Unity brings their 3D engine tech to the Wii U

Nintendo has been striking deals left and right to bring the latest and best technologies to the new Wii U console. The company just announced that it has reached an agreement with unity Technologies, providers of the popular Unity engine and technology.

The new deal will make Unity’s software, which includes the 3D engine, software libraries, physics technology, and more, to the Wii U. The agreement gives Nintendo the right to distribute the engine to third party developers, as well as use it for its first party titles. Any developer currently using Unity for other platforms will have a chance to bring their project to the Wii U.

Unity Wii UUnity will also create a “Wii U add-on” for their engine, which means developers will be able to easily publish their games on the Wii U, in addition to other platforms. Unity currently has over 1 million registered developers. The engine costs around $4,000 to $5,000, depending on the add-ons and additional services. While that may sound like a lot, it’s a fraction of what other engines cost. For example, CryEngine 3 reportedly costs $1.2 million to license for a game.

Nintendo has made several agreements with third party software makers over the past year to provide technology for the Wii U. Those deals include Havok for Wii U physics, and more recently, rendering software from Umbra. The Wii U supports many modern game engines, including Unreal Engine 3, CryEngien 3, ID Tech 5, and others.