The Virtual Time Framework is designed to help developers avoid changing the default Unity timescale, which can lead to unexpected behavior. It allows for the creation of virtual times with independent timescales, enabling greater flexibility in managing time within a Unity application. This can be useful for creating separate timescales for the UI and game world, or for slowing down or speeding up specific behaviors within the game.
One key use case is to enable the UI to work on a separate timescale from the rest of the game. For example, the world might need to be slowed down, while the UI remains responsive and fast. Another use case is to slow down or speed up specific behaviors within the game, without affecting the rest of the game.
The Virtual Time Framework provides a powerful and flexible solution for managing time within a Unity application, enabling developers to create complex time hierarchies and precise control over time behavior. By avoiding changes to the default Unity timescale, the framework helps to minimize unexpected behavior and improve the overall quality of the application.
Type: Tool / Code Library
Description: Virtual Time is a tool for managing time in Unity. It works in a tree structure with a root Virtual Time representing the default Unity Time. Each Virtual Time is a child of another and affecting any Virtual Time will affect the time of all of its children.
Key Features:
- Virtual Time tree structure for managing time
- Easy-to-use means for managing time
- Example MonoBehaviour script for using Virtual Time in Unity
- Custom yield instruction for waiting in Virtual Time
- Graph editor and visualizer for building Virtual Time architectures
Technical Details:
- Virtual Time is implemented as a C# library for Unity.
- The library uses a tree structure to represent Virtual Time and its hierarchy.
- The library includes a set of APIs for managing Virtual Time, such as setting the time scale or pausing time.
- The MonoBehaviour script provided with the package demonstrates how to use Virtual Time in Unity.
- The custom yield instruction allows coroutines to wait for Virtual Time to progress.
- The graph editor and visualizer provide an intuitive way to build Virtual Time architectures and visualize their structure.
