All our workflow explainers are waffle-free and work-tested. That’s the pixels.cool guarantee!
Install the Unity Hub and Unity LTS
Overview
Name of explainer: Install the Unity Hub and Unity LTS
Creative theme: Beginning 3D Modelling using UModeler
Software used (for this explainer): Unity Hub. Unity LTS
User level: BEGINNER
This is explainer 1 of 7 in this series
This series includes:
- Install the Unity Hub and Unity LTS
- Create a Unity project and install the Umodeler asset
- Create a UModeler object and explore the UModeler interface
- Navigate the scene and scale, rotate and move 3D objects
- Adjust faces, edges and vertices to make unique 3d shapes
- Create a simple car model based on the Simpsons Canyonero
- Apply materials and textures to the Canyonero and export the model
The Software
This series of explainers uses the Unity platform and the ‘UModeler’ Unity asset .
UNITY is a real-time 2D and 3D development platform. It’s a versatile environment used to create animations, 2D, 3D and VR games, as their recent showreel demonstrates!
You’ll recognise these popular games, all developed in Unity. Expand to view:
Beat Saber
New Star GP
Cuphead
With its full 3D feature set, Unity can also be used to create full animated films and cinematic sequences:
Short Movie: ADAM
Animated film: SONDER
To introduce 3d modelling we’re using the Unity 3d modelling asset UModeler:
UModeler is a PAID asset with a standard price of around £120 / $120. Once you’ve learnt the basics you may like to graduate to UModeler X, the professional-level modelling tool for Unity:
The 3D car model created in this series
To demonstrate basic UModeler modelling tools we’ll create a simple car based on the Canyonero, as made famous in the Simpsons! Notice it’s made from a small number of polygons, has a ‘cut out’ interior and a nice shiny coat of paint!
Here’s how our Canyonero looks at the end of the initial explainers:
…and here’s how it looks after additional tweaking and accessorising:
The pre-requisities
This is a BEGINNER explainer series, but you’ll need to have a basic knowledge of using Windows, downloading and installing software to follow along. Unity is a complex application and is not recommended for new computer users. For introductory Unity courses and videos, have a look at their own learning platform, Unity Learn
Why would I do this?
We must install Unity and UModeler to begin 3D modelling!
Let’s do it!
Click the play icon to watch this explainer video. Subtitles are available – Click the settings cog at the bottom right for options. You can watch this video full-screen by clicking the full-screen icon at the bottom right.
Video Transcript (Click to expand)
Here is the full transcript for explainer one above.
Welcome to you and welcome to beginning 3 d modeling with u modeler.
00:00:19 – 00:00:27
We’ll be using Unity, the real time three d development environment, and the u modeler Unity asset to introduce 3 d modeling.
00:00:28 – 00:00:34
We’ll use the basic tools to create a simple car model based on this iconic Simpsons Canyonero.
00:00:34 – 00:00:43
The car could be used as part of a Unity game or a VR environment or shared online at a site like Sketchfab where you can show off your work.
00:00:43 – 00:00:46
UModeler works right inside Unity itself.
00:00:46 – 00:00:49
It’s a great place to start creating gaming assets and environments.
00:00:50 – 00:00:58
Once you’re familiar with it, you may choose to graduate to u Modeler X, which offers additional professional level functionality.
00:00:58 – 00:01:8
If you’re more interested in creating models for 3d printing, architectural visualization, or other workflows, there may be more appropriate software for you to start your modeling journey.
00:01:9 – 00:01:10
For examples, see the website.
00:01:11 – 00:01:17
In this explainer, I’ll download the Unity Hub then install the current version of Unity LTS.
00:01:18 – 00:01:21
Start by going to this address in your browser.
00:01:22 – 00:01:27
Whatever you create in Unity, your starting point will always be the Unity Hub so you need to download it.
00:01:28 – 00:01:32
We’re going to use the Windows version, so I’ll click download for Windows.
00:01:34 – 00:01:40
Once downloaded, run the Unity Hub installation program and follow the instructions to install it.
00:01:42 – 00:01:45
You’re going to need a free account to use Unity.
00:01:46 – 00:01:56
If you don’t already have a Unity account, go to the person icon at the top left and select create account, and work through the fields to sign up.
00:01:57 – 00:02:3
Once you’ve created your account, return to the Unity Hub and select at the top left to sign in.
00:02:5 – 00:02:9
Once you’ve signed in, select installs on the left.
00:02:9 – 00:02:11
You’re going to need a license to use the program.
00:02:12 – 00:02:13
Go to manage licenses.
00:02:15 – 00:02:18
I’m going to select to get a free personal license.
00:02:18 – 00:02:24
This is perfect for new users and hobbyists who aren’t currently planning to make money from their creations.
00:02:25 – 00:02:28
Agree and get the personal edition license.
00:02:28 – 00:02:30
Now I have a free license.
00:02:30 – 00:02:33
I need to install a version of Unity itself.
00:02:33 – 00:02:37
Select installs then click install editor.
00:02:37 – 00:02:39
There are various official releases.
00:02:39 – 00:02:45
Look at the long term support section and select to install the latest LTS version.
00:02:46 – 00:02:55
LTS versions of Unity are stable and have ongoing support, which make them a great choice when you’re brand new and don’t want to risk an update causing issues with your projects.
00:02:55 – 00:03:0
We’re not creating a game, and we won’t be editing code in this series.
00:03:0 – 00:03:5
Accordingly, I can untick any extra components that have been automatically selected.
00:03:7 – 00:03:10
The Unity editor will download then install.
00:03:11 – 00:03:15
At time of recording, this is around 12 gigabytes, so it might be time to grab a coffee.
00:03:16 – 00:03:19
That’s Unity installed and ready to go.
00:03:19 – 00:03:25
In the next explainer, we’ll create a new Unity project and install the Unity 3 d modeling asset, umodeler.
The main steps included in the above video:
- Introduction to creating a car model in Unity using UModeler, inspired by the Simpsons Canyonero.
- Download the Unity Hub from the Unity website.
- Install the current version of Unity ‘Long Term Support’ (LTS) via the Unity Hub.
- Create a free Unity account if you don’t have one, and sign in.
- Obtain a free personal license for Unity through the Unity Hub.
- Install the latest LTS version of Unity from the “Installs” section in Unity Hub.
- Prepare for the next video, where you’ll create a new Unity project and install the UModeler asset.
Good to know
As mentioned in the explainer, it’s a good idea to select the latest version of Unity LTS to use with this series. This ‘long term support’ version will not suddenly be updated and is supported by Unity and the community, making it easier to get help and less likely your project will ‘break’ part way through.
Where to next?
In the next explainer we’ll create a brand new Unity project and import the Umodeler asset into it.
Remember, this is part of a series of explainers – Join us again for the other explainers in the series 🙂
Notes and updates
There are no notes or advisories at this time. This video explainer was last updated in October 2023. This page was last updated in November 2024.
Disclaimer:
We are not responsible for the content of any external webpages or software downloaded from third party sites. Any links are included in good faith at the time of writing. All explainer content is compiled in good faith using processes and methods used by the Team. Modern software offers users many ways to accomplish a single task, and for reasons of clarity we choose not to refer to multiple options except where deemed helpful to do so. All computer users must run up to date virus / security software at all times to minimise the risk of data loss.
This is number 1 of 7 explainer videos in this series. Make sure you join us for the others!
