If you’re new to game development, or just want to work more efficiently while developing games, AI can be an incredible tool to use with Unity! With the increase in popularity of generative AIs like ChatGPT, DeepSeek & Gemini, AI has become a brand new tool which can be used to speed up a number of mundane tasks. Game development is no exception!
Whether you need help writing code, want to sharpen your enemies or want to automate testing your game, deciding to use AI in Unity can be useful throughout the entire game development process. Here are ten simple ways to use AI in Unity without needing expert skills!
1. Using AI to Write Code
One of the quickest industries AI began to have an immediate effect on was software engineering, with tools like ChatGPT making writing code easier than ever. While it remains true that having a basic understanding of the code in your games is always a good thing, as it means you’re able to tweak and edit it as you please, there’s no shame in using AI to generate routine scripts for you. Here’s how you do it:
How to do it:
- Install GitHub Copilot in your code editor (such as Visual Studio Code).
- Start writing your Unity C# scripts, and the AI will suggest code completions.
- If you need extra help, use a tool like ChatGPT or Deepseek to ask for explanations and debugging help.
Using this approach, you can debug and produce code for your game much, much more efficiently. But, this is only one of the ways that these tools can help you in Unity. Let’s move on to another way to use AI in Unity, by using it to train your game’s enemies.
2. Making Smarter Enemies
Unity has a built in NavMesh system which helps implement AI into your enemies. This way, they move intelligently, find optimal paths to chase players or patrol an area. You can implement this system into any Unity project with ease!
How to do it:
- Check out this tutorial hosted on Unity’s official learning platform, explaining the NavMesh component while guiding you through creating a simple project.
- For more help on using NavMesh, check out Unity’s official documentation here.
This is a slightly more complicated way to use AI in Unity, since it requires learning a new tool. That said, once you’ve figured out how it all works, you’ll save yourself countless hours writing scripts for your enemies.
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3. Animating Characters Easily
Instead of manually creating animations, AI tools like Mixamo can generate lifelike animations automatically. This can save you hundreds of hours of animating and rigging your characters and objects!
How to do it:
- Upload a character model to Mixamo (a free Adobe tool).
- Select from a variety of animations like running, jumping, or fighting.
- Download the animated model and import it into Unity.
- Use Unity’s Animator Controller to transition between animations.
This method works best if you also know how to animate, so you can tweak the produced animations to your needs. That said, it’s still another incredibly helpful AI tool for any 3D game!
4. Testing Your Game Automatically
You can use AI in Unity to run automated tests on your game using Unity’s built-in Test Framework. This framework allows you to run automated test scripts and find bugs before your players do!
How to do it:
- Check out this tutorial from Unity on how to install and use their Test Framework.
- Once you’ve set up the framework, you can use tools like GameDriver to run AI-based test simulations on your Unity projects. See this tutorial for a guide on how to get started with GameDriver.
- For a detailed guide on how to use the two tools together, check out this article!
This is another slightly more complicated way to use AI in Unity, but can save you loads of time in the long run, especially with big projects!
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5. Generating Voices and Dialogues
For games which require audio voiceover for various characters, you can use AI to generate realistic voices for your games. This allows you a wide cast of characters and possibilities, which traditionally would have been far more expensive to produce.
How to do it:
- Check out Replica Studios or ElevenLabs for AI-generated voiceovers. ElevenLabs has a free plan which allows users to generate about 10 mins of 128kbps audio content per month. ReplicaStudios has a free trial, though no free plan, but both tools offer fairly reasonable plans for indie developers, for about $5-8 per month.
- With each tool, you’ll be able to customize your characters speech and voice to match your game’s needs. You can then download the generated files and import them into your project to use in-game!
This is one of the easiest and most effective ways to use AI in Unity, and requires zero setup or expertise. It’s also one of the quickest ways to bring your game characters to life, and is especially helpful for 3D and story games.
6. Make Game Art and Textures
If you’re not an artist, AI can help create game textures and concept art. While still very limited in many styles, generative art can, in some cases, be an incredibly efficient tool for game development.
How to do it:
- Check out NVIDIA Canvas, which allows you to generate detailed textures using simple brushstrokes as a reference.
- Once created, you can import your generated textures into Unity and apply them to materials.
- You can also use tools like TextureLab to tweak and enhance AI-created textures, as well as find free game textures for your projects!
This is our final way to use AI in Unity, and while it’s slightly more situational than the others, it can also be incredibly effective with the right kind of project.
AI can make game development easier, for beginners and professionals alike. No matter what game you’re making, some parts of the process are undeniably tedious. Many people don’t realize how easy it is to use AI in Unity to speed up the process of game development.
It’s true that anyone looking to get into game design needs to have a decent understanding of the tools they’re using, since no one is going to make a good game entirely using ChatGPT. But, by using AI tools in conjunction with Unity, you can become far more productive, and able to develop games which would have previously been impossible for a solo developer.
Good luck creating in Unity, and if you know any other clever ways to use AI in Unity, post them below in the comments!
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6 Easy Ways to Use AI in Unity!
Use AI in Unity, it’s never been this simple!