LootLocker, The Game Publishing Platform

Rewards That Reach Beyond the Game

Mon, 19 Oct 2026 07:00:00 +0000

Rewards are one of the most integral parts of LootLocker, living within many of our core features like Triggers, Leaderboard resets, Progressions, Catalog listings, Twitch Drops, and Reward Campaigns. Developers and publishers use them to hand out assets, currencies, progression points and platform keys across their games.

Until now, nearly all of those rewards lived inside the game. But today that's changing. Today we're adding three new reward types: Metadata, Discord Roles and Files, and a brand new way to notify your players of the rewards.

Updated Reward Modal

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000

We've updated the modal you use to choose a Reward in the Web Console. As the list of Reward types in LootLocker keeps growing, the modal has a new layout that makes the list easier to read.

The updated modal is used everywhere you add a Reward, including Triggers, Magic Triggers, Leaderboard reset rewards, Reward Campaigns and Catalog listings.

Files as Rewards

Thu, 08 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000

You can now give players a downloadable file as a Reward. You choose the filename players see when they download it.

Like any other Reward, you can grant a File from Triggers, Reward Campaigns, Leaderboards and more. Use it to hand out a wallpaper, a soundtrack, or a digital art book to your most dedicated players.

Discord Roles as Rewards

Thu, 08 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000

You can now grant players a role in your Discord server as a Reward. Discord Role Rewards are granted through Squire, LootLocker's Discord bot, so you'll need Squire added to your server first.

Like any other Reward, you can grant a Discord Role from Triggers, Reward Campaigns, Leaderboards and more. Use it to give players a special role when they reach a milestone, finish a season in the top ranks, or take part in a Playtest.

New Segment Types: Surveys and Playtests

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Player Segments can now target players based on whether they have completed a specific Survey or Playtest.

Use them to reward players who gave feedback, send a follow-up Survey to players who took part in a Playtest, or give your playtesters access to a closed build with Limit Access. You can combine Survey and Playtest conditions with any other condition in a Segment, such as Metadata or platform.

Custom Signup Fields for White Label Login

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000

You can now add your own fields to the White Label Login signup form. Ask players extra questions when they create an account, or require them to agree to your Terms of Use or Privacy Policy before they sign up.

Each answer is saved as Metadata on the player's profile. Fields can be text, number, checkbox, dropdown, date or JSON. You can also add static text, which shows on the form but isn't saved. Questions support Markdown, so you can link to your policies. You can mark a field as required, or flag it as sensitive to hide the answer in the Web Console unless it's requested.

Limit Access: Restrict Game Sessions to Player Segments

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Limit Access lets you control which players can start a session in your game. Once it's enabled, only players who match at least one of the Player Segments you add can start a session. Use it to open a closed beta to testers only, or limit access to players with an active subscription entitlement.

When you enable Limit Access, all existing game sessions are cleared and every player has to authenticate again. Players who don't match a Segment get an error when they try to start a session, so make sure your game handles this and tells the player they don't have access.

Magic Triggers

Mon, 05 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Magic Triggers automatically grant a Reward when a player connects a platform account, logs in for the day, or plays your game for the first time, with no need to call a Trigger from your game. Each Magic Trigger pairs one of these events with a Reward:

Connects a platform account: Reward players for linking a specific platform, or any platform.
Daily login: Reward players the first time they log in each day.
First-time player: Welcome new players with a Reward the first time they play.

You can set a limit to control how often a single player can receive the Reward, such as once, once per day, or once per connected platform. Use Magic Triggers for a daily login bonus, a welcome gift for new players, or an incentive to link a Steam or Discord account.

Introducing Error Reports: Ship Your Own Diagnostics With Your Game

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 08:00:00 +0000

While you are building your game, you have everything. Logs, breakpoints, a debugger, the ability to reproduce a problem on demand and watch exactly what happens.

The moment you ship, all of that goes away.

A player writes in to say their save did not carry over, or that a reward never showed up, and you are working from a description rather than data. On consoles the gap is even wider. There is no log file you can ask for and no practical way to get diagnostic information off a retail build. You are left guessing at which call failed, on which platform, for which player.

Unreal Server SDK v6.7.1

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 07:39:51 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.7.1 is released 🎉 🔧 This release adds asset sorting for the ListAssets endpoint, better file handling with revisions, key designation, and upsert support, and metadata sources for listed player items. It also fixes building against Unreal Engine 5.8.

Find it here

Unreal SDK v10.6.0

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 04:58:58 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.6.0 is released 🎉 📊 Error Reports is now generally available — ship your own diagnostics with your game and see the SDK errors your players hit, right in the Web Console. Plus: connect platform accounts for Steam, Xbox, Nintendo, and Google Play Games, control auto-creation of profiles on session start, and support custom sign-up fields in White Label Login. Also: enhanced file management with revisions, key designation, and upsert, a new List Platform Keys endpoint, and timezone utilities. Bug fixes improve leaderboard pagination and Windows timezone handling.

Unity SDK v8.2.0

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 13:18:41 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v8.2.0 is released 🎉 📊 Error Reports is now generally available — ship your own diagnostics with your game and see the SDK errors your players hit, right in the Web Console. Plus: connect platform accounts for Steam, Xbox, Nintendo, and Google Play Games, control auto-creation of profiles on session start, and support custom sign-up fields in White Label Login. Also: a new List Platform Keys endpoint, timezone utilities for session support, and file APIs aligned with our Better Files backend. Bug fixes improve session timing, custom field handling, and Unity 6.5+ compatibility.

Introducing Playtests and Surveys: Own Your Playtest From Signup to Key & Beyond

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Games have been shaped by their communities since digital distribution made it possible. Early Access, modding, crowdfunding, open betas: the players who show up early are the ones who tell you what works and what doesn't, and they are usually the same people who become evangelists and tell everyone else about your game once it's launched (especially if you give them something exclusive for being an early supporter).

Playtesting sits right at the front of that. You can run one through Steam, the App Store, or Google Play, and plenty of teams do. But those platforms are built to hand out access. They are not built to help you learn who your testers are, ask them questions, or stay in touch with them afterwards. The playtest ends and the relationship ends with it.

New Segment Types: Time, Asset Ownership and Entitlements

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Segments now support both the game's server time (UTC) and the player's local time. This can be used when creating triggers that are only available during certain periods.

Segments can now also be based on asset ownership and entitlements, letting you target players who own, or do not own, a specific asset or entitlement.

Read the updated documentation here.

Reward Campaigns

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

You can now schedule a Reward to go out to your players at a future date and time. Set up a Reward Campaign in the Web Console, and LootLocker grants the Reward automatically when the scheduled time arrives, whether or not players are in the game at that moment.

A campaign reaches every player in your game by default, or you can target one or more Player Segments to reach a specific group. You can also cap how many players are rewarded and pick winners at random, which turns a campaign into a giveaway or lottery. Use it for a launch day gift, a weekend lottery, or a currency bonus ahead of a seasonal event.

Better Leaderboard Navigation

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 07:00:00 +0000

Navigating large numbers of leaderboards in the web console is now much easier. The leaderboard list has been reworked with several improvements to help you find and manage your leaderboards faster.

Search: Quickly find a leaderboard by searching for its name.
Sorting: Sort the list by name or ID, in ascending or descending order, by clicking the column headers.
More leaderboards on screen: Choose how many leaderboards to show per page (10, 25, 50, or 100), so you spend less time paging through results.
Shareable links: Your search, sort, and pagination settings are kept in the URL, making it easy to bookmark or share a specific view.

Better Names for Downloaded Player Files

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Player Files you download from the Web Console now keep their correct file name. If a file is versioned, the revision date is included in the name as well, so you can tell revisions apart at a glance.

This makes it easier to find the files you download directly from the Web Console, especially when you're looking at several revisions of the same file.

Sub-processors

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The service providers LootLocker uses to operate the platform, what each one does, and where it processes data.

Passkey Login to Web Console

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

You can now use Passkeys to log into your LootLocker account in the web console.

Read the full documentation here.

Estimate Players in Segments

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

You can now see an estimated number of players in any given segment by clicking the Estimate button at the bottom of the segment interface. Once estimated, you can view a list of all players included in that segment.

Magic Links for White Label Login

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +0000

You can now allow players to sign into their White Label account without a password. Magic Links verify identity by emailing a one-time login link, meaning no password is required at signup. Magic Links can be configured for sign-in only (existing accounts) or for both sign-up and sign-in.

Manage Magic Links setting under White Label Login in the Platforms menu of the web console.

To read more about how to set this up, check out our documentation.

Bulk Create Leaderboards

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 07:00:00 +0000

You can now create multiple leaderboards at once using the new Bulk Create option in the leaderboard menu of the web console. Bulk creation is available either by uploading a CSV (a template CSV is provided) or using the built-in creator.

The built-in bulk creator lets you define all the settings needed for your leaderboards, then apply a naming pattern across all of them. For more complex setups, use the CSV upload instead.

Drag & Drop Cross-Platform Cloud Saves

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Building a robust cross-platform cloud save system is a notorious time-sink, one that even popular games skip because of the complexity involved. Handling local vs. cloud conflicts, session-locking across devices, and cross-platform account linking can swallow months of engineering, pulling you away from building and shipping your game.

But cloud saves matter, and it's 2026, why isn't this standard yet? How come I can't start playing Balatro on my PC and then pick it up on my Switch or phone whenever I want.

Unreal Server SDK v6.6.0

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 06:22:56 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.6.0 is released 🎉 🛒 This release adds the Catalog API for listing catalog items by ID, leaderboard manual reset CRUD endpoints, file-based pre-configuration for CI/CD pipelines, and an in-editor update checker. ⚠️ The default log level has changed from Display to Warning — set it explicitly if you need the previous behavior.

Find it here

Unreal SDK v10.5.0

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 10:36:26 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.5.0 is released 🎉 🎮 Major release bringing Xbox Store IAP, multi-user session modes with hotseat support, player ban detection, and a new connection state check. Plus: catalog item lookup by ID, leaderboard upcoming resets, file-based pre-configuration for CI/CD, and an in-editor update checker. ⚠️ FLootLockerCatalogGroupMetadata is now deprecated.

Find it here

Unity SDK v8.1.1

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 11:10:54 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v8.1.1 is released 🎉 🎮 Major release bringing Xbox Store IAP, multi-user session modes with hotseat and profile switching, player ban detection, and a new connection state check. Plus: catalog item lookup by ID, Cloud Saves and Universal Player Authentication prefabs, and credential obfuscation across 14+ sensitive fields.

Find it here

Player Page Redesign

Wed, 17 Jun 2026 17:05:17 +0000

We've completely redesigned the Player Page in the Web Console.

The new experience focuses on improving navigation, readability, and making it easier to understand everything associated with a player profile. Information is now presented in a cleaner and more structured layout, allowing support teams, developers, and live operations staff to quickly find the data they're looking for.

Whether you're inspecting player inventories, currencies, metadata, progressions, linked accounts, or other profile information, the updated Player Page provides a faster and more intuitive experience for managing players.

Metadata Rewards

Sun, 14 Jun 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Players can now be rewarded with Metadata.

Metadata Rewards allow you to write directly to a player's profile as part of any reward flow. This makes it possible to further personalize player experiences without requiring custom server logic.

Metadata Rewards are available anywhere rewards are supported, including Triggers, Leaderboards, and Catalogs, and support all Metadata types provided by LootLocker's shared Metadata framework. Progressions does not currently support this reward type.

"Has Metadata Key" Segment

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Segments now support a new "Has Metadata Key" condition.

Unlike metadata conditions that compare values, the Has Metadata Key segment simply checks whether a metadata key exists on a player's profile, regardless of its type or value. The condition works across all metadata types, including Strings, Numbers, Booleans, Timestamps, JSON, and Files.

This makes it easy to build segments based on whether players have certain information stored on their profile without needing to know the exact value. For example, you could target players who have linked a creator code, participated in any beta test, or have any value stored under a specific metadata key.

Powered by LootLocker: How a Trusted Backend Partnership Is Helping Fast Travel Games Heist Their Way to the Top of VR

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Who

Fast Travel Games is a VR-exclusive game developer and publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 2016 by industry veterans with roots at DICE, Rovio, and Avalanche Studios, the studio has built one of the most consistent and critically respected catalogues in VR, spanning original titles like Apex Construct, Mannequin, and Action Hero, through to published titles from partner developers across the VR ecosystem.

Their latest title, PAYDAY: Aces High, is an officially licensed VR co-op heist game developed in partnership with Starbreeze Entertainment, and is launching in 2026 on Meta Quest and SteamVR. It marks one of the most ambitious VR productions the studio has undertaken and one of the most high-profile entries in the PAYDAY franchise, which has engaged more than 50 million players and generated over $400 million in lifetime revenue.

CRM Platform Support

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

You can now connect LootLocker to an email marketing platform. CRM Platforms passes the email addresses your players sign up with through White Label Login, along with the Metadata you choose to map, to that platform's contact list, so you can build email campaigns around what players actually do in your game without exporting data by hand.

Brevo and CleverReach are both supported and can be enabled at the same time. Configure each one under Settings in the Web Console, in the new CRM Platforms section, where you'll find its credentials and a key mapping that decides which Metadata reaches the CRM.

Timestamp Metadata

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Player Metadata now supports a new Timestamp type.

Timestamp Metadata makes it easy to store dates and times directly in a player's profile. Timestamps can be written and read just like any other metadata type and integrate seamlessly with LootLocker's shared Metadata framework.

Common use cases include recording when a player last claimed a reward or when they completed a tutorial.

By adding a dedicated Timestamp type, developers no longer need to store dates as strings or convert them manually, making time-based data easier to manage and more reliable.

External Reward Campaigns

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 08:00:00 +0000

External Reward Campaigns allow you to create claimable rewards that players can redeem outside of your game through shareable links and QR codes.

Built on top of LootLocker Triggers, External Reward Campaigns make it easy to reward players through newsletters, live events, creator campaigns, social media, physical merchandise, and other community touchpoints.

Create a campaign from any Trigger, configure a start and expiry date, and LootLocker will automatically generate a hosted claim page, shareable URL, and downloadable QR code. Players simply authenticate using one of your enabled Unified Player Account providers and the reward is automatically granted to their account.

Reward Players Everywhere with External Reward Campaigns

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 08:00:00 +0000

Keeping players engaged outside of your game is becoming just as important as what happens inside it.

Players move between Discord, social media, newsletters, events, storefronts, and communities long before they launch your game again. The more touchpoints you create outside the game, the more opportunities you have to bring players back in.

That’s a big part of why we built our Discord bot Squire, giving developers and publishers new ways to engage with players directly through rewards, exclusive offers, and community-driven interactions.

Manually resettable leaderboards

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:14:00 +0000

Leaderboards now support manual resets, giving you full control over when a leaderboard is reset and rewards are distributed.

Previously, leaderboard resets could only be configured on a recurring schedule. With this update, you can:

Trigger a reset immediately from the web console
Schedule a one-off reset for a specific time
Name your resets to keep track of what each one represents
Cancel pending resets before they execute

This is especially useful for community challenges, tournaments, or any event-driven scenario where resets don't follow a fixed cadence.

