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A look at C++11 Weak Pointers in Leadwerks 5

Previously, I talked a little bit about shared pointers in C++11.  These use automatic reference counting to track how many variables are pointing to an object.  When the object is no longer being used, it is automatically deleted.  This is similar to garbage collection, but doesn't involve the massive overhead of garbage-collected systems.  In fact, shared pointers simply automate something we were already doing with the Release() and AddRef() commands in Leadwerks 4. A weak pointer is lik

Josh

Josh

C++11 Shared Pointers Make Leadwerks 5 Simpler

This shows the fundamental difference between shared pointers and manual reference counting. Leadwerks 4: void Material::SetTexture(Texture* texture, const int index) { if (this->texture[index] != texture) { if (this->texture[index]) this->texture[index]->Release(); this->texture[index] = texture; if (this->texture[index]) this->texture[index]->AddRef(); } } Leadwerks 5: void Material::SetTexture(shared_ptr<Texture> texture, const int index)

Josh

Josh

Learning how to use C++11 shared pointers

I have implemented C++11 shared pointers into Leadwerks Game Engine 5 and the following program now works.  When you press the space key the box variable is set to NULL and the visible box on the screen disappears: #include "Leadwerks.h" using namespace Leadwerks; int main(int argc, const char *argv[]) { auto window = CreateWindow(); auto context = CreateContext(window); auto world = CreateWorld(); auto camera = CreateCamera(world); camera->Move(0,0,-5); camera->SetClearColor(

Josh

Josh

How to Request a Payout from Leadwerks Marketplace

Some of you are earning money selling your game assets in Leadwerks Marketplace. This quick article will show you how to request a payout from the store for money you have earned. First, you need to be signed into your Leadwerks account. Click the drop-down user menu in the upper right corner of the website header and click on the link that says "Account Balance". On the next page you can see your account balance. As long as it is $20 or more you can withdraw the balance into you

Josh

Josh

FBX Converter Updated

A small update has been published to the default branch of Leadwerks Game Engine on Steam. This updates the FBX converter so that the scene units (meters, feet, etc.) are read from the file and used to convert the model at the proper size. Previously, the raw numbers for position, scale, and vertex positions were read in as meters. The new importer also supports both smooth groups and per-vertex normals, so models can be imported more reliably without having to recalculate normals. An error

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks 5 Feature Spotlight: glTF Models

Leadwerks Game Engine 5 will be backwards-compatible with asset file formats used in version 4. In addition, we are adding support for glTF 2.0 (GL Transmission Format), a new open-spec model format from Khronos with support for skinned animation and PBR materials. glTF will be our main 3D model format, for both development and final published models. What's so great about the glTF file format? Documented and Human-Readable Unlike the "black box" FBX file format, which can only be re

Admin

Admin

Ultra Engine Early Access is Here

Ultra Engine unlocks the full power of your GPU to deliver up to 10x faster performance for your game. Ultra Engine is now available in Early Access, both in our store and on Steam. Use coupon code "LAUNCH" to receive a discount before January 1. Ultra Engine is a huge leap in technology that provides a new future-proof foundation, while keeping the strengths and general design philosophy we developed in Leadwerks. There were many major underlying changes made to create a better development

Admin

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Leadwerks Engine SDK 2.3 released

Leadwerks Engine 2.3 has been released. This major update includes a new editor, Lua script integration, forest rendering, roads, and more.   Lua Script Integration: Write object scripts and write your game in any programming language, or you can write your entire game in Lua.   New Editor: Leadwerks Editor is our new tool for creating enormous terrains, placing objects, and creating worlds. You can even edit scripts and see the results instantly.   Forest Rendering: An advanced new r

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks Engine Evaluation Kit 2.3 released

Finally, the evaluation kit for Leadwerks Engine 2.3 is released. Get it here. The evaluation kit allows saving and script editing for a period of 30 days. C/C++ programming is not possible with the evaluation kit. An NVidia GEForce 7000 or ATI Radeon 2000 series graphics card is required. An NVidia GEForce 8800 or ATI Radeon 3870 graphics card is recommended.

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks Engine SDK 2.31 released

Leadwerks Engine SDK 2.31 is now available. A new SDK installer in the download area allows you to download different versions of the SDK. You must have an activated Leadwerks account to download the new SDK installer.   New features include lighting optimizations for point and spot lights. You can read about this feature in detail here. Another new feature is character controller crouching behavior. Note that the origin of character controllers has been moved to the very bottom of the co

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks Engine 2.32 Released

Leadwerks Engine 2.32 is now available.   2.32 -"Render" Lua object function renamed to "Draw". -Added Draw entity callback. -Entity draw callback and Lua "Draw" object function will only be called at most once per frame. Perform animation in this function. -Entity LOD distance parameters changed for better performance. -LoadAnimation now works without exact hierarchy matches, so LOD meshes can all use the full-res animation. -Implemented entity octree with hierarchical culling and pick

Josh

Josh

Rocks and Stones Model Pack Released

The Rocks and Stones Model Pack by Pure3D is now available here: http://leadwerks.com/werkspace/index.php?/page/products/_/assets/rocks-and-stones-pack-r1   You can also still get the Industrial Cargo Model Pack for the low introductory price of just $9.95 until Monday, September 6, before the price goes up: http://leadwerks.com/werkspace/index.php?/page/products/_/assets/industrial-cargo-model-pack-r8

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks Engine 3 Forums now open

The Leadwerks Engine 3 Forums are open to all Leadwerks developers so you can post your ideas and get information on the development of Leadwerks Engine 3. Additionally, forums are now divided up by product, with forums for Leadwerks Engine 2, Leadwerks Engine 3, and 3D World Studio. We think this organization will provide more room to grow in the future.

