selection of DX Studio to power their new brainpower controlled games.

The headsets will ship with the new games in the next few weeks, but in the meantime you can check out a video of the games in action:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T--XJoJA19M

DX Studio on Twitter and YouTube

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

You can now keep up to date with DX Studio news and developments with Twitter at http://twitter.com/dxstudio. Never miss a service release again!

We're also organizing a collection of DX Studio videos on a new YouTube channel http://youtube.com/user/dxstudiovideos. Check back for more videos soon.

Issue 3 of DX User Magazine Now Available

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The latest issue of the increasingly popular DXU Magazine is now available to download.

Issue 3 is the biggest yet with a special feature on the recent Summer 2009 Demo Contest, including details of all the entries, articles from the winners, and some great tips and advice in the aftermath of the competition.

The issue also covers all of the regular features with some great articles for both experienced and inexperienced coders, and has many new tutorials to work through (including vehicle, destructible scenery and a how to make a 2D Mini game).

DXU 3 (as well as previous issues) can be downloaded from the wiki here.

A big thanks to the guys over at aRa Aurasoft for their continued dedication in producing this fantastic magazine and to everyone else who has contributed in the making of this issue.