will Unity require a graphics card?

[simpultin]

Hi all,

Do we know if Unity will require a dedicated graphics card? I know that Unity is still in development and as far as I am aware they have not mentioned anything official.

I'm looking to pick up a new laptop though, and do not otherwise need a graphics card. I'd like to future proof this purchase if possible, so even an educated guess from those of you who know more abut this type of stuff than me would be appreciated. What I am looking at is a windows PC with i5 or i7 and 12-16 gig ram but only integrated graphics.



thanks,
John

[AlphaDecay]

It can't hurt. They've shown weather effects and all of that on their demo videos, not sure what kind of graphics acceleration that needs. Maybe look for a previous generation (Nvidia 1060) option?

[Xemit]

From past experience with notebook (and desktop) computers, the integrated GPUs are just adequate for email, web browsing, and office type applications and they struggle with pretty well any animation. The real GPU cards (if fairly current, say within the last 2-3 generations) will have basically no problems with any usage (the newer the better, but also more expensive).

Notebooks will often have the integrated GPU and a accelerated GPU, giving you performance when needed and power saving when needed. Sometimes you will have to configure which GPU gets used in select software, but this is easy to configure should it be needed.

That being said, the newest integrated GPUs are much improved for compatibility with light animation support and will likely be adequate.

So, if you can afford to get a notebook with accelerated GPU you will maximize the usefulness and lifespan of your purchase. If that is too much to spend then at least ensure it is using the latest generation of the integrated video hardware.

Demos of FGU do show more heavy usage of video, so an accelerated GPU would be wise. We've already seen problems with FGC and the integrated GPUs not being recent enough or capable enough.

As another guess, check out the system requirements from a few games already out there that use Unity. We won't know for sure until FGU is nearly ready to ship.

[damned]

Moon Wizard or pindercarl suggested that FGU may not require a more robust graphics gpu than FGC because unity is better at handling the graphics and directx will no longer be used. But they have also said that it is too early to make a call.

I dont play many games. My laptop is over 4 years old and only has an integrated gpu. It has never had an issue with FG but I cannot run Wonderdraft (ok it runs but it is so slow on my computer its no fun to use) but I can play fortnite...

[pindercarl]

Moon Wizard or pindercarl suggested that FGU may not require a more robust graphics gpu than FGC because unity is better at handling the graphics and directx will no longer be used. But they have also said that it is too early to make a call.

I dont play many games. My laptop is over 4 years old and only has an integrated gpu. It has never had an issue with FG but I cannot run Wonderdraft (ok it runs but it is so slow on my computer its no fun to use) but I can play fortnite...

To be clear, FGU will not use DirectX 9. The issue that some users experience with integrated graphics cards and FG is that modern hardware does not always work and play well with older DX libraries. As such, it is likely that FGU will work better with integrated graphics hardware than FG Classic. We currently have no metrics or testing on a range of hardware, so I can't comment with any certainty how the laptop in question will perform with FGU.

[ColinBuckler]

One of the factors that concerns me with the Unity version is the bug that currently exists within MS Windows regarding indirect displays and laptops with two graphics cards. For example:

I have a Dell laptop i7, 16gb memory with internal Intel HD 530 and a Nvidia GTX 960m. This works great with FG but is limited on screen real estate so I have a Display-Link port extender which allows 3 additional monitors - now this worked great on Windows 10 until MS released the Windows 10 Anniversary edition 2 years ago and introduced the bug.

Since then the additional monitors connected to port extender become indirect displays and will not allow me to use my Nvidia 960m to drive graphics on these monitors - hence all games run like crap. Microsoft have apparently recognized this has a bug but still not fixed it 2 years later !!!! Its all to do with enumeration of the graphics cards/displays as windows starts.

Some games do work great as they allow you to select an alternative graphics card ( such as Middle-earth; Shadow of Mordor).

Not sure there is anything you can do as a developer (unless Unity interface can allow you to select an installed graphics card) but it may affect users who use port extenders/docks who suddenly find issues with the game performance when using FGU.

Happy to test as soon as an Alpha or Beta version becomes available.....

[LordEntrails]

One of the factors that concerns me with the Unity version is the bug that currently exists within MS Windows regarding indirect displays and laptops with two graphics cards.....
Personally, I gave up using Display-Link a few years ago because of a similar problem it had causing OpenGL applications to crash Windows.

[Mytherus]

I doubt I'll get it since I just spent money on FG this weekend, but I keep reading on here about FG unity -- what is the "special" thing about the unity version as compared to the current release of FG?

[pindercarl]

I doubt I'll get it since I just spent money on FG this weekend, but I keep reading on here about FG unity -- what is the "special" thing about the unity version as compared to the current release of FG?

There is an FAQ here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?43254-Fantasy-Grounds-Unity-FAQ

[ColinBuckler]

Personally, I gave up using Display-Link a few years ago because of a similar problem it had causing OpenGL applications to crash Windows.

That sounds very similar to the issue with the inderct display bug. It does help - some what - if your primary display is the laptop and your seconday displays are your additional screens connected via the Display-Link.

They are actively developing the Display-Link driver but the company i sliited to fixing the issue as its a MS Windows bug.

[WESeib]

I don't know if this will help but I can run Arkenforge (which is Unity based) connected to a 49 inch tv with a HPSpectre x360.
The graphics card on it is a NVIDIA GeForce MX150

If you want to "Future proof" it (as much as possible with technology anyway) I would recommend you get one with dedicated graphics. It doesn't have to be a GTX 1080 though.