AI Fair Use Ruling ⚖️, Godot Update 🚀, Google Instant Games 🎮
📰 Legal & Technological Advances
U.S. Court Rules AI Training on Purchased Books is Fair Use, Impacting Creators
A landmark U.S. court ruling confirms that training AI models on legally purchased books qualifies as fair use, a decision that marks a major moment in the ongoing AI copyright debate. However, pirated books remain off-limits, with potential trillion-dollar fines looming for infringement. This precedent may influence future cases involving generative AI, highlighting the complex balance between AI innovation and authors’ rights in today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Godot 3.6.x Patch Brings Critical Fixes and Performance Improvements
Godot Engine’s 3.6.x maintenance release addresses important bugs like grid snapping and directional light performance regressions while incorporating cherry-picked updates from Godot 4.x libraries. The update improves editor stability, fixes physics and audio issues, and provides project compatibility enhancements. However, pre-built support for Universal Windows Platform (UWP) has been dropped due to low demand and build complications
🎮 Game Development Insights & Innovations
Crafting Dynamic Japanese Environments in UE5: Insights from Senior Artist Artem Ostapchuk
Senior Environment Artist Artem Ostapchuk walks us through his journey of creating a vibrant, Japanese-inspired scene in Unreal Engine 5. Blending his programming background with artistic passion, he shares practical workflows for rapid iteration, dynamic vegetation using World Position Offset, and mastering lighting and texturing. His focus on trusting the creative process and embracing iteration reveals valuable lessons for aspiring environment artists aiming to craft immersive worlds.
Google Launches Instant Games App for Download-Free Mobile Play
Google has quietly introduced Instant Games, a new Play Store app that lets Android users browse and play HTML5 games instantly without any downloads. Featuring titles like Om Nom Run and Banana Run, the app offers filters for new, multiplayer, and offline games to enhance discoverability. Available on select devices, Instant Games positions itself as a quick-access hub following Apple’s entry into mobile game aggregation.
💰 Investments in AI & Gaming
Unlock Advanced Unreal Engine 5 Graphics with William Mishra-Manning’s Tutorial Series
Developer William Mishra-Manning shares an in-depth tutorial series on advanced Unreal Engine 5 graphics programming, covering HLSL shaders, material creation, and custom mesh passes—all without modifying the engine. Along with detailed code explanations, he offers a reusable plugin to simplify screen-space passes and material integration, plus demos showcasing these features. Perfect for Unreal developers looking to push the boundaries of rendering and graphics customization.
Motorica Raises $5.8M to Revolutionize AI-Driven Character Animation
Stockholm-based Motorica has secured $5.8 million in seed funding to accelerate its groundbreaking generative AI platform for character animation. Promising reductions of up to 99% in animation time and processes 200 times faster than traditional motion capture, Motorica aims to automate tedious tasks like keyframing. By doing so, it empowers animators to focus on creativity, storytelling, and innovation. The company plans to launch SDKs and APIs for easy integration with game engines and VFX studios, fueling the next era of immersive, dynamic digital worlds.