Unity SDK v8.0.0

Wed, 27 May 2026 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v8.0.0 is released 🎉 🛡️ The package is now signed for Open UPM supply-chain security! Remote sessions support a provider parameter for smoother account linking, asset listing can be filtered by context, and full API reference docs are live on ref.lootlocker.com. Bug fixes improve path handling and error reporting. ⚠️ Missions & Collectables have been removed.

Find it here

Unreal SDK v10.4.0

Wed, 27 May 2026 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.4.0 is released 🎉 🚀 Brand-new HTTP execution queue for rock-solid request handling, remote-session QR codes rendered straight to texture, provider-targeted account linking, and full API reference docs on ref.lootlocker.com. Plus: Google Play Games connected accounts, context filtering for assets, and important stability fixes. ⚠️ Missions & Collectables have been removed.

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v6.5.0

Wed, 27 May 2026 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.5.0 is released 🎉 🏆 Increment leaderboard scores without reading them first, filter assets by context, and browse shiny new API reference docs live on ref.lootlocker.com — all in one update.

Find it here

Metadata Segments

Mon, 25 May 2026 00:09:00 +0000

Segments now support targeting players using Metadata values attached to their player profile.

New Segment conditions include:

Have String Metadata
Have Number Metadata
Have Boolean Metadata

Each Metadata type supports different qualifier operations, including exact matches, ranges, inclusion/exclusion checks, and boolean value checks depending on the selected Metadata type.

These new conditions can be used in both Triggers and Broadcasts to create more dynamic player targeting and personalized experiences.

Learn more about Segments in our documentation.

Turn Your Discord Community Into a Commerce Channel with Squire Commerce

Wed, 20 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Since launching Squire earlier this year, we’ve continued expanding the ways game teams can connect their Discord communities directly to their player ecosystem.

With Squire, you can already use Discord to share news, distribute game keys, and launch claimable rewards that tie community engagement directly to player identity and in-game value. These features help turn your Discord server into more than just a chat channel, giving your team new ways to drive excitement, reward loyalty, and bring players back into your game.

Platform Keys as Rewards

Thu, 14 May 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Platform Key campaigns can now be used as a reward type across LootLocker systems.

In addition to distributing keys through Squire, you can now reward platform keys directly through Progressions, Leaderboards, Catalogs, and Triggers. This makes it possible to automate key distribution as part of gameplay progression, events, campaigns, promotions, or community activities.

Rewarded keys can be surfaced directly in-game through the Game API or through the Squire Discord bot, creating a much more seamless player redemption flow across both games and community platforms.

Scheduled Maintenance — Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

We will be performing security maintenance on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 to address ongoing CVEs and ensure our platform remains fully secured.

Maintenance window: 10:00–11:00 UTC (1 hour) Check your local time: https://everytimezone.com/s/99a80694

We aim to complete this work without any service disruption. The 1-hour window is being announced as a precaution to give us enough headroom to complete everything safely, and so you're aware in the unlikely event that something goes wrong during the rollout.

Postmortem: Data Loss During Database Migration

Fri, 08 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Date: 2026-04-28

Severity: P2 (Degraded Service)

Duration: ~3 hours degraded service; data recovery completed over the following ~2 days

Status: Resolved

A Note from the Team

Before anything else: we're sorry. Our customers trust us to keep their data safe and their services running, and on this occasion we let them down. The incident described below was ultimately caused by decisions we made, some of which unknowingly set off the chain of events that led here. We're publishing this postmortem in full so that our customers can see exactly what happened, what we got wrong, and what we are changing as a result. If you were affected and we have not already been in touch, please reach out via our support channels.

Direct-to-Consumer Purchases: Use Stripe to Unlock Your Full Game

Thu, 07 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

We live in a world where players expect their purchases to "just work" across every device they own. For developers, this presents two massive challenges: navigating the 30% commission fees charged by traditional platforms and ensuring that a "Full Game" unlock purchased on one platform follows the player to the next (when paired with Unified Player Accounts).

Thankfully, LootLocker’s Stripe Integration offers a powerful solution. By moving the transaction to a web-based checkout, you keep more of your revenue while leveraging LootLocker’s account-centric architecture. Whether your player logs in via White Label (Email/Password) or native platform accounts like Steam, Xbox, or PlayStation, their entitlements remain tied to their unique LootLocker ID.

LootLocker Now Supports Stripe Payments

Thu, 07 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

If you’ve been following the games industry over the past few years, you’ve probably seen the shift around third-party payments on mobile platforms. Between Epic’s ongoing battle with Apple and Google, and regulatory changes like the EU’s Digital Markets Act, developers now have more opportunities to offer purchases through third-party payment systems on the App Store and Google Play.

But while many payment providers handle the checkout flow well, they often stop there. They can process the transaction, but the entitlements players are actually buying still need to be managed somewhere.

Stripe Payments

Thu, 07 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

LootLocker now supports Stripe as a third-party payment option, allowing you to sell assets, currencies, and progressions directly to players using your existing LootLocker Economy setup as one-time purchases or subscriptions.

Using Stripe Connect, you can connect your Stripe account to LootLocker and start offering purchases through Stripe while LootLocker handles the game-side commerce layer, including entitlements, transaction tracking, and support tooling.

This makes it easy to extend your existing economy beyond first-party platforms and virtual currency flows without building your own custom payment backend.

Selective Player Profile Deletion

Mon, 04 May 2026 17:05:17 +0000

You can now selectively delete specific sections of a player profile directly from the Web Console.

Previously, player deletion actions were limited to removing an entire player profile. With this update, it’s now possible to remove individual categories of player data independently, including inventory, metadata, progressions, files, storage, currencies, characters, and heroes.

This provides significantly more flexibility for customer support, GDPR-related workflows, testing, and live operations management.

If you need similar deletion actions performed across your entire player base, please contact us directly.

White Label Login Emails Migrated to Auth.game

Sun, 03 May 2026 17:05:17 +0000

All White Label Login emails are now sent from Auth.game instead of LootLocker.io.

This update applies to all authentication-related emails including account verification, password reset, and other White Label Login communication. The change helps further separate game-facing authentication flows from the LootLocker platform while providing a cleaner and more consistent player-facing authentication experience.

Asset Instance Metadata

Sat, 02 May 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Asset Instances now support Metadata.

This means every unique instance of an asset can now store its own custom information using LootLocker’s shared Metadata framework. Metadata can be attached directly to individual asset instances and supports multiple data types including booleans, strings, numbers, JSON objects, and files.

Asset Instance Metadata can be updated dynamically through both the Game API and Server API, enabling more advanced inventory systems, persistent item state, procedurally generated items, durability systems, player customization data, and much more.

Player Operations Log Filtering

Fri, 01 May 2026 17:05:17 +0000

Finding specific player operations in the Player Manager just got much easier.

You can now filter Player Operations in the Web Console by both event code and date range, making it significantly faster to track down the exact operations you're looking for. Whether you're investigating player issues, reviewing economy changes, or auditing backend activity, the new filtering tools provide a much clearer view into player activity over time.

Level Up Your Community: How to Reward Players with In-Game Assets via Discord

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Building a community on Discord is one thing; connecting that community directly to your game’s ecosystem is another. One of the most effective ways to bridge this gap is by rewarding your players with in-game assets like exclusive skins or items directly through Discord.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through setting up the LootLocker Squire bot to automate these rewards using Claimable Rewards. The best part? Once you’ve set up a "deep" integration, you can add new rewards through the Web Console without ever needing to push a new game update.

Squire: Claimable Rewards in Discord

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Last month, we launched Squire, our Discord bot built to help connect your game’s players with your Discord community. Since then, we’ve been hard at work expanding what Squire can do, and today we’re excited to introduce a powerful new addition: Claimable Rewards in Discord.

Squire now lets you launch reward campaigns directly inside your Discord server, allowing community members to claim in-game rewards without ever leaving Discord. We’ve seen major games use this kind of campaign to drive meaningful community engagement, and now Squire makes it possible for teams of any size to do the same.

Claimable Rewards in Discord with Squire

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Squire now supports Claimable Rewards, allowing you to launch reward campaigns directly inside your Discord server.

Players can click Claim Reward directly from a Discord post to receive in-game rewards powered by LootLocker Triggers. By default, rewards can be claimed using a player’s Discord ID, with optional platform account linking through Unified Player Accounts (UPA) to connect rewards directly to in-game profiles.

Claimable Rewards can also be used before your game is live, with no LootLocker SDK integration required to start running campaigns.

Unreal SDK v10.3.0

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.3.0 is released 🎉 🛒 Major release introducing asynchronous purchases, Stripe Checkout sessions, refund capabilities, platform-specific friends filtering, inventory metadata support, and enhanced request tracing for improved purchasing and social features.

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v6.4.0

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.4.0 is released 🎉 🔧 Major release adding context listing, connected account management, enhanced request ID tracking with enriched response context data, plus comprehensive internal refactoring for improved stability and request tracing capabilities.

Find it here

LootLocker Publisher Prefabs: White Label Login

Wed, 18 Mar 2026 09:00:00 +0000

One of our core goals at LootLocker has always been to make it easier for developers and publishers to build direct, durable relationships with their players regardless of game type or platform.

To push this even further, we’re introducing LootLocker Publisher Prefabs: production-ready Unity prefabs that package core LootLocker functionality together with fully wired UI flows that you can quickly style and drop straight into your game.

These prefabs are designed to help you:

View Notification Status

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 09:00:00 +0000

You can now view the status of player notifications sent from the Web Console directly on the player’s profile page.

Under the Notifications tab in Player Manager, all notifications sent to the player via the Web Console are listed along with their read status, making it easy to verify whether a notification has been retrieved by the player’s game client.

Learn more about sending and viewing Notifications in our User Documentation.

Ban Players

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 09:00:00 +0000

It is now possible to Ban Players permanently or temporarily from starting sessions in your game. This can be done through the Web Console by navigating to the player page, selecting Actions and then selecting Ban Player. It is possible to leave an optional note attached to the action, for example providing a reason for the ban.

A banned player’s player page will clearly display that the player has been banned, and provide buttons to view notes or to unban the player.

Escaping the Google Play Games Walled Garden

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Authentication is the foundation of everything that happens after a player launches your game.

It determines who the player is, where they can play, and what progress, purchases, and entitlements follow them across devices, platforms, and games. Without reliable authentication, features like cloud saves, cross-progression, cross-commerce, player support, and long-term relationships simply do not scale.

For years, the industry has accepted that authentication is “solved” as long as players can sign in on a single platform. But in a world where players expect to move freely between PC, console, and mobile, that assumption breaks down quickly.

Segments in Triggers

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

You can now apply Segments directly to Triggers, ensuring that only players who qualify for a specific segment are able to execute a trigger.

This gives you precise control over who can activate rewards, content, or game logic, unlocking powerful new use cases, such as:

Platform-specific rewards (using a Played On segment)
Playtime-based rewards (using a Playtime segment)
Re-engagement rewards for lapsed players (using a Last Seen segment)

And far more.

Connect, Engage, Reward: The New Publishing Playbook

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 09:00:00 +0000

How and why modern publishers should build loyalty, community, and cross-game ecosystems.

The Holy Grail of Publishing

Have you ever asked people in our industry to define the term publishing? Ask ten people, and you’ll get ten different answers. Well, I’m not going to pretend this essay will produce the snappy, definitive description that unifies us all, only to be crucified by my peers for ignoring a nuance. Let's avoid that trap, shall we?

Progression Insights

Wed, 11 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve added a new Insights tab to the Progression view.

You can now see:

Total Participants
Average Points
A Players by Tier graph for a clear breakdown of distribution

This makes it easier to understand overall engagement and player performance at a glance.

Grant Catalog Item to Player from Catalogs Table

Fri, 06 Feb 2026 13:17:51 +0000

You can now grant catalog items directly to a player from the Catalogs table. Simply select "Grant to Player," enter the player's ULID from the action menu, and the item will be delivered instantly.

This change is meant to streamline item distribution for player support workflows.

What's included:

Catalogs

What’s included:

New Grant to Player option for each catalog item, found within the action menu.
Simple, guided modal for entering the player’s ULID
Instant feedback when the item is granted

Introducing Squire: Connecting Your Game to Your Discord Community

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 09:00:00 +0000

We are big fans of Discord.

Not only does LootLocker have a thriving Discord community of its own, our technology also powers one of Discord’s most popular Activities, Blackjack. And unless you’ve been living under a rock, you already know that Discord has become the de-facto hub for gaming communities where players gather, share feedback, organize play sessions, and engage directly with developers.

Yet despite its central role, Discord often exists in parallel to the game itself.

Squire (Discord Bot) Out Now

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:09:00 +0000

We’ve released Squire, a new Discord bot that connects your Discord community directly to your game using LootLocker.

Squire allows you to link Discord members to real player platform IDs, distribute and track Platform Keys securely, and push in-game Broadcasts directly to Discord for unified player communication.

Initial features include:

Platform Key distribution and redemption through Discord
Player verification via Unified Player Accounts (UPA)
Tracking which redeemed keys resulted in real gameplay
Pushing in-game Broadcasts to Discord channels
Configurable roles, channels, and message styling

Squire is available now and can be installed directly from the LootLocker Web Console. More information can be found in our documentation.

Broadcast Segments Improvements

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:09:00 +0000

We’ve overhauled the Broadcast Segments experience to make building audiences faster, clearer, and more intuitive.

Segment conditions are now created using a natural-language flow instead of abstract terms. Rather than choosing from unclear fields like "Attribute" and "Operator", you now build segments as readable sentences starting with “Players who…” and extending them with “and” when adding additional conditions.

The result is segments that are easier to understand at a glance, harder to misconfigure, and quicker to iterate on, especially as segments grow more complex.

Investing in Pantaloon: Putting Our Money Where Our Mouth Is

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 09:00:00 +0000

LootLocker exists to help publishers build direct, durable relationships with their players, cutting through marketplace noise, platform opacity, and the endless competition for player attention.

That belief has shaped everything we’ve built so far: from unified player accounts and player insights, to broadcasts, rewards, and cross-game ecosystems.

But if there’s one thing we’ve learned working with publishers of all sizes, it’s this: Vision alone isn’t enough. Speed matters. Proof matters. Real-world constraints matter.

Insights Data Export

Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:09:00 +0000

You can now export data collected through the Player Insights feature directly from the Web Console.

Use the Export action next to any supported insight to generate a CSV file. In the export modal, select the game(s) you want to include and define the date range, then click Download Export to immediately download the file.

Supported data sources:

Daily Active Players (DAP)
New Players
Monthly Active Players (MAP)

Introducing Presence: See What Your Players Are Really Doing

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 09:00:00 +0000

Whether you have one game on a single platform or a catalog of games spread across multiple platforms, it's always valuable to know how many players are actively playing without having to stitch together data from various platform dashboards (if that data is even available at all).

What if you could go beyond just knowing how many players are online? What if you could understand what they're actually doing in-game? Are they sitting idle in the main menu? Browsing the in-game store? Deep in a gameplay session?

Presence & Rich Presence

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've released Presence, a new feature that reports when players are online and actively playing your game across platforms.

Basic Presence (available to all users) reports real-time concurrent players (CCU) and session durations with minimal implementation.
Rich Presence (paid feature) extends this with custom in-game states, detailed session timelines, and deeper insight into player behavior for analysis and customer support.

Presence and Rich Presence are available today with Unity SDK and Unreal SDK support.

Retooling Retinal Response to Remediate Reading Resistance

Fri, 14 Nov 2025 17:05:17 +0000

Users: Can we have dark mode?

LootLocker: We have dark mode at home

Dark mode at home

(But if you want to rebel, click your profile pic in the top right and pick your own mode. Go on — live dangerously.)

Player Insights: Understand Your Players at a Glance

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 08:00:00 +0000

Given where LootLocker sits in the overall tech stack of a game (authenticating every player who starts the game) it only makes sense that we surface some of the key insights that developers and publishers can use to understand how their games are performing and who their players are.

With Player Insights, you can now visualize essential player metrics directly in your LootLocker web console, giving you an instant overview of your game’s health and audience composition.

Player Insights

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000

With Player Insights, you can now visualize essential player metrics directly in your LootLocker web console, giving you an instant overview of your game’s health and audience composition.

LootLocker currently provides the following core metrics:

Platform Distribution: Total players and a breakdown of which platforms they’re playing on
Daily Active Players: Unique player sessions per day
New Players: Number of new players joining each day
Monthly Active Players: Total active players per month

Here’s to 10,000 Games (and Counting!)

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 09:00:00 +0000

Five years ago, we started LootLocker with a pretty simple idea: give developers and publishers more control over their relationships with players.

Because let’s be honest, it’s still wild that a grandmother selling artisanal candles on Shopify has a more direct relationship with her customers than a developer selling their game on Steam or the App Store.

But today’s not about the problem. Today’s about the party.

Because there are now 10,000 games powered by LootLocker.

Broadcast Player Segments

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've launched Player Segments for Broadcasts, allowing you to target messages to specific groups of players based on:

Their platform (Steam, Nintendo, PlayStation, etc.)
When they were last seen in-game
The date they were first seen

Here are some examples of how segments can be used:

Announcing platform-specific events or updates to players on a particular console
Promoting sales or discounts that only apply to certain groups
Sending maintenance notifications only to players who will be affected
Re-engaging players who haven’t logged in for a while with information about what's new in the game

More segmentation rules are coming soon to help you personalize Broadcasts even further.

Relationships & Catalogs UX Improvements

Wed, 05 Nov 2025 17:35:09 +0000

Added pagination to the Relationships tab for improved performance and usability with large datasets. Enhanced catalog management with detailed information and fuzzy search currency selection across components.

What's included:

Relationships

Paginated Tables: Display relationships with configurable items per page (5, 10, or 25)
Easy Navigation: Move between pages using previous/next buttons, page number links, or a page selector dropdown
Persistent State: Page state is maintained across navigation via URL-based pagination
Flexible Per-Page Selector: Control how many relationships display per page

Catalogs

Catalog Details Panel: Display catalog key and ID on the items page with easy copy-to-clipboard functionality
Fuzzy Search: Find currencies by name (e.g., "gold"), code (e.g., "GLD"), or ID with intelligent search across price creation and balance management
Streamlined UI: Cleaner modal layouts with improved visual hierarchy.

Faster currency discovery across all workflows.

Unity SDK v6.4.0

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 10:26:13 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v6.4.0 is released 🎉 🚀 New: Epic & Google Play Player Lookup support! 🎮 Bug fixes include: proper catalog key usage in ListCatalogItemsV2, improved session handling, better parameter management, and enhanced stability for callback exceptions.

Find it here

See when a player is pending deletion

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 16:27:31 +0000

You can now see when a player has requested to delete their account and when the deletion is scheduled to occur. This information is now available in the Player Overview in the Web Console.

From this new notificaiton you can also cancel the deletion request if needed, or delete the player immediately.

Unreal SDK v10.0.0

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.0.0 is released 🎉 Major release featuring Epic/Google Play Games player lookup, request ID tracking with enhanced context data, automatic session token refresh fixes, plus a comprehensive internal refactor for improved stability and future maintainability.

Find it here

Player Notifications

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve added in-game notification management to help players stay up to date and keep their inbox organized.

Here’s how it works:

Retrieve all unread notifications for the logged-in player
Find specific notifications using keys like trigger, purchase, or custom type
Mark notifications as read once viewed

Supports notifications from triggers, catalog purchases, Twitch drops, and custom server or admin events.

Admin Player Audit Log

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve added an Admin Player Operations Log to help you track actions taken on player accounts for better transparency and auditing.

Here’s how to use it:

Go to the player’s page in the console and click the Audit Log tab
View a detailed history of admin actions
Logged actions include everything from granting assets to editing leaderboard scores

Incremental Scores for Leaderboards

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Exciting news! We’ve just dropped incremental scores for leaderboards, allowing you to update player scores by a modifier instead of having to fetch, increment, and then send us the new score.

This can be useful for tracking ongoing progress, like completing levels or earning points during a session.

You can update scores via our Game API or directly through the SDK.

New 'Last Seen' value when starting sessions

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've added a Last Seen value to session starts — giving you an easy way to see when a player was last active.

This value can be used in a variety of ways, like tracking engagement or rewarding login streaks.

This value is returned from all of our start session endpoints under the key last_seen, in player metadata with the key ll.last_seen or can be accessed through the SDK on session start.

Unity SDK v6.3.0

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 09:10:52 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v6.3.0 is released 🎉 🚀 Exciting updates! Introducing Broadcasts for tailored player communication and Session Optionals for adding metadata like time zones. Plus, a new Time Zone converter for smoother broadcasts. Don't forget to migrate to the new ListCatalogItems v2! Read more: https://lootlocker.com/blog/preview/introducing-broadcasts-a-new-way-to-reach-your-players

Find it here

Unreal SDK v9.6.0

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 09:10:52 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.6.0 is released 🎉 🚀 Exciting updates! Introducing Broadcasts for tailored player communication and Session Optionals for adding metadata like time zones. Plus, a new Time Zone converter for smoother broadcasts. Don't forget to migrate to the new ListCatalogItems v2! Read more: https://lootlocker.com/blog/preview/introducing-broadcasts-a-new-way-to-reach-your-players

Find it here

Introducing Broadcasts: A New Way to Reach Your Players

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 09:00:00 +0000

Today, we’re excited to launch Broadcasts, a new LootLocker feature that helps you connect with your players more directly than ever.

With Broadcasts, you can schedule and deliver localized messages to players across one or more of your games. Each broadcast can include text, images, actions, and custom key–value pairs, giving you control over how and where messages appear in-game, whether as a news ticker, a patch notes screen, or a dedicated message board. Broadcasts can also be hidden to the player, providing you with a great way to manage scheduled game configs.

Broadcasts

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Today we have launched Broadcasts, a new LootLocker feature that helps you connect with your players more directly than ever.

Unity SDK v6.2.0

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 11:15:33 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v6.2.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates include new account connections for Epic, PlayStation, Twitch, and Discord! Enjoy enhanced performance with customizable asset filtering and UGC files are now functioning. Note: some deprecated methods have been removed. Check the full changelog for details!

Find it here

Unreal SDK v9.5.0

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.5.0 is released 🎉 More connected account options (Epic, PlayStation, Twitch, Discord), selective simple asset filtering for big performance wins, PlayStation Network v3 support, unified PlayStation auth/session flow, Google auth code retrieval for Play Games integration, plus a UGC file handling fix.

Find it here

Unity SDK v6.1.0

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 12:07:30 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v6.1.0 is released 🎉 🚀 Exciting update! We've added PlayStation Network v3 support to the SDK. Plus, we've streamlined the authentication process by combining player verification and session start into one method: VerifyPlayerAndStartPlaystationNetworkSession. Check out the full changelog for details!

Find it here

Introducing Friends & Followers: Cross-Platform Friendships Made Simple

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 06:00:00 +0000

🎵 So no one told you game dev was gonna be this way,

Cross-platform dreams are there but your infra is D.O.A,

It's like you're always stuck in a solo life,

When your friends play on Switch, on Steam,

Xbox, or PlayStation 5, but... 🎶

Games today are more cross-platform than ever, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to play with friends across different devices. Supporting cross-platform friendships can be technically challenging, which is why many successful games end up building their own in-game friends systems—allowing players to connect, communicate, and coordinate without relying on platform services.

Console Dashboard Improvements

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve just released some updates to the console dashboard!

Here’s what has changed:

Links to our SDK Quick Start Guides for Godot, Unity, and Unreal
You can now see your Monthly Active Users statistics for the last 3 months
Cleaned up clutter for a simpler, more focused dashboard

Do you have more ideas on how we can make it even better? Contact us on Discord!

Friends & Followers

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000

LootLocker now supports cross-platform Friends and Followers!

With LootLocker Friends, your players can:

Send friend requests using a unique 8-character ID
Accept or decline incoming requests
Remove friends at any time
Block or unblock players to prevent unwanted contact

And beyond these core features, LootLocker Friends also supports Followers, a one-way connection where a player can follow another player without approval. The followed player is not notified but can see who’s following them and choose to block followers.

Unity SDK v6.0.0

Tue, 16 Sep 2025 11:11:19 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v6.0.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates: LootLocker now supports Epic IAPs! Plus, we've introduced a Friends system, score incrementation on leaderboards, and simplified asset listing. Check player last seen times and progression IDs. Bugs fixed for smoother sessions.

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v6.3.0

Tue, 16 Sep 2025 10:07:18 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.3.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates! You can now create players from the server, enjoy a new Friends system, use a simplified asset listing for faster performance, and access progression IDs in responses. Check out the full changelog for more details!

Find it here

Unreal SDK v9.4.0

Tue, 16 Sep 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.4.0 is released 🎉 Epic IAP support arrives alongside the new Friends system, atomic leaderboard score incrementation and rank querying, faster simple asset listing, plus session last_seen and progression ID fields for better player state insight.

Find it here

Connect Your Game to Where Players Hang Out: Introducing Discord Authentication

Wed, 27 Aug 2025 09:00:00 +0000

We’re excited to announce that Discord is now a supported authentication method in LootLocker!

Whether you're using Platform Login or Unified Player Accounts, your players can now log into your game using their Discord accounts, giving them a fast, familiar, and secure way to jump in. And for you, the developer or publisher, it opens the door to a host of powerful, community-connected experiences.

Why Discord?

With over 150 million monthly active users (and growing!), Discord has become the digital living room for millions of players. By integrating Discord authentication, you're meeting players where they already spend time, chatting with friends, joining communities, and discovering new games.

Leaderboard Console UX Update

Wed, 27 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We have made some updates to the leaderboard Web Console UI as part of our ongoing work improving and streamlining the user experience.

Changes

Removed the modal for creating a leaderboard: The modal has been replaced with a dedicated page for creating leaderboards.
New leaderboard creation page: The new creation page has a new design which better explains each field and its purpose
Update the leaderboard settings tab: The settings tab for a leaderboard has been updated to match the new design as the creation page.

To read more about leaderboards and how to use them, check out our documentation.

Player Name Blacklist

Wed, 27 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We’ve added a Player Name Blacklist that lets you block inappropriate or unwanted player names quickly and easily.

Here’s how to use it:

Go to our new Player Settings page
Enter or paste your names into the Blacklisted Names field, one per line
Save your changes

Discord Authentication

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

You can now use Discord as an authentication platform for player sessions, available in both Platform Login and Unified Player Accounts..

This gives players a fast, familiar way to sign in with their Discord accounts and gives you powerful new tools to build more connected experiences.

Here’s what you can do with Discord auth:

Let players sign in with Discord for seamless access
Link existing player accounts to Discord to take advantage of our cross-platform features
Make your games playable through Discord Activities
Build Discord bots that interact with your game via our APIs

Bring your game to where your players already hang out: in Discord. With bot integration, you can create rich, community-driven experiences like:

Unity SDK v5.3.0

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v5.3.0 is released 🎉 This release adds Google Play Games Services and Discord authentication, new convenience methods for player state and data management, and metadata upsert support. Plus, a performance fix for string list allocation in the HTTP client. Full details below!

Find it here

Unreal SDK v9.3.0

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.3.0 is released 🎉 This release introduces Google Play Games Services and Discord authentication, new convenience methods for managing player state and data, and support for metadata upsert operations. Plus, a bug fix ensures the default user is set correctly when player states are cleared or sessions end. See the full release notes below!

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v6.2.0

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.2.0 is released 🎉 Version 6.2.0 of the Unreal Server SDK adds support for listing leaderboards and the convenient "Upsert" Metadata action 😁.

Find it here

Improvements to code input on auth.game

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've released a few updates to our code input page on the player facing auth.game site. Code input is often the first page players see when interacting with Unified Player Accounts, so making sure it works well is important.

Improvements

We no longer clear the code if the user mistyped it: This allows users to correct their input without having to re-enter the entire code.
Better keyboard support: The backspace key now stays in the field you pressed it in, allowing you to correct mistakes without having to click back into the field.
Hold backspace to delete: You can now hold the backspace key to delete multiple characters at once, making the fields behave more intuitively.
Minimize excessive submits: We sometimes sent the code too often while the user was trying to correct an error in their input. This update reduces the number of submits to only when the user has finished entering their code.

If you have any feedback on these changes, please let us know! We are always looking to improve the user experience for your players.

Powered by LootLocker: How LootLocker’s backend helped unleash Blue Scarab's bold new vision for the MMO genre.

Tue, 29 Jul 2025 07:00:00 +0000

Who

Blue Scarab Entertainment is a Stockholm-based game studio founded by industry veterans including CEO Colin Cragg and CTO Enno Rehling, with deep roots in MMO development. Backed by investments by NetEase and Behold Ventures, the team includes developers from Battlefield, World of Warcraft, Age of Conan, Helldivers 2, and Star Stable Online.

Their debut title Equinox: Homecoming is an original Unreal Engine 5 MMORPG blending cozy escapism, horseback exploration, and true-crime storytelling and is out now on Steam Early Access.

Metadata Console Makeover

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've just released several exciting quality-of-life improvements to the metadata feature in our web console.

Here’s what’s new:

Save and New Field buttons at the bottom of the page for easier access
A new Ctrl/Cmd + S keyboard shortcut to save metadata changes quickly
An unsaved changes popup to help you avoid losing progress
New fields are now added to the top of the list for better visibility
The JSON code editor has been updated for a cleaner, more streamlined look
Field deletion has also had a makeover

These updates are designed to make managing metadata faster and more efficient. Got any suggestions? Feel free to let us know on our Discord!

Support for Tags on Player and Asset Files

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

You can now add custom tags to files for both players and assets — right from the web console or via the Admin API. This makes it easier to organize your files and build more personalized game experiences.

Here’s some inspiration for file tags:

Mark save files for beta testing
Tag items to appear only during special events
Group weapon skins for bulk updates
Add files to a holiday event with a single tag

Whether you're managing seasonal content or segmenting players, tags give you more control and flexibility.

Support for Xbox in Unified Player Accounts

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Today we're launching support for Xbox in our Unified Player Accounts feature, allowing players to link their Xbox accounts.

This update adds Xbox as a provider on the auth.game site, for both Remote Login and Account Linking flows.

If you want to Implement Xbox account linking in your game, please reach out on email or on our Discord.

Outage Postmortem: Slow Response Times and Loss of Service

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 13:39:52 +0000

On July 6th, LootLocker experienced a service outage that resulted in a complete loss of availability for all customers for a duration of approximately 50 minutes.

What happened?