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Admin

Leadwerks.com launches new community features

Leadwerks.com now features a video gallery where our members can post movies of their games made with Leadwerks Engine. Instead of slowly uploading a huge video file, you can simply enter a YouTube video ID to submit movies. Check out some of the cool videos like Legos falling over to a techno soundtrack, fly through floating islands in Aerora, and of course there's Dave Lee's excellent Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.   We've also created a random rotating banner image in our website header. Lead

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks Software Now Offering Internships

Leadwerks Software is now offering internships through the Center for Entreprenuership at Sacramento State University. Internships are available for programming, 3D art, web development, and marketing.   Programming Internship Assist the development team with tools and core engine design. Work with game development team to create a sample Leadwerks3D game. Gain experience working in a professional software development environment. C++ and Lua experience are a plus but not required.

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Leadwerks wants to put game development on Steam

Valve Software's Steam is a game distribution platform used by millions of gamers worldwide. What started as simply a way to buy and update games has evolved into a vast ecosystem with instant messaging between friends, game hubs featuring players' screenshots and video, and workshops for sharing user-generated content. Last fall, Valve added software titles to its lineup of products, and implemented Greenlight, a system that lets users vote directly on which titles should be sold on Steam.

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Admin

You did it! Native game development is coming to Linux

In just three weeks, the Linux community has successfully funded the development of Leadwerks for Linux. This means we're going to bring Leadwerks 3.1 to Linux, with native support for developing Linux games...so Linux games can now be completely free from Windows. Greenlight It's been an amazing few weeks. During this time, we also successfully completed our Greenlight campaign to make Leadwerks available on Steam and take advantage of features like the Steam Workshop. You can see from th

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Admin

New Kickstarter rewards added, with international shipping

I've added new rewards including international shipping for our T-Shirt and sticker, as well as an indie team and professional site license. A lot of people have been asking for international shipping for the T-shirt and sticker rewards, but I wanted to make sure I knew what the shipping would cost first. It's a good thing I checked because it costs $16.75 to ship. The good news is its a flat rate for any country, so I can rely on that cost when I price things. To sweeten the deal, I am incl

Josh

Josh

Leadwerks 3.1 Enters Beta; Heading to Steam Dev Days

Leadwerks 3.1 has entered the beta testing phase on schedule according to our development plan laid out in the Leadwerks for Linux Kickstarter campaign. Supporters who chose the SUPER BACKER reward have been granted access to try the early builds of Leadwerks for Linux.   We chose to use the excellent Code::Blocks IDE for Linux development. Beta testers can access the full Leadwerks API to program graphics, physics, and gameplay, along with a few new functions like Camera::SetMultisampleMode

Admin

Admin

Leadwerks Game Engine Arrives on Steam, Turns Players into Makers

After blasting through Greenlight in just 27 days, Leadwerks Software today announced the launch of Leadwerks Game Engine: Indie Edition, exclusively available on the Steam distribution platform. The arrival of Leadwerks adds 3D game development software to Valve’s lineup of creative and productivity tools.   Leadwerks is designed to make game development easy for Steam’s 65 million users, with a royalty-free license for making commercial products. A new renderer built on OpenGL 4.0 provides h

Admin

Admin

Leadwerks Game Engine demo released on Steam

A demo version of Leadwerks Game Engine has been released on Steam. If you've got a Steam account, you can now try the easiest way to make your own 3D games, free for fourteen days. Try out the sample maps that teach gameplay concepts, import some of your own artwork, or just play around with the editor and learning materials.     The full version of Leadwerks enables access to the Leadwerks Workshop, where you can download more than 70 items, including models, sounds, texture packs, and

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Admin

Leadwerks Game Engine for Linux Launches on Steam

Following completion of their successful Kickstarter campaign to bring Leadwerks’ game development software to Linux, Leadwerks has announced the release of Leadwerks Game Engine for Linux on the Steam distribution platform. This provides Linux users with a powerful tool to easily create their own 3D games.   Over the last year, Leadwerks has focused on desktop Linux as a platform for creating and playing games. For many users, Leadwerks provides the last missing application they need to mov

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Admin

FPS Weapons Pack now available on Steam

The Leadwerks FPS Weapons Pack is now available on Steam as a DLC. The FPS Weapons Pack provides a small arsenal of game-ready weapons, with no coding required. Drag these objects into your map for the player to pick up and use. Pulverize your enemies with a machete, .22 pistol, combat shotgun, MP5 submachine gun and an M4 carbine. Each weapon includes sounds, effects, animations, and scripted behavior that make it ready-to-use in your Leadwerks games.   The pack can be purchased with a 15% d

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Zombie Character Pack Released

Our first character pack for Leadwerks has been released. The Zombie Character Pack DLC is now available on Steam for $29.99, with a 15% launch discount.     The Leadwerks Zombie Character Pack provides you with a horde of undead monsters to slay. Fight your way through the flesh-eating mob or pit them against each other in an all-zombie brawl to the death. All characters are fully scripted and ready to use in Leadwerks, with no programming required. Just drop them into your map and press

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