The government-funded Institute for Information Industry (III, 資策會) yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with video game engine developer Unity Technologies in a bid to boost Taiwan’s gaming industry.
“Given Unity’s leading position in the global market, we believe that collaboration to nurture local talent and cooperation with local game developers will benefit the nation’s gaming industry,” Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) told a news conference at the two-day Unite 2015 Taipei forum.
San Francisco-based Unity is the largest engine and tool developer for 3D and 2D games worldwide with 45 percent global market share, the III said, citing industry data.
The number of users playing games powered by Unity’s technologies has reached more than 800 million people worldwide, the III added.
Taiwanese game developers Chinese Gamer International Corp (中華網龍), InterServ International Inc (昱泉國際) and Rayak Inc (雷亞遊戲) have used Unity’s engine and tools to develop their games.
Unity-based games can be run on a variety of platforms, including mobile devices, Web browsers and PCs. Rovio Entertainment Ltd, creator of the Angry Birds franchise, used the Unity engine to develop the mobile game Bad Piggies in 2013.
Under the MOU, Unity is to provide courses to game developers and authorize three high schools in Taiwan to use its development engine and tools for free, the ministry said.
The ministry said it is in talks with Unity to authorize more local high schools to use the company’s game engine and tools.
“Moreover, we hope the MOU with Unity will pave the way for the firm to set up offices in Taiwan, offering service and support to domestic game developers,” an Industrial Development Bureau official told the Taipei Times.
Unity greater China managing director Allen Foo (符國新) said the company’s technologies could also be applied to other industries, such as the medical, educational, architecture and advertising sectors.
“By combining Unity’s technologies and virtual-reality gadgets, students could learn the structure of an airplane in a classroom instead of touching a real airplane, which would lower educational costs,” Foo said.
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