At 22:03 UTC, an alert was sent to our on call engineers, informing them of response times being slow. This was due to our platform being overloaded from an unanticipated spike in simultaneous requests. This overloaded a key subsystem that manages internal service discovery and orchestration. In response to the degraded performance, our infrastructure automatically initiated scaling events to respond. However the infrastructure was unable to keep up with the traffic. We quickly manually scaled up our capacity, but that also did not have the effect we expected. We started seeing 502 and 503 responses at high volumes.

Why Studios Are Switching from PlayFab to LootLocker (And What It Takes to Migrate)

Wed, 09 Jul 2025 09:00:00 +0000

Microsoft’s latest round of layoffs last week has sent shockwaves through the games industry, with games being canceled, studios shuttered, and thousands of talented individuals let go. While the full impact on Microsoft’s Azure PlayFab backend isn’t yet clear, we’ve been hearing the same concern from developers around the world: they’re worried. Worried about what ongoing support for their games will look like, about what changes might be coming, and about relying on a backend with an increasingly uncertain future.

Supporting Families and Shared Devices: Multiple User Profiles in Your Game with LootLocker

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 07:00:00 +0000

It's pretty common these days for your game to be enjoyed in a setting where families, roommates, or friends share a single device. So how do you make sure everyone gets their own personalized experience, progress, and settings?

With LootLocker’s Multi User support for Unreal and Unity, you can let every user on a shared device have their own persistent profile, inventory, and customization. No more fighting over save files or losing progress, everyone gets their own space!

How to Build a Local Co-Op Game Powered by LootLocker

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Local co-op is back in a big way with titles such as Split Fiction, Overcooked, and Moving Out maintaining massive popularity! Whether you’re building a party game, a platformer, or a couch-competitive brawler, players love sharing a screen and an adventure. But how do you do this while also enabling each player to have their own persistent profile, customization, and progress across devices and play sessions?

With LootLocker’s new Multi User support for Unreal and Unity, you can now have multiple players, each with their own LootLocker account, all active on the same client. This means every player can bring their own progress, cosmetics, and settings to the game, no matter where or how they play.

How to Implement Server Authority in Your Multiplayer Game Using LootLocker

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Implementing server authority is one of the most important steps you can take to secure your multiplayer game. By ensuring that all critical game logic and sensitive actions are handled on your server, you can prevent cheating, protect player data, and create a fairer, more robust experience for everyone.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to use LootLocker’s Token Exchange feature to achieve true server authority in your Unreal Engine multiplayer game.

Unity SDK v5.2.0

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 08:19:37 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v5.2.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates! 🎉 The LootLocker extension is revamped for easier settings management, plus check out the new Log Viewer with color-coded, summarized logs. Remote Sessions now auto-fetch IDs, and you can get game configuration info with GetGameInfo. Also, new methods for certification handling and Default Loadouts! 🚀

Find it here

Unreal SDK v9.2.0

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 08:19:37 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.2.0 is released 🎉 Good things incoming! 🎉 A completely new Log Viewer with color-coded logs and error summaries, improved logging options, new GetGameInfo method, character types now include default_loadout, and a bug fix for character asset usage.

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v6.1.2

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 08:19:37 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.1.2 is released 🎉 Let's go 🎉 Meet the new Log Viewer: color-coded logs, error summaries, and handy links! Plus, logging is now supercharged. Set log levels, save logs to file, and more. Debugging LootLocker just got way more simple!

Find it here

Solving TLS Certificate Issues with LootLocker API in Unity and Unreal Engine

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 07:00:00 +0000

Some developers have recently encountered TLS certificate errors when connecting to the LootLocker API from game builds using engines such as Unity and Unreal Engine. These issues are most commonly reported on Windows 10, but can also affect other operating systems and older systems that do not have up-to-date root certificates.

For example, you might see errors like:

libcurl error: 60 (SSL peer certificate or SSH remote key was not OK)
SSL certificate problem: unable to get local issuer certificate

While the API endpoint (e.g., https://api.lootlocker.com/) works fine for the developers, game engine builds for older systems may fail to connect securely. This guide explains the root cause of these TLS issues, why they are appearing now, and how to resolve them in a way that works across both Unity and Unreal Engine, and for a wide range of systems.

Automate and Moderate: User Impersonation in Your Game Servers using LootLocker

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Modern games are more than just real-time action, or late night explorations. They are complete, sprawling, living worlds. As such, building and maintaining these experiences is a bigger and bigger undertaking. Bringing your world alive often requires things like daily rewards, asynchronous events, and timed tasks that keep players coming back and experiencing new things every day. But how do you make all of this happen?

Enter User Impersonation, a new feature in the LootLocker Server API and Unreal Server SDK that lets your server act on behalf of any player, at any time, using just their player ID.

Currency Multipliers

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Today we're releasing Currency Multipliers.

You can now add a multiplier to a currency in a player's wallet. When earning a currency through rewards, the multiplier will be applied to the amount earned.

Adding multipliers can also have a time limit, so you can reward players with a temporary boost.

Multipliers can be added manually through the player page in the LootLocker Web Console, or through the Server API.

PlayStation Support in Unified Player Accounts

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've added support for PlayStation accounts in our unified player accounts system.

This means that players can now link their PlayStation accounts to their existing profiles!

If you want to add support for PlayStation in your game, please reach out to us via the Discord or on email.

Unity SDK v5.0.0

Tue, 20 May 2025 12:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v5.0.0 is released 🎉 This version brings a major new feature: multi-user support, enabling use cases like local multiplayer and easier account linking. We've also enhanced Connected Accounts to better support linking across various platforms. Wallets now fully support currency multipliers, and the SDK allows for reading and filtering custom notifications defined by your game. All responses now contain a context structure with request data. Finally, the refactored HTTP stack is out of beta, providing a more stable and consistent experience, alongside various bug fixes including improved Steam store notifications.

Unreal Server SDK v6.0.0

Tue, 20 May 2025 12:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v6.0.0 is released 🎉 This version introduces Custom Notifications, enabling your server to send in-game news and asynchronous rewards to players. Currency Multipliers are now fully supported in wallets, and you can now Get Assets by Context as well as list UGC assets from the server API. Logging outside of the editor is now configurable for easier issue diagnosis. Additionally, all query and path parameters are now URL encoded, and character IDs are included in hero responses.

Use up to 10 filters when listing assets

Tue, 13 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The asset_filters property for listing assets now supports up to 10 filters.

We're Updating our Pricing

Thu, 01 May 2025 08:00:00 +0000

Today we’re launching a new pricing model for LootLocker that better reflects the evolving needs of our customers and the changing landscape of the games industry.

Our mission has always been to lower the barrier to entry for using a backend to power your game. Over the past few years, LootLocker has grown, and so have the teams and titles using it, from solo indies to global publishers. To better support this broader spectrum of creators, we’re updating our pricing model to scale more flexibly with your project while still offering a free option for testing LootLocker or developing a non-commercial game.

Powered by LootLocker: How a Smooth Switch from Proprietary Backend to LootLocker Fuels an Ambitious Genre Revival

Tue, 29 Apr 2025 09:00:00 +0000

Who?

Vector Z Studios is a passionate team of developers, designers, and gaming enthusiasts dedicated to crafting polished, innovative gaming experiences. Their flagship title, Midair 2, revives the jetpack shooter genre with fast-paced, physics-driven gameplay in a striking sci-fi universe.

Features Used

Player Authentication (docs)
Unified Player Accounts (docs)
Progressions (docs)
In-App Purchases (docs)
Economy (docs)
Messages (docs)

The Story

Indie studio Vector Z is currently spearheading a fascinating renaissance of the dormant jetpack shooter genre – and they have picked LootLocker to drive their success from the backend.

Unified Player Account Update

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We've updated our Connected Accounts feature to better support link flows in more complex scenarios.

You can now use auth.game to link accounts to the player, without needing to use the old connect endpoints.
When linking, we will hide the login buttons for providers already linked for the player.
The ability to move multiple providers between player accounts.

With this new functionality it's now possible to better link providers directly from the game client. We've also greatly improved the experience for games that wants to implement merging of accounts.

Auth Client API Reference Documentation release

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Today we've released reference documentation for the API we use to power auth.game. You can use this API to for Player Impersonation, to create your own alternative to auth.game or to set up a complex account merging flow when used in conjunction with the Server and Game APIs.

This documentation brings all the same benefits mentioned in New Reference Documentation last week.

You can find this reference documentation here: ref.lootlocker.com/auth-client.

New Reference Documentation

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Today we're launching an update to our reference documentation, which brings multiple improvements:

Use it directly from the browser: You can now call endpoints directly from the browser, making it easier to test and explore the API.
Improved Navigation: The new documentation has a more intuitive structure, making it easier to find the information you need.
Enhanced Search Functionality: The search feature has been improved to provide more relevant results and faster access to the information you need.

These docs are for people who want to explore the API's directly or does not use one of the already supported Game Engines. The documentation for our engine SDKs can be found here.

Twitch Drops

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Twitch drops support have landed in LootLocker!

Players can link their Twitch account to their LootLocker account.
Players can claim drops from Twitch streams and receive them in game.
Easy to set up and configure.

You can read our announcement here.

Introducing Twitch Drops Integration for Every Game

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 13:00:00 +0000

Today, we’re excited to launch our Twitch Drops integration into the wild!

LootLocker has always focused on bridging the gap between players and the content they own — and the systems that reward them. Supporting Twitch Drops felt like a natural evolution of that mission. Even better, we were able to build much of the functionality on top of the systems we developed for Unified Player Accounts, making the integration smooth and familiar for those already using LootLocker.

Unity SDK v4.0.0

Wed, 02 Apr 2025 12:52:08 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v4.0.0 is released 🎉 New features include player name lookup, the ability of getting progressions from another player, and a convenience lookup method for twitch drops. This version of the SDK also contains a spring cleaning of previously deprecated methods and symbols. See the release notes below for more information.

Find it here

Game API: Ordered Asset List

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The Game API have been updated so you can now list assets in the order that best suit your game using the /game/v1/assets/list endpoint.

There are two new query parameters that can be sent.

order_by which is the field you want to use for ordering your assets. Valid options are name, created_at, updated_at, and id.

order_direction is the direction you want to order your assets. Valid options are ASC and DESC.

Multi User & Impersonation for Unreal SDKs

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 14:47:33 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v7.0.0 and Unreal Server SDK v5.0.0 are released bringing major capability improvements 🎉 Exciting updates! We've released a major capability upgrade to our Unreal SDKs adding Multi user support to the Game SDK and Token exchange & Impersonation support to the server SDK.

Multi User Support

This version of the Game SDK sees a major and central feature update in giving the SDK support for multiple users 🎉👥. This enables a few advanced use cases such as:

Changes to Game Merging and Live Game

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

While Game merging has been an integral part of LootLocker since it's inception, over time it's proven error prone and hard to use.

We've made the hard decision to deprecate the feature and hide it for all new games. If you have an existing game that uses the feature it will continue to work as before, until we can replace it with a better solution.

This also means new games only have 1 environment available.

Expanded information on Player Inventories

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We have expanded the information shown in the Console for Player Inventories. The inventory is now ordered by the date the player received the asset instance, and a source field has been added to indicate how the player received the asset instance.

Create Players from the Server API

Wed, 26 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The Server API has been updated to allow you to create players using the new /server/player endpoint.

This is useful if you want to create players in your game server and then use the LootLocker API to manage their inventories, rewards, and other features.

Outage Postmortem: Database Provider Issue

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 11:34:31 +0000

On Saturday at 22:29 UTC, our platform experienced an outage due to an issue with our database provider. The root cause of this outage was an expired SSL certificate on their end, which disrupted our ability to connect to their service. While this issue originated externally, we acknowledge that the absence of alerts within our monitoring systems prolonged the response time. We have since addressed this gap to ensure quicker resolution in the future.

Search for Assets by their ID

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

You can now use the numeric Asset IDs as input when searching for assets in the LootLocker Console.

UGC: Remove Promoted UGC

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

It is now possible to remove promoted UGC from the Game API. Calling the delete endpoint even for promoted UGC will no longer return an error.

Console Player Page Improvements

Fri, 14 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The players pages have received the following updates:

Greatly improved loading times for the players list page.
Moved all/recent + pagination to the URL, making it easier to share links.
Fixed an issue where the player page would load the wrong data when switching between all and recent players.

Unreal SDK v10.1.0

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 08:00:00 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v10.1.0 is released 🎉 Major release introducing Presence system with real-time websocket connections, improved inventory listing performance, latency statistics, and expanded catalog support for Epic Games, PlayStation, and Stripe platforms.

Find it here

Unreal SDK v5.3.0

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 14:11:33 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v5.3.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates! Introduced new Player Info endpoints, enhanced Player and Asset Metadata, and streamlined UGC creation. Get specific currency details easily now. Steam auth is smoother, and asset contexts can handle multi-equip. Note deprecations for cleaner integration. Check the full changelog!

Find it here

Unreal Server SDK v3.3.0

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 13:04:19 +0000

🎉 Unreal Server SDK v3.3.0 is released 🎉 Exciting updates! You can now schedule leaderboards via the Server SDK, access leaderboard ULIDs for enhanced interactions, and leverage versatile metadata for both players and assets. Dive into the full details in our changelog!

Find it here

Unity SDK v3.6.1

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 12:52:08 +0000

🎉 Unity SDK v3.6.1 is released 🎉 New features include GetCurrencyDetails for specific currency info and enhanced leaderboard data returning ULIDs for better metadata handling. Bug fixes: UnEquipIdAsset methods now function correctly. Note: Transition from full player storage to Player Metadata is recommended.

Find it here

Bugfix: Drop Table Grants

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Squashed a bug in the Admin API which would in some circumstances result in drop table grants not saving correctly.

Equip multiple Asset Instances in a single Context

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

You can now equip multiple Asset Instances in a single Context. This is great if your game requires players to have for example 2 active abilities at the same time.

While there are API changes associated with this, you can use it without updating the SDK or changing your implementation. The only downside is that you will not be able to programatically see how many instances you can equip in a context.

Change Player Names in Console

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A new feature has been added to the Web Console that allows you to change player names in the web interface. This is useful for moderation purposes or while testing your game.

To change a players name, head to the Players Page, select a player and click their name in the top of the page.

Steam Authentication Improvements

Tue, 12 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

We've released a new Steam authentication endpoint with improvements to both flow and stability.

The improvements feature 2 changes:

A simplified authentication flow, combining verification with starting a session into a single endpoint.
New internal retry logic, which will automatically retry failed requests to the Steam Servers.

If you're using the Unity or Unreal SDKs, you do not need to make any changes, if you're using VerifyPlayerAndStartSteamSession to start sessions.

New Shared System: Notifications

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 09:00:00 +0000

LootLocker now has a Notifications system to help your game track and deliver important updates from features like Rewards, Triggers, Leaderboards, and Progressions. Notifications are queued and can be consumed by the game, ensuring players never miss a critical message.

Learn how to make use of Notifications with our documentation.

Introducing Triggers 2.0: Rebuilt to Reward Your Players

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 09:00:00 +0000

We’re excited to announce the re-release of one of LootLocker’s most versatile features—Triggers! This feature has undergone a complete overhaul and is now fully integrated with the same cross-feature rewards system that powers all our latest features. Triggers let you create and manage in-game actions tied to specific rewards, opening up countless opportunities to engage your players.

What’s New?

