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Unite 2012: Unity motors behind Microsoft with support for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8

#Unite12 Expansion was 'eagerly awaited'

Unite 2012: Unity motors behind Microsoft with support for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8
Unity has used its annual Unite conference – this year currently taking place in Amsterdam – to announce support for both Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8.

Unveiled during the event's keynote speech, the company claimed support for both platforms would be rolled out during Unity 4's release cycle.

Eager addition

"Our mission at Unity has always been to provide solutions for developers to effortlessly bring their work to as many different platforms as possible," said Unity Technologies CEO David Helgason.

"The Unity community has been asking for access to Windows Phones and have been eagerly anticipating the release of Windows 8.

"We're happy to announce that we will support both."

Unity claims it is currently "working hard" with Microsoft to bring deployment options for both platforms to developers "as soon as possible", claiming the two operating systems are "among the most eagerly awaited platform additions within the Unity development community."

Question of quality

"We are excited that the Unity community will now be given the opportunity to develop world class titles for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8," added senior director of Windows App Marketing at Microsoft John Richards

"The number of high quality Unity-authored games for the PC, Xbox, and mobile devices already created is staggering and we’re looking forward to seeing these products appear in the Windows Store and the Windows Phone Marketplace."

Support for Windows Phone has been long rumoured ever since WP8 was announced, with support for Windows Phone 7 effectively out of Unity's reach thanks to its lack of support for native code – an oversight Microsoft has sought to cosign to history with its forthcoming OS update.

With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.