In addition to a major upgrade in performance and stability, Triggers 2.0 are now connected to LootLocker’s unified rewards system, making it easier than ever to connect in-game actions with each reward type, like progressions, catalog items, or virtual currencies.

New Feature: Triggers 2.0

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 09:00:00 +0000

We have re-released the Triggers feature with a complete overhaul, now built with improved performance, stabiliity and integrated with the Rewards system. The updated Triggers support both limited and unlimited activations, enabling more flexible reward scenarios.

Check out our updated documentation to learn how to implement Triggers in your game.

LootLocker Unity SDK v3.3.0

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Find it here

Features

Triggers 2.0 🕹️ - We’re excited to announce the re-release of one of LootLocker’s most versatile features—Triggers! This feature has undergone a complete overhaul and is now fully integrated with the same cross-feature rewards system that powers all our latest features. Triggers let you create and manage in-game actions tied to specific rewards, opening up countless opportunities to engage your players. Read more here
Notifications 💬 - Notifications serve as a shared system that integrates seamlessly with multiple features, including Rewards, Catalogs, Progressions, and Triggers. Acting as a central hub, Notifications track and communicate important player-related updates to the game, ensuring players stay informed about significant events and changes. Read more here
.com - The LootLocker api has transitioned to .com instead of .io in preparation for an eventual potential phase out of the TLD.
The version of the LootLocker SDK is now logged at start up time to help when reaching out to the team for support.
All session responses now contain the wallet_id of the player.
The define symbol LOOTLOCKER_DISABLE_EDITOR_EXTENSION has been added so that it is possible to disable the LootLocker editor extension.

Bug Fixes

The LootLocker editor extension no longer logs out on compiles and builds.

Deprecations

With the introduction of Triggers 2.0, the old triggers system is deprecated. Adressing this will require you to re-configure your triggers in the new triggers configuration. To do this, please refer to our documentation. Once you have done this, simply call the new InvokeTriggersByKey method in place of the ExecuteTrigger method. For a deeper understanding of using triggers in game, refer to our documentation.
Group leaderboard rewards no longer contain the metadata field as it's no longer returned from the backend.

LootLocker Unreal SDK v3.2.0

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Find it here

Features

Leaderboard Archives - LootLocker leaderboard archives are now supported by the Server SDK.
SDK Version logging - The version of the LootLocker Server SDK is now logged at start up time to help when reaching out to the team for support.
Add player session token lookup - You can now look up a player using their session token. Use this to verify that a client token is indeed for the player that the client says they are.
Succesful request logging - When configured as very verbose and in the editor, the SDK will now log successful requst data as well.
.com - The LootLocker api has transitioned to .com instead of .io in preparation for an eventual potential phase out of the TLD.

Bug Fixes

The array in Universal Inventory response is now correctly named, handling json parsing correctly
The Asset Instance Storage operation responses are now single items making json parsing function correctly
The character inventory and hero inventory requests now work, the endpoints were incorrectly named

LootLocker Unreal SDK v5.2.0

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Find it here

Features

Triggers 2.0 🕹️ - We’re excited to announce the re-release of one of LootLocker’s most versatile features—Triggers! This feature has undergone a complete overhaul and is now fully integrated with the same cross-feature rewards system that powers all our latest features. Triggers let you create and manage in-game actions tied to specific rewards, opening up countless opportunities to engage your players. Read more here
Notifications 💬 - Notifications serve as a shared system that integrates seamlessly with multiple features, including Rewards, Catalogs, Progressions, and Triggers. Acting as a central hub, Notifications track and communicate important player-related updates to the game, ensuring players stay informed about significant events and changes. Read more here
.com - The LootLocker api has transitioned to .com instead of .io in preparation for an eventual potential phase out of the TLD.
The version of the LootLocker SDK is now logged at start up time to help when reaching out to the team for support.
All session responses now contain the wallet_id of the player.

Bugfixes

Hero loadout now correctly contains an array of loadout items instead of a single loadout

Deprecations

With the introduction of Triggers 2.0, the old triggers system is deprecated. Adressing this will require you to re-configure your triggers in the new triggers configuration. To do this, please refer to our documentation. Once you have done this, simply call the new InvokeTriggersByKey method in place of the ExecuteTrigger method. For a deeper understanding of using triggers in game, refer to our documentation.

Introducing Metadata: Cross-System Custom Data Storage

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 09:00:00 +0000

At LootLocker, our ultimate goal is to provide a flexible game backend framework that supports nearly every use case. It’s an ambitious vision, especially considering the complex structures of modern games and the ever-evolving creativity of game & monetization designers. But we believe in a future where a platform like LootLocker can cover all the requirements of a game team, eliminating the need for additional services to fill the gaps between a game’s backend and its unique mechanics.

New Feature: Metadata

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Today we launched a brand new cross-system feature, Metadata. Metadata allows you to store additional, custom information related to various LootLocker features, such as Progressions, Leaderboards, and Catalogs.

This data lets you add context or functionality to these features, going beyond the default settings. For example, you might use Metadata to store map details for a leaderboard or to attach an image to an item in your in-game store.

Check out our documentation to learn how to implement Metadata in your game.

Implementing IAP in Your Android Game: A Step-by-Step Guide for Unity & Unreal

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Selecting the right business model and monetizing your games the right way is about as important as it gets in terms of the growth and health of your studio. Whether you’re looking to maintain your current game, work on the next title, establish or build on IP, or develop your team and studio, at the end of the day, you’ll need to keep making money to keep your business thriving.

Introducing Feedback: Elevating Every Player’s Voice

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Game development and publishing used to be all about pouring your blood, sweat, and tears into creating a game in isolation and then releasing it to players as a finished product. Those days are long gone! Today, game development is a dynamic, two-way street where players have a significant voice. Whether it's reporting players in multiplayer games, flagging content in UGC games, or simply providing general feedback in Early Access titles, player input is invaluable. So invaluable in fact, that we've actually written about the importance of player feedback a long time ago.

New Feature: Feedback

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Today we launched a brand new feature, Feedback. The Feedback feature allows you to create and manage reports across three different core LootLocker systems: Players, UGC, and the Game itself. Learn more about this feature in our announcement post.

Check out our documentation to learn how to implement Feedback in your game.

Error Handling

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

We have updated how errors in the LootLocker web console are displayed.

When recieving an error you now are provided with plain-text information about what went wrong as well as a Trace ID that you can copy and share in Discord so that we can help fix the problem.

Powered by LootLocker: Why Turborilla chose LootLocker and found a backend to match their ambition

Wed, 28 Aug 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Who?

A leading mobile studio that serves up motorsports action to millions of players.

Features Used

Player Authentication (docs)
Unified Player Accounts (docs)
Player Storage (docs)
Progressions (docs)
White Label Login (docs)
In-App Purchases (docs)

The Story

Turborilla’s catalog of motorsports games have collectively been downloaded over 130 million times. Their latest mobile title Rally Clash has been showered with positive reviews by a vast player community, while drawing eager praise for the technical ambition and polish it delivers to smartphone devices.

CORS Allowlist

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A new feature has been added to the API that allows you to specify a list of domains that are allowed to make requests to the API. This is useful if you want to restrict access to the API to only your own domains.

Documentation can be found here.

Reward Groups: An Update to Leaderboards and Catalogs

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 09:00:00 +0000

We’re excited to share that our cross-feature Rewards system has received an update to now include grouped rewards. Following the successful launch of our new economy system last year, which included virtual currencies and catalogs, we have been working on improvements based on your feedback. Previously, you could grant rewards like currencies, progressions, and assets through progressions, leaderboards, and catalogs. Now, we are introducing Reward Groups to take this a step further.

Configuration: Preserve Player Name on Session Start

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

We have exposed a new setting in the LootLocker Console to allow you to configure whether or not the player name should be updated from the Identity Provider (eg. steam) when a session starts.

This is useful for games that do not want to update the player name on every session start, but only when the player explicitly changes their name in the game.

This setting is available in the Console under in "Game Settings", under the "Misc" tab. Look for "Preserve Player Names on Session Start".

Reward Groups

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

It's now possible to create reward groups in LootLocker.

Reward groups allows multiple rewards to be awarded to a player at once.
This is currently available for catalogs and leaderboards rewards.

To learn more you can read our announcement post.

Creating an Automated Merch Store for your Gaming Company

Tue, 25 Jun 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Merch and swag is a great marketing tool to build the brand for your game or your company. It's free advertising as your colleagues or community wear your logo out in the public. If designed well, it can even draw more attention to your brand. Who knows, it could even become a piece of fashion!

While designing the best merch is hard, the often overlooked challenge comes from having to manage selling and fullfilling the orders from your community or team. This is the same issue I faced multiple times in previous game studios, and now at LootLocker. So, I went about and did some research and found a great (and totally free / low maintenence) solution using Gumroad as a storefront and Printful as the fulfillment solution.

Powered by LootLocker: Taking VR to New Levels by Replacing Proprietary Technology

Wed, 19 Jun 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Who?

Fast Travel Games are an award-winning Stockholm VR developer and publisher founded by ex Rovio, DICE, and Mojang staff.

Features Used

Meta Authentication (docs)
Leaderboards (docs)

The Story

When Fast Travel Games needed a new backend that matched the quality of one of their most ambitious, popular VR games, they turned to LootLocker.

The team – headed up by veterans of Rovio, EA DICE, and Mojang – has seen its games showered with accolades and glowing reviews, taking prizes at the Meta Quest Awards, the A Maze festival, the Raindance Immersive Film Festival, and the Venice Film Festival. It is fair to say they know a thing or two about making seriously good games.

A Change for the Better: The Trends That Will Define Games’ New Era

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 11:00:00 +0000

We are undergoing one of the most profound periods of change in the game industry’s history.

Devastating layoffs have defined the headlines in recent months, as observers have tried to understand why we have seen quite so many studio closures. Many argue that a new reliance on pleasing shareholders is to blame, while others posit that the metrics on which success is measured have outgrown reality. Speak to those with their ear to the ground of the games finance space, and you’ll hear talk that now a five-fold return-on-investment (ROI) isn't enough to assert success – and that we are rushing towards a reality where expectations of 10x or 20x ROI really might become a new norm. That leaves a lot of capacity for very profitable games counting as ‘failures’, and might encourage a lot of moonshot pitches and pressure to overpromise. High sales in the pandemic certainly didn’t help, setting an impossible precedent for the realities of 2024.

Unreal SDK v9.0.0

Mon, 20 May 2024 14:11:33 +0000

🎉 Unreal SDK v9.0.0 is released 🎉 This version introduces support for reading and filtering custom notifications, allowing you to notify players of in-game rewards, news, and more. This release also includes a crucial bug fix for Epic Games account connecting/disconnecting, updating the platform string to epic_games for proper functionality.

Find it here

Feature Deprecation

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 09:00:00 +0000

At LootLocker, our primary goal is to deliver the best product possible, which requires a laser-focused approach. This involves ensuring our expanding set of features and services align with our core product vision. Occasionally, we need to deprecate features that may hinder our progress.

Deciding to deprecate features is always difficult. These features were created to fulfill specific needs but may no longer be serving their intended purpose for various reasons. These could include market or industry shifts, lack of support for a certain technology, or the need for a total overhaul.

Leaderboard Scheduled Resets & Rewards

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Leaderboards are among the most popular features of LootLocker, known for their ease of implementation, simple management, and cross-platform compatibility. They're versatile and can be used for a variety of purposes, ranging from classic arcade highscores to time-trial events, and even ranking user-generated content.

Today, we're introducing new features to our Leaderboards: scheduled resets and rewards.

Scheduled Resets

You can now set up a reset schedule for your leaderboards, based on the cron job scheduler concept. This allows you to establish a reset schedule ranging from every hour to every year, with all variations in between. If you're unfamiliar with cron, check out this helpful guide. Here's a diagram that explains how it works.

Leaderboard Scheduling

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

An update to leaderboards have been released, allowing for scheduling of resets and rewards.

CRON expressions can be used to schedule resets.
Rewards can be awards to players based on their leaderboard position.

To read more about leaderboard scheduling you can read our announcement post or go straight to the documentation.

2024-03-21

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where an unrelated topbar would show on the reset password and verify user pages
Fixed an issue where the game logo would not show on the reset password page

In-App Purchases for Apple, Google, and Steam

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000

In the 90s, when I began playing games, the only game-related purchase to consider was the game itself. It came in a colorful cardboard box, housing a CD or cartridge, or later, a blue or green plastic DVD case. These were adorned with enticing game art, hinting at the adventures that awaited once you booted up the game at home.

However, the advent of digital games and smartphones rendered physical copies nearly obsolete. Now, one simply buys the game and waits patiently for it to download before playing.

Getting Started With Connected Accounts

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 10:25:00 +0000

Here at LootLocker, our mission is to make cross-platform feel like one platform. With the release of Unified Player Accounts, we’re one step closer to this goal.

In short, Connected Accounts allows your players to upgrade and connect several first party platform accounts (like Steam, Apple, and PlayStation) into one single account to use across a game (or even multiple games). For example, players could start with a Guest account that doesn’t require any login information, attach their Google Account, log in with that on their iOS device and attach their Apple account. Then, regardless of which device they play on, their account information will always be synchronized.

Getting Started with Remote Login

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 10:25:00 +0000

Sometimes it's not practical to implement a native platform authentication in your game (like Sign in with Apple) due to development time constraints or player convenience. That's why we've created Remote Login, which provides a quick and easy way to authenticate your players across multiple platforms, without having to implement each platform's authentication method individually.

In fact, you may have encountered an example of how Remote Login works if you've ever had to login to streaming services, such as Disney+ or Netflix on your TV. Just like that, with LootLocker's Remote Login, we provide your players with a URL (or QR code) that takes them a website where they can connect multiple platform accounts togehter, unlocking the holy grail of cross-platform goodness - cross-progression and cross-saves. Cross-everything!

Implement Sign in with Google in your Unity & Unreal Game

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 10:25:00 +0000

Implementing Sign in with Google is a common frustration among game developers. A lot of games utilize this authentication method. Despite this, there isn't much documentation on this subject out there. That's why we at LootLocker decided to take matters into our own hands. Follow along and let's get it working!

We have split this guide into distinct sections so that you can either read it top to bottom, or go straight to the part you want to learn more about.

Introducing Unified Player Accounts

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 10:25:00 +0000

We live in a cross-platform, multi-device world, where players engage with games across different devices and platforms. A world where you might start playing a game on one platform - be it because you clicked on an ad for it there, or because it initially only released on that platform - but then want to continue playing on a different device or platform. As gamers we often take these things for granted. The game should just follow us around from device to device, platform to platform. We rarely think about the systems and technology behind making this cross-platform world a possiblity.

Game Balancing with Google Sheets and CSV

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 09:00:00 +0000

As a game developer you are most likely familiar with the terms “nerfed” and “buffed”. They are industry standard terms for when something in a game is re-balanced to either become “weaker” (nerfed) or “stronger“ (buffed). When developing a game, game balancing can be one of the hardest things to get right, and it becomes even harder if all the data that you want to change is spread out in different places across your game. It's also hard to balance the game quickly if you have to push a game update with every balancing round.

2024-01-12

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Console

Changes

The LootLocker Console is now response, allowing you to manage your game from any device, anywhere.

Unity SDK

Changes

Refresh Remote Sessions: Remote sessions now provide a refresh token that can be used to refresh the session without fully re-authorizing.
Grant and Remove Assets You can now grant and delete assets from a player directly from the game if you allow it in the console.

Bug Fixes

The catalog now correctly handles the pagination cursor.

Continuous Integration

We have significantly improved our continuous integration and testing. Here for example is the run for this release: https://github.com/lootlocker/unity-sdk/actions/workflows/run-tests-and-package.yml

2023-11-17

Fri, 17 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal SDK

Unreal SDK v3.1.0 released

Changes

Progression Currencies - 🪙 Currencies can now be rewarded from progressions 🎉
Session Leasing - 🎁 You can now lease a session on your client. You will get a url and a qr code that can be used by the same or another device to authorise the session.

Bug Fixes

RemoveAssetFromHeroLoadout is working again
Packaging has been failing for certain platforms due to LootLockerConfig not being found. This issue has been fixed.

Unreal Server SDK v2.2.0 released

Changes

Currency Progressions - Progressions can now reward currencies 🎉

Bug Fixes

Documentation clarifications to balance requests

2023-11-10

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This week we have added economy support to our progression system, meaning you can now reward currencies from any progression.

Additionally we have also recently shipped two major updates to our SDKs.

Web Console

Changes

Added support for currencies in progression rewards

Admin API

Changes

Added support for currencies in progression rewards

Game API

Changes

Added support for currencies in progression rewards

Server API

Changes

Added support for currencies in progression rewards

Unity SDK

Changes

Unity SDK v2.0.0 Released

2023-10-20

Fri, 20 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This week we shipped our new Base and Hero Class System, as well as the long anticipated Economy System.

Web Console

Changes

Our new Base and Hero Class System has launched, with a much improved UI. Find it in the Console under Systems.
Economy has been launched. This also brings a fresh new UI for managing your games Economy and Currencies. Find it in the Console under Content.

Unity SDK

Changes

Economy - LootLocker's economy system is released 🎉 With this you can now create virtual currencies, in game economies, and so much more. Read more in our blog post announcing the release.

Bug Fixes

The LootLocker Editor extension that shipped in v1.2.6 had a few bugs that have now been fixed.
- Primarily, the build error for a rouge [HideInEditor] decorator has been fixed
- Adding the SDK from github url should now work
The new flag on messages is fixed

Unreal SDK

Changes

Economy - LootLocker's economy system is released 🎉 With this you can now create virtual currencies, in game economies, and so much more. Read more in our blog post announcing the release.
Improved Errors - The way that LootLocker tells you what's wrong has changed. Instead of the Response.Error field there's now a structure: Response.ErrorData that contains some more valuable information. Read more here: https://docs.lootlocker.com/reference/error-codes
Exposed method CreateHeroWithVariation to Blueprints
Added ability to equip global asset with the default variation for heroes
Added Public_UID to the authentication responses

Bug Fixes

Fixed build problems for Unreal Engine 5.3 when packaging for Linux

Game API

Changes

The Game API of course benefits from the new Economy System, allowing you to use virtual currencies, in game economies and so much more. Read more in our blog post announcing the release.

Server API

Changes

The Server API of course also benefits from the new Economy System, allowing you to use virtual currencies, in game economies and so much more. Read more in our blog post announcing the release.

Admin API

Changes

The Admin API of course also supports the new Economy System, allowing you to create virtual currencies, in game economies and so much more. Read more in our blog post announcing the release.

3 Ways to Use Our Economy System

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 09:00:00 +0000

With the release of our new Economy system, we’ve introduced some new concepts to the LootLocker platform that need to be understood to have the best experience possible.

This guide will provide some details on how the Economy system works and how to implement it easily into your own game.

We will start off by looking at how to create a Currency, and after that we will continue with creating a Catalog and a Listing, and finally we’ll look at three different examples of game implementations with this setup. If you haven’t already read our introduction to the new Economy system, make sure you do!

Our New Economy System

Tue, 17 Oct 2023 09:00:00 +0000

For those reading this blog post that are familar with LootLocker's development, you might remember us talking about a Multiple Currencies feature way back when we began development of an update to our initial currency implementation. During the development of this feature we realized that what we really needed to build was actually a lot more complex and that calling it simply Multiple Currencies wouldn’t do the scope of the feature justice at all.

Introducing Base & Hero Classes

Mon, 16 Oct 2023 09:00:00 +0000

A few years ago we launched our Character Classes & Heroes feature allowing you to define characters in your game, populate their default loadout, and then take things one step further by creating heroes based on those classes - each hero having their own exceptions. This is a hugely powerful system, made even more powerful when connected to our existing asset and player inventory systems.

Today we have launched a brand new user interface for this feature, making it the easiest it's ever been to manage classes and heroes in your LootLocker game. In addition to that we've also taken the opportunity to refine the feature, making it more intuitive for a first time user.

Unity Admin Extension

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 09:00:00 +0000

Earlier this week we released the first version of our new Admin Extension for our Unity SDK. Our vision with this extension is to enable an even easier workflow by giving you a tool fully integrated with your game engine of choice (that’s right, an Unreal Admin Extension is also planned!) At the current stage of the Unity Admin Extension’s development, you can sign in with your LootLocker credentials to create, manage, and apply API Keys without having to ever leave the engine editor.

2023-09-29

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue with not being able to view players using the legacy Google platform

Unity SDK

Changes

GetProgressionTier - You can now get the tiers in a progression!
Admin extension - If you're using Unity 2021 or newer, look at a new way to manage API Keys inside Unity! You can find it under Tools/LootLocker/Menu on the top of Unity!

Bug Fixes

Fixed the MacFsWatcher include error
Errors return correctly again

2023-09-22

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal Engine

Changes

LootLocker Unreal SDKs now support Unreal Engine 5.3 🎉

2023-09-15

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where the price on assets could be hidden by mistake in a situation where it should be shown.

Game API

Bug Fixes

A bug was fixed which had caused duplicate white label users to be created. The duplicate users have been removed, but this means some white label users who changed their password, might have the wrong password on their user now.

Admin API

Changes

Added thumbnails to response for Hero default loadout.
Added character class name, exception count and default loadout to Hero List endpoint response.

2023-09-08

Fri, 08 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Users will be asked to confirm their game name on game deletion as an extra precaution

Unity SDK v1.2.5

Changes

Meta/Oculus - Added support for authentication using Meta/Oculus
Last active authentication - You can now query the SDK through GetLastActivePlatform() to see which authentication method was last used on this device
Heroes - The SDK now supports interaction with the hero feature.
List Player Characters - A new method to list all the characters that a player has
Improved error messages - We are revamping how we deal with error messages (See https://docs.lootlocker.com/reference/error-codes) and the SDK now supports this structure. This means that the old Error data (response.Error) has been deprecated, the same data now lives inside the field response.errorData.message. Along with it, you now have the new fields code, doc_url, request_id, and trace_id for improved ability to find the fix for your problem.

Unreal SDK v2.0.11

Changes

Multiple Google Platforms - Google sign in now supports signing in from different google platforms.
Last active authentication - You can now query the SDK through GetLastActivePlatform() to see which authentication method was last used on this device
Meta/Oculus - Added support for authentication using Meta/Oculus
Obfuscation - The SDK now obfuscates sensitive data before logging
List Player Characters - A new method to list all the characters that a player has

Bug Fixes

Replace the game key with the Session Token in custom headers

Unreal Server SDK

Changes

Support for UE 4.24 and up - LootLockerServerSDK now supports all Unreal versions from 4.24 to 5.2
Asset instance progressions - You can now use progressions on asset instances
Diagnostics data added to request headers.

Bug Fixes

Guest player lookup now uses the correct search term
Hero methods use the correct HTTP methods
HTTP Client is only created once

2023-09-01

Fri, 01 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Our new pricing is released, and you can now see it in the console! You can read more about it here: https://lootlocker.com/blog/new-pricing-2023

Bug Fixes

You can once again delete Server API keys in the console.
The colors for the player list environment pill now follow the same color scheme as the rest of the console.
Fixed an issue where Data Entities couldn’t be deleted

Game API

Changes

We have improved the performance and reliability of session registration for Sign in with Apple and Google Sign In.

New Pricing in 2023: Hobby, Plus & Pro

Wed, 30 Aug 2023 09:00:00 +0000

Updated on November 3, 2023: We've decided to move White Label Login into the Hobby Tier, meaning it's no longer a requirement that you've been legacied in, for you to have access to White Label Login.

Today we have updated LootLocker's pricing to better reflect the value that our platform adds to thousands of in-development and live games across PC, console, and mobile. We started building LootLocker with the vision of creating the next generation backend platform that serves as a hub for your game - both during development and when your game is live. Over the past few years we've added amazing new features like our User-Generated Content, Progression, and White Label Login systems to name a few. We've also made improvements across all APIs, SDKs and the web console to make sure LootLocker is not only powerful, but the most accessible backend platform as well.

Powered by LootLocker: Helping a serial collaborator turn creative ideas into polished games

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 09:00:00 +0000

Chirag Chopra is the founder of Lucid Labs – the only Indian game studio to have a game published on Apple Arcade. His new game, Bloom, is a puzzle game with an experiential story that “doesn’t make any sense”.

A classic startup story

Chirag Chopra is 31 years old, and runs Lucid Labs from New Delhi, India. He has a Master’s Degree in Game Design and eight years of development experience.

The creation of Lucid Labs is a story of passion and determination. Chirag and a few classmates had created a game called ROTO for a 24-hour game jam. It proved promising enough that he and his team wanted to develop it into a full game.

Launching on Steam with Steamworks & LootLocker

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 09:00:00 +0000

If you’re building a PC game, chances are you’re planning to launch it on Steam at some point. After all, it’s the most popular platform on PC and recently hit a record of 10 million concurrent players online. Why is it number one? Well, Steam has been the defacto digital PC publishing platform for the last two decades since it started allowing third parties to publish their games.

It doesn’t hurt that it has millions of active users across the world, giving you the chance to sell your game to each and every one of them. And it has lots of community features like forums, reviews, wishlists, and a user-generated content (UGC) and in-game item marketplace, which help developers further engage with players and build a loyal fan base.

2023-08-18

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

You can now choose which of your Asset Image Types to use as a thumbnail in the LootLocker Console! Go here to set it up: https://console.lootlocker.com/assets/settings/image-types

Game API

Changes

A large rework of Player Storage has been completed this week, resulting in much better performance and stability. We did have a few issues immediately surrounding the launch of this as some of you might have noticed. These have been resolved and everything is running smoothly now!

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue where promoting asset candidates with thumbnails attached, would not work for some games.

Admin API

Changes

Added the ability to mark an Asset Image Type as thumbnail, resulting in thumbnail images being returned in the Admin API.

2023-08-11

Fri, 11 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

We have introduced Access Control which allows you to control which users have access to which features. This is a feature that has been requested by many of you and we are happy to finally be able to provide it. You can find it in the Game Settings page. You can also read more about it here: https://lootlocker.com/blog/access-control
Updated the side menu for Assets, moving Contexts from Game Settings to the Asset menu
Improved the Add Asset menu, making it possible to create Contexts when creating new Assets
Users can update their name in settings

Admin API

Changes

Added support for Access Control

Documentation

Our documentation has seen various updates and improvements these last few weeks, including:

Introducing Organization Access Control

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 09:00:00 +0000

Today we have launched Access Control, a new feature that helps larger teams more securely delegate responsibilities to the web console and APIs by assigning roles to each user within an organization. Each of the three preset roles has limitations that ensure users with the role cannot access certain parts of the web console or API.

Organization Roles

The next time you go to your organization's settings (by clicking on your profile picture in the bottom left corner, then selecting Games and then Organization Settings), you'll see that each of your team's users has an assigned role.

Opening Up: The Future of Game Platforms

Thu, 20 Jul 2023 09:00:00 +0000

This piece was co-written by Will Freeman.

In the past, it was straightforward. Gaming platforms were hardware devices. We had consoles, PCs, and a scattering of handhelds. Developers made games for those devices, with the platforms (first-parties) and publishers holding the keys to success, exposure, and even release. Then came digital storefronts that served as platforms offering direct download, with Steam presenting the dominant model of blending point-of-sale and place to play. Mobile alternatives like the App Store and Google Play also threw their hats in the ring, as the console giants moved to digital with services like PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. What we didn’t realize at the time was that all of these platforms became – to a greater or lesser extent – walled gardens that place most of the power in the hands of those that host the platforms. A ‘walled garden’, in this case, refers to a closed platform, where the provider maintains restrictive control over what is hosted on the platform, and in many cases how that content is accessed, paid for, and even supported by different services and technologies. In many cases, walled gardens also lock players to the platform, blocking or limiting the likes of cross-play, cross-progression, and other cross-platform approaches.

2023-07-07

Fri, 07 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue related to White Label Login, where enabling “Block Unverified Players” would not function correctly, causing player to not be prevented from logging in. It now works as intended.

How UGC Can Make Your Game a Long Lasting Hit

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 10:00:00 +0000

UGC stands for user-generated content and refers to any content that’s created by players, rather than by a game’s dev. So that’s things like custom maps, skins or even entire mods that change the core gameplay. GIFs, fan art, memes, and the like are also considered UGC. Games with built-in UGC or that are designed to support mods have become more and more popular over the last few years, with some substantially extending games’ lifecycles (and even bringing a new audience to the game well after its initial release). If you’re interested in adding UGC to your game, but not sure where to start, this article’s for you.

2023-06-30

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal SDK

Changes

Apple Game Center Authentication - We've added support for authentication using Apple Game Center, for more information check out: https://docs.lootlocker.com/players/authentication/apple-game-center 🍏
Instance Progressions - We've added a new feature called instance progressions: your asset instances can now have their own progressions 🎉
Add more validation when setting player names

Bug Fixes

Google session requests now use the correct request object

Unity SDK

Changes

Add support for asset instance progressions
Implement support for multiple Google Sign-in platforms
Player Files Examples added
Add more validation when setting player names

Bug Fixes

Fix an issue with 'Other character' methods
Removed unnecessary warning logs

Server API

Bug Fixes

We stomped out an oddly shaped bug that would cause a few endpoints to return completely empty responses in some cases. 🐛

Admin API

Bug Fixes

Rejoice! The Last Seen property on players have made a return and can now be relied upon again 📆

2023-06-23

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with player file revisions not listing properly

Unity SDK

Changes

New examples for Player Files

Game API

Changes

Added support for asset instance progressions

Server API

Changes

Added support for asset instance progressions

Admin API

Changes

Added support for asset instance progressions

Defining the Game Platform of Today

Wed, 21 Jun 2023 13:00:00 +0000

In recent years the definition of what constitutes a ‘game platform’ has expanded significantly.

Today traditional platforms such as games consoles have been joined by all manner of new contenders. From individual games like Roblox to streaming services such as Netflix, via plucky underdogs including itch.io, there are now a great many interpretations of what a ‘game platform’ can be. This also means there is an emerging opportunity to redefine the game platform as a concept, and establish a model that hands more power back to developers and publishers.

2023-06-16

Fri, 16 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

The web console has seen a lot of behind the scenes improvements this week, which will result in a more stable and performant experience for you.

Unreal Engine Server SDK

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 11:00:00 +0000

We are excited to announce the release of the long-awaited Unreal Engine Server SDK for LootLocker. This SDK can be used in conjunction with your dedicated server to securely communicate with the LootLocker backend platform. It is ideal for multiplayer and competitive games where server authority over the game is essential to maintain a fun and balanced experience.

In some games, it is acceptable for the Game API to communicate directly with LootLocker because any data modification on the client will not impact the gaming experience for other players. However, in other games, especially those that are multiplayer and/or competitive, allowing the Game API to directly manage players' inventories, wallets, progression, or scores can lead to other players ruining the gaming experience for the rest of the community. This is where using the Server SDK is recommended. With the Unreal Engine Server SDK, only the server can modify the data being sent to LootLocker, so everything remains secure and fair.

Cloud Saves: Use LootLocker Player Files to Store Player Data in the Cloud

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 10:00:00 +0000

We live in a world where a majority of players play games across multiple devices and simply expect their game saves to "magically" follow them from device to device. As a game developer, we know this isn't as trivial as it might seem, but having a straight forward and flexible player cloud storage system is nevertheless vital. Some platforms might provide it through their tools and services, but a cross-platform solution is a whole other challenge.

2023-06-09

Fri, 09 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Corrected issue where inactive assets were not filtered out when granting an asset to a players inventory.

2023-05-26

Fri, 26 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where searching in the player list would not return correct info on exact matches.
Fixed a bug related to rendering drop tables in game merging, causing the entire page to crash.

Admin API

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where sometimes game merging would report with no changes even if there were changes to merge.

2023-05-19

Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug with progression tiers incorrectly counting the next step and points

2023-05-12

Fri, 12 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Multiple types of OAuth2 Client ID’s can now be configured for Google Sign In in the platform settings.
AngularJS removed - the console now runs only on React/NextJS.
Character Classes had a facelift from AngularJS to React.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with switching environment on Asset pages.
Fixed an issue with ordering of assets on the Asset page.

Unity SDK

Release v1.2.2

Changes

Apple Game Center: The SDK now supports using Apple Game Center as authorization system.
New samples for using the fresh progressions system.
Expired sessions will now automatically try to refresh if there is a refresh token.

Bug Fixes

Fixes for GetPlayerStorage.
Fixes for incisistent line endings warnings.

Game API

Changes

Google Sign In now supports multiple types of OAuth2 Client ID’s.

Making the most of Progressions

Thu, 11 May 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Keeping players engaged and invested in games is crucial for success. One way to achieve this is through a progression system that allows players to level up, earn rewards, or unlock new content.

LootLocker's progressions tool is a powerful solution that lets you build and implement all types of cross-platform progression systems in your game - all through LootLocker’s intuitive web console interface.

2023-04-28

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

You can now delete your own games. Find it in Game Settings.

Unity SDK

Release v1.2.0

Bug Fixes

Fixed the build errors of namespace Plastic not existing. We have moved to using an internal JSON library which you can find here: This removes the reliance on Newtonsoft all together. Please be vigilant for any bugs or errors that are caused by JSON parsing in the next few weeks and let us know.

2023-04-21

Fri, 21 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Released small UI revamps for Segments, Heroes and Missions
We have removed the Metrics page from the Web Console. It was part of our legacy feature set and most of the numbers were inaccurate

Unity SDK

Released v1.1.48

Changes

Adds possibility to get persistent storage as dictionary
Adds ability to update public key values for a player
Makes client side timeout limit configurable

Bug Fixes

Fixed the Newtonsoft compiler errors when adding the SDK to Unity
Adds safeguard to avoid uploads of null files

2023-03-31

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with the player pages, where players from Google and Epic Games would break the frontend.
Fixed an issue where Asset ULIDs would show up as changes in Game Merge, when it shouldn’t
Fixed an issue where creating a context, but using the default complexity, would set the wrong complexity in the backend. Issue is resolved and data has been updated for existing games which encountered this issue.

Unreal SDK

Changes

Epic Sign In - Added methods StartEpicSession and RefreshEpicSession, for more information go to our documentation
All LootLocker Responses now have an Error property (if there is an error) that is a cleaned up version of the FullTextFromServer property

Unity SDK

Changes

Epic Sign In - Added methods StartEpicSession and RefreshEpicSession, for more information go to our documentation
Added a method to register a progression without adding points to it

Bug Fixes

Added a client side rate limiter to avoid being blacklisted due to improper usage

Game API

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where starting sessions for Google and Epic required you to send development_mode in the request, this is no longer the case

The Intersection of Blockchain and Gaming

Mon, 27 Mar 2023 09:00:00 +0000

Blockchain and Web3 games are a popular (and hotly debated) element of the games industry incorporating blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Recently we’ve seen lots of major game developers and publishers dip a toe (and sometimes quickly remove it) into the world of blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). And with some industry insiders telling us it’s the future of gaming, and others saying it’s nothing new, it can be tough to know who’s right.

2023-03-24

Fri, 24 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Messages, Mission settings, asset rarirites, context settings and DLCs have had a facelift from old Angular to new React
Asset filters now auto-open when you add a new one
You can now require players to have unique names in your game. Change it in your games settings

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with adding lootboxes to assets

Game API

Changes

Added support for Epic Games Sign in
If you have Unique Player Names enabled in your games settings, you will now receive an error if you try to set a name that is already taken

2023-03-17

Fri, 17 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

The old progressions system has been hidden from the user interface.
We’ve colour coded the sidebar to make it more identifiable when you’re in staging and live. Stage mode remains green, and Live presents as Orange. Let us know what you think!

Bug Fixes

Leaderboards will now warn you if you try to create one with a conflicting key
Fixed an issue where clicking save on Image Types would create multiple
Fixed an issue allowing collectables to be created in Live mode
Fixed an issue with the validation of Max Title and Max Summary lengths
Fixed an issue with collectables sometimes returning an error
Fixed an issue allowing triggers to be created in Live mode
Fixed an issue with Nintendo icon on players

Game API

Changes

We’ve decided to turn on player verification for all new games, for Steam and PlayStation sessions. This means all sessions created for these platforms will need to be verified before the session can start. If you want to have this enabled for your existing game, please reach out on our discord or on email.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where some errors were not being returned correctly when starting guest and steam/psn/android sessions. It should be easier to figure out what an error is now.

Powered by LootLocker: Helping to get an educational game off the ground

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 10:00:00 +0000

The Cyber Choices Challenge is a 2D platformer with an unusual theme – educating players on the UK’s Computer Misuse Act of 1990 (that’s the originality box ticked.) We spoke to the game’s creator to get the backstory.

Super Metroid meets Cybercrime 101

We all know roughly what is and isn’t legal online. But how many of us know precisely where the line of illegality is drawn and what the penalties are? To take it a step further: how many teenagers know the legal ins and outs of cybercrime?

2023-03-10

Fri, 10 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Changes

The SDK now supports Google Sign In
The SDK will now automatically resolve and use the domain API if the domain key is set
The SDK will now store and automatically use the Apple and Google refresh tokens if not done manually

Bug Fixes

The SDK now supports Enter Play Mode Options allowing you to speed up your development process
The SDK will now now relies on a newer version of Newtonsoft
The SDK will no longer silently discard requests with an expected body that is null
Player and Asset Reports now have a message instead of a text
Requests are now allowed to timeout
Local session data is now cleared upon ending a session and deleting a player

Unreal SDK

Changes

Google Sign In - Added methods StartGoogleSession and RefreshGoogleSession
It is now possible to request user verification by email for White Label Users
The SDK now automatically resolves and uses domain API if the domain key is set

Bug Fixes

StartSteamSession now sets the correct platform
Fixed Critical WhiteLabel bug that caused white label sessions to fail for old Unreal projects

Game API

Changes

Google Sign In - Game API now supports starting player sessions using Google ID tokens

2023-03-03

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue making it impossible to clear leaderboards
- We still have a known issue where the UI won't show success when clearing leaderboards, but it does work

2023-02-24

Fri, 24 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Your asset page has had an overhaul! With an updated design more in line with the rest of the web console, you’ll also find some stability improvements. We’re not perfect however, and if you find something not working as it should, you still have access to the legacy page for now.

2023-02-17

Fri, 17 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Platform keys and other sensitive information are now behaves like a password input, with toggleable visibility, except the first four characters are visible for easy identification.
Assets in the asset list and grid views are now able to be filtered by their context type eg. Soft Currency Package, Feature Unlocks, or any of your custom contexts.
You can now see player file revisions in the Player files section and revert to previous versions of the file.

Unreal SDK

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Major overhaul of LootLocker settings
- Deprecated Platform selector: No need to set the platform here, instead you should use the appropriate StartSession method for your platform.
- Deprecated legacy API keys (that don't start with dev or prod): If you're on one of those, generate new keys and use those instead
- Clarified descriptions
Added method to update player files
Added method that allows a player to delete themselves
Added a single method combining WhiteLabel Login and Start Session -> WhiteLabelLoginAndStartSession
Added methods to handle heroes with variations

Bug Fixes

Avoid logging sensitive information, especially outside the editor
Fixed bug that broke White Label login

Unity SDK

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Major overhaul of LootLocker settings
- Deprecated Platform selector: No need to set the platform here, instead you should use the appropriate StartSession method for your platform.
- Deprecated legacy API keys (that don't start with dev or prod): If you're on one of those, generate new keys and use those instead
- Clarified descriptions
Added method to update player files
Added method that allows a player to delete themselves
Added a single method combining WhiteLabel Login and Start Session -> WhiteLabelLoginAndStartSession
Updated LootLockers logging system and allowed for more granular control of what's logged.
Obfuscate sensitive information in logs

Bug Fixes

GetOtherPlayerXPAndLevel is no longer broken
The SDK now registers as initialized even when manually initialized
The SDK now logs errors as errors ;)
EndSession will no longer throw an error if no session exists
Fixed bug that broke White Label login

Game API

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Added an endpoint for updating Player Files.

Server API

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Added an endpoint for updating Player Files.

Admin API

Changes

Overhauled Progression System: We're excited to give you a new feature. Learn more under Progressions.
Added an endpoint for updating Player Files.
Added an endpoint for reverting to previous revisions of Player Files.

The Power of Progressions

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Building a fun, memorable, and beautiful game is critical for success. You know that. But once your player’s bought and downloaded your game you still need to keep them interested. After all, the more they play, the more likely they are to give you a positive review, tell their friends, and (if it’s available) buy in-game content or DLC. The industry calls this retention.

Progress = happy and engaged players

You can build retention in lots of different ways, like with a compelling narrative, social features (playing with friends gives people a reason to keep going), or by providing a sense of accomplishment. And one of the most powerful tools in your retention arsenal is progression – the way players get rewarded as they move forward through a game, either by levelling up, or with in-game currency or loot boxes, new gear or abilities, and so on. For example, you could offer unlockable stages, each with its own star rating (like Angry Birds), or an RPG-like leveling system where completing quests unlocks new gear or skills.

2023-02-10

Fri, 10 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Leaderboards now tell users if they are on the wrong environment (stage/production) when trying to view a particular leaderboard.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where it wasn’t possible to save White Label Platform settings if you had enabled player verification

Game API

Changes

Added endpoint to allow players to delete themselves. This lets iOS games comply with updated requirements from Apple.
Added an endpoint for getting player persistent storage for multiple players

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug causing players on the guest platform without names to not be returned in the lookup endpoint.

Server API

Changes

Added an endpoint for getting player persistent storage for multiple players

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug causing players on the guest platform without names to not be returned in the lookup endpoint.

Lessons from Fundraising Successes and Failures

Thu, 09 Feb 2023 10:00:00 +0000

(If you're only interested in charts and numbers, scroll down to Our Seed Round in Numbers!)

When any founder shares stories of growing their startup, it can be tempting to focus only on the positives.

Those moments where a vast investment was secured or the team hit a milestone in building our core technology are absolutely worth sharing – they can be inspiring and motivational for others building up a business. But in truth, making a startup a success involves a lot of persistence, rejection and failure – and those more difficult moments are so often where the most useful lessons can be learned. Yet seldom do people highlight these challenging times.

2023-02-03

Fri, 03 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Release: v1.1.43 of the Unity SDK - https://github.com/LootLocker/unity-sdk/releases/tag/v1.1.43

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug with the LootLocker Samples using the wrong assembly definition file
Added a namespace for LootLocker samples to remove warnings when installing

Admin API

Bug Fixes

Uploading files to players will now return those files when listing a players files in all APIs

2023-01-27

Fri, 27 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Users are now able to add scores to players in leaderboards
Metadata added to scores in leaderboards is now visible, and updatable
You can now block white label users from leaderboards if they haven't verified their email
When creating an Asset we now remember the last Context used, making it easier to create multiple Assets in a row with the same Context

Bug Fixes

Improved Player list pagination positioning for better visibility
Improved API Key descriptions for clarity
Fixed issue when adding scores to generic leaderboards
Fixed issue where refund button was cutoff in some scenarios
Fixed issue where it wasn't possible to delete messages
Fixed an issue where you wouldn't be shown the MFA recovery code after enabling it
Fixed an issue where it wasn't possible to use MFA recovery codes

Game Maker Extension

Changes

Added a new function to include metadata when uploading a score; LootLockerSubmitScoreMetadata("leaderboardID", "score", "metadata")

Game API

Changes

Player names will be returned when a new game session is registered (if the user has set a name)

Bug Fixes

Requesting a verification email for white label users now works again, and can be requested with the users email, and not just ID like before
Improved error message when trying lookup a player on playerID, but sending a string
Improved errors when sending invalid version number in session registration

Server API

Bug Fixes

Improved error message when trying lookup a player by playerID, but sending a string

LootLocker.com Website

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue with price calculator price using incorrect formatting
Fixed issue where images were covering up some text

A Look Back at 2022

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Can you believe it’s already 2023?

In some ways it makes total sense as we've had an action packed year here at LootLocker (and we’ve traveled around the sun another full orbit). On the other hand, 2022 flew right past us. I guess time passes quickly when you’re having fun, right?

2022 was another banner year for LootLocker. We have a lot to celebrate, so let’s get things rolling:

A Growing Team

Last year, we more than tripled our team size, going from three to ten members. We brought on a game developer, Johannes, to strengthen the connection between our technology and our customers. He's been busy creating guides, videos, and supporting our community on Discord. Additionally, we recruited amazing backend engineers from companies like Mojang, DICE, and Lush, as well as a fantastic frontend developer to enhance our web console experience. This also meant for our first team all-hands in Stockholm, which we celebrated in October.

How to use LootLocker’s customization complexity in a Unity game

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Our customization complexity makes it easy to create different looks for the same asset in your game – like different styles of helmets, armor or uniforms, colored faction emblems, different skins, and so on. This complexity is great for roguelikes, RPGs, and MMORPGs, but can also come in handy for platformers or fighting games (among others). It can also be very useful if you have lots of assets with similar appearances in your game and don’t want to crowd your database with all of them.

Powered by LootLocker: Gaming for Ukraine

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 07:00:00 +0000

Stugna is a military game with a difference. Every dollar the game makes goes towards helping the Ukrainian military. We spoke to the developers, BidOn Games, to learn more.

A war game with a real-world cause

Stugna is a single-player shooter and war sim, available on Android and iOS.

We caught up with Vlad Fedorenko from BidOn Games to learn more about Stugna’s background. He explained to us that their game’s name comes from a very specific piece of military hardware.

The Unreal Engine SDK 2.0 is Here!

Tue, 10 Jan 2023 05:00:00 +0000

We’ve told you about LootLocker becoming a Unity Verified Solutions Provider. Well, now I’m excited to announce ANOTHER(!) SDK release. This time we give you the Unreal SDK version 2.0. We have rebuilt it from the ground up to be more effective, efficient, and fun to work with. This update has been a long time coming, and along with it we’ve also started improving our Unreal Engine documentation.

We’ve been hard at work developing this new SDK over the past few months to make it even easier for game developers to integrate LootLocker into their Unreal Engine games. Has there been some LootLocker feature you have yet to be able to use yet in the SDK? Good news then, 2.0 of the SDK now supports all the features LootLocker offers. With this new SDK, you can take advantage of all the powerful features LootLocker offers, including assets, progressions, leaderboards, inventories, and more.

What Will Power the Metaverse?

Tue, 20 Dec 2022 23:00:00 +0000

By now, it’s become hard to miss talk of the metaverse. Like so many emerging technologies before it, it has become the subject of a ferocious wave of hype.

Much of that hype is nothing more than well intended excitement about the future. Yet at the very same time, hype tends to misrepresent the reality of its subject matter’s potential, sometimes prompting innocently unrealistic expectations from the general public. That’s something we saw with virtual reality, when a little too much was promised before it was ready, leading to over-expectation followed by disappointment. Over time VR has matured to the point where it can absolutely deliver, but it certainly had its own battle with managing the expectations hype established.

2022-12-16

Fri, 16 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed a few broken links in the getting started section. Thanks to Discord user @LegendarySwordsman2 for reporting this!

Unity SDK

Changes

Deprecated leaderboard functions that uses leaderboardID -> use the same functions but with leaderboardKey instead

Bug Fixes

Updating LootLocker will no longer remove the API-key and LootLocker settings
Fixes for the Unity asset-store

2022-12-09

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Brand new merging interface rebuilt in React for viewing and selecting changes from your staging environment to your live.

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug where the action button on the asset list would sometimes be half way cut off.

Game API

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bug causing Player Storage to silently fail to save if the value was above 260 characters, but below 15000. The actual length limit is now 1500 characters.

How to add Drop Tables to your Unity game

Thu, 08 Dec 2022 16:00:00 +0000

Getting the drop on drop tables

Drop tables are similar to loot boxes, in that they reward players. But they give you more control over exactly how you do that. You can use a drop table to let players choose one, several, or all assets, based on their rarity. So for example, in an online RPG, you could use a drop table to allow players to choose one of lots of randomly selected items when they slay a big bad boss or get to the end of a dungeon.

Environment Merge: The Tool to Rule Them All

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 14:00:00 +0000

Today, we are excited to announce an upgrade to our Environment Merge tool, a core feature of the LootLocker platform. If you're new to LootLocker, this feature might not be familiar to you, so let's take a closer look at what it is and why it's important for building and running your game.

LootLocker is now a Unity Verified Solution!

Mon, 05 Dec 2022 14:00:00 +0000

Hello there in the ether, my name is Erik. I joined the LootLocker team three months ago to focus on SDK development so that we can readily integrate our game changing platform into your favorite game engine. And now I get to announce this new milestone: Unity has approved the LootLocker SDK as a Verified Solution!

What does this mean?

The great engineers at Unity have spent time putting our platform and SDK through its paces. They can now verify that our SDK performs as promised, and is ready to integrate with your game to unleash your full potential.

2022-12-02

Fri, 02 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Game Maker Extension

Bug Fixes

LLPlayerRank(), LLPlayerScore() now returns their correct values

Admin API

Changes

We added an brand new endpoint for listing players for your game, which should be much faster for games with large player bases than the old search endpoints "recent" option.

2022-11-25

Fri, 25 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

The LootLocker Web Console now lives at https://console.lootlocker.com

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where creating a context would not respect user facing and detachable

Admin API

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where creating a context would not respect user facing and detachable

A new era: How Stadia’s demise could be the start of something great

Thu, 24 Nov 2022 21:00:00 +0000

In September 2022 news broke that Google is shutting down Stadia, their cloud-gaming service. After making the official announcement, Google immediately closed the Stadia store and stopped all in-game transactions. Players will lose access to the almost 300 games available on Stadia in mid-January 2023.

The good news is that Google will refund players for games and any add-on content they’ve bought, as well as hardware like the Stadia controller. That doesn’t help developers though, many of whom had no idea that the shutdown was coming. Lots have ploughed huge amounts of time and money into upcoming and existing games on the platform, and will have been counting on future revenue from it. The demise of Stadia is even more of a pain because of the extra people-hours many devs have spent porting their games to its technology, and getting through Google’s stringent certification process.

2022-11-18

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Added the option to clear an entire leaderboard of all of it's data from the leaderboards page.
Added support for multiple API keys. You can now create multiple API keys for your game
We now show the variation ID for each variation, on the asset page

Game API

Changes

Player name lookup endpoint now also returns players who don't have a name set

Bug Fixes

Fix issue with starting session for games using a string in the value for development_mode

Server API

Changes

Player name lookup endpoint now also returns players who don't have a name set

Admin API

Changes

Prevent users with unverified email addresses to invite users to organizations

Powered by LootLocker (update): Hokko Life hits the big stage

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Hokko Life is now available on all the major consoles. And we could barely have written a better success story: a cutesy life sim game, from a solo developer, with a backend powered by LootLocker, topping charts and hitting the big time.

A story we’re very invested in

We can’t really pretend to be impartial here. Robert Tatnell is a developer we really root for. He’s the mind behind the one-man studio Wonderscope – based in Stockholm, in an office that happens to be right next to LootLocker HQ. We wrote about Robert when his game first released on Steam early-access, back in June 2021.

2022-11-11

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where wrong 1st party platform id is returned instead of XBox id on player 1st party platform lookup endpoint.

Admin API

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue where sending demo: false when creating a game would still create a demo game.
Fixed a security issue where Two-Factor Authentication could be circumvented.

2022-11-04

Fri, 04 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Added the ability to show Asset ID in asset lists.

Unity SDK

Changes

Summaries added to all public functions in LootLockerSDKManager
Added documentation for Missions
Added documentation for Maps
Renamed functions in LootLockerSDKManager, and old ones marked as deprecated, will be removed at a later stage;
- GettingAllMissions -> GetAllMissions
- GettingASingleMission -> GetMission
- StartingAMission -> StartMission
- FinishingAMission -> FinishMission
- GettingAllMaps -> GetAllMaps
- PollingOrderStatus -> PollOrderStatus
- ActivatingARentalAsset -> ActivateRentalAsset
- GettingCollectables -> GetCollectables
- CollectingAnItem -> CollectItem
- TriggeringAnEvent -> ExecuteTrigger
- ListingTriggeredTriggerEvents -> ListExecutedTriggers

Bug Fixes

Imported samples has missing references to their scripts
Fixed all warnings when installing the SDK

Game API

Changes

Added is_public as input when uploading files to players to make API usage easier.

Bug Fixes

Fixed a bad error message returned for White Label Login signups when an invalid domain key was supplied. (Thanks to Discord user @DexTex for reporting)

Essential Law for Game Devs: A game dev’s guide to data privacy

Wed, 02 Nov 2022 08:00:00 +0000

Please note: since writing this piece, Tim has moved on from Sheridans.

If terms like GDPR, PECR, and COPPA fill you with an uneasy sense of dread, we get you. The world of data privacy compliance can feel intimidating, and at a glance, appears packed with bewildering jargon and less-than-welcoming acronyms.

However, if you're a developer, founder or studio head, understanding data privacy compliance isn’t just key to the success of your games. It’s also about respecting your users – and it’s a legal obligation. Fortunately, it need not be as intimidating as it first appears.

How to create item bundles using Asset Packages in Unity

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 23:00:00 +0000

Asset packages are a great way to add multiple types of rewards to your players’ inventories – like a buy-one-get-one-free type deal, or a complete set of armor, for example. You can use them for pretty much anything, e.g. loot in chests, prizes for winning contests, or starting bundles (among other things). If you’re not sure how to use asset packages, don’t worry – this article has everything you need to know.

2022-10-28

Fri, 28 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

Created a new UI for the assets page and User content pages
- Revamped looks
- You can now filter results
- Possible to deactivate/activate multiple assets at the same time
- Added a card view toggle
- The UI is now full width to support showing many columns
Moved the User content moderation to a new main menu item
Search field doesn’t expand it’s bounds on focus
Moved the environment selector in platform settings, so it's in line with how you switch in other places
Added URL's for each tab in the player page, to make it easier to link to
Removed the possibility of flagging UGC assets

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue where we would link to player on member type leaderboards, even though that's not possible

Unity SDK

Released v1.1.39

2022-10-21

Fri, 21 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Bug Fixes

GetAssetInformation is now working as intended.
Links inside asset-variations now return correctly.

Server API

Changes

Universal Assets are finally available in the Server API!
All Asset Instance endpoints from the Game API are now available in the Server API too.

Pitching Publishers the Right Way

Wed, 19 Oct 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Lots of game developers want a publisher to help finance, market, and distribute their game. And that means approaching and pitching publishers (or investors). But it can be tough to know how to do that in the right way. Don’t worry though – we’ve been talking to Johan Toresson, “chief say-that-again officer” at Raw Fury, to get the lowdown on how to do just that.

Before the pitch

Why pitch at all?

Well, it depends on what you need, and what you’re set up to do yourself. “If you have the time, money, and people to self publish,” says Johan, “why not do it yourself?” But if you don’t, or you’d rather just spend your time making games, finding a publisher could be the way forward. They can also give you access to audiences and networks that you might not be able to find on your own. After all, just releasing a good game doesn’t guarantee tons of players and success.

2022-10-14

Fri, 14 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Web Console

Changes

We're now showing the players names on the list of leaderboard scores, with a link to the player page.
User scores can be updated and deleted from the Leaderboard tab on the Player page.
Users can clear search boxes.

Admin API

Changes

Added player name lookup endpoints. See the Documentation.

Bug Fixes

Squashed a bug that made it impossible to have multiple Attachment Types for assets in some situations.

LootLocker's First Company All Hands!

Mon, 10 Oct 2022 08:00:00 +0000

Last week the entire LootLocker team assembled in Stockholm for our first biannual company all hands. The week was packed with group working sessions, delicious food, and most importantly social activities.

So, what did we get up to? Here are some highlights.

Every morning the entire team assembled at Ersta Diakoni, a beautiful 170 year old mansion sitting atop a cliff overlooking the entire Stockholm. As a remote company, we want to use our limited in-person time together as both a way to socialize, but also to discuss broader topics that would be difficult to achieve over a video call.

2022-09-30

Fri, 30 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

This week is a little short on changes, but a lot of preparations and behind the scenes things are going on to allow us to move fast in the coming weeks.

Web Console

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with removing progression rewards.

How to make a skill cooldown system with Rental Assets in Unity

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 22:00:00 +0000

Rental assets are a really easy way to create consumable items for your game that are removed after a set amount of time. So that’s things like boosters, buffs, skills, or cooldowns for abilities, as well as consumable items like potions, herbs, or strength enhancers. You can do this either as a timed booster, or a temporary buff or debuff for your game.

Rental assets are great for in-game rewards, time-limited events, claimable items during an in-game event… the list goes on. A rental asset can also contain other assets – so you can make these as simple or complex as you want.

How to make random weight rewards with Loot Boxes in Unity

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 22:00:00 +0000

Everybody likes a present. And if you want to give your players assets in-game, then loot boxes are the answer. Use them to reward players through purchases, via in-game triggers or by manually gifting them.

There are lots of different ways to use loot boxes in your games. But with LootLocker it’s really straightforward to get set up and start giving out those all-important rewards.

2022-09-23

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Happy Friday! Here are new changes and bug fixes that were released this week.

Web Console

Changes

We've updated the UI for Collectables to use our new frontend framework.
- Also added the ability to delete collectables.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue making it impossible to remove collectable groups.

Unity SDK

Changes

Added CI tests.

Bug Fixes

Fixed bug with rental assets not returning the correct information.
Fixed bug with Triggers not returning information about granted assets.
Bug fixes in sample scene, missing meta-files.

Game API

Changes

Updated the Sign In With Apple flow to support refresh tokens. Refresh tokens allow you to start a LootLocker session without having to do the full Apple flow every time. See https://ref.lootlocker.com/game-api/#sign-in-with-apple for more information.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with listing leaderboards causing errors when pagination parameters are out of bounds.

Admin API

Changes

Added documentation for all Collectables endpoints.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue making it impossible to remove collectable groups.

Powered by LootLocker: The jamming team who exemplified ‘power in numbers’ at Together Jam

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 07:00:00 +0000

The third place prize at Together Jam went to Knight Rider: Arsenal – a collaboration between two different dev teams, with members from around the world. In the final part of our three-part blog series, we get to know the jammers of Dynamite Stew and Team Melon.

High-quality indie games, and lots of ‘em

So far, we’ve written about two games from Together Jam – our winners, Xena: Trial of the Gods, and our runners up, Felix the Cat and his Wonderful Clones. So you probably already know the story of the jam itself. But if not, here’s how it went down:

2022-09-16

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with GetAllMemberRanks method

Powered by LootLocker: The brother-sister team that took two awards at Together Jam

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Vertigod Games took home both the second place and ‘best animation’ awards at Together Jam. In the second of this three-part blog series, we hear the story behind their Cuphead-inspired game: Felix the Cat and his Wonderful Clones.

Jamming together with games based on classic TV and movies

If you’ve read our first blog in this series, you’ll know that Together Jam was a summer 2022 game jam, created by Game Jolt, LootLocker and G4, and supported by NBCUniversal.

Powered by LootLocker: The game that pleased the Greek gods to win the $25,000 first prize at Together Jam

Mon, 12 Sep 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Brazilian indie developers SheePixel took home the top prize for their game, Xena: Trial of the Gods. In the first part of this three-part blog series, let’s get to know our Together Jam winners.

When a game jam meets iconic TV shows and films

Together Jam was an event created by Game Jolt, LootLocker and G4, and supported by NBCUniversal who, for the first time ever, unlocked their more prized IPs to the general game developer public. It ran in late June, 2022, and had a massive prize pool of $50,000. Our goal was to create a game jam that had never been done before, and we’d say we pulled it off.

A CFO’s Guide to Building a Financially Sustainable Studio

Wed, 31 Aug 2022 12:00:00 +0000

For any game studio to go the distance, it needs a robust financial strategy.

Creativity might be the passion that powers your studio, but if you want to keep making more games, grow your team, and establish a sustainable, lasting operation with a bright future, thinking strategically about cash flow, funding and where to spend your money is critically important. In other words, thinking financially powers your creative potential.

For one, making great games that are played by large audiences almost always costs money. Furthermore, any game company has financial obligations, from paying your staff to respecting tax law. Sure, those things aren’t what many aspiring developers consider when dreaming of a career in games, but again, understanding them – or working with somebody that does – is critical to any studio that wants to succeed.

Powered by LootLocker: Keeping score when influencers and game devs unite

Tue, 23 Aug 2022 07:00:00 +0000

MoonRunner is a German game studio with a difference – they make games in collaboration with social media influencers. Their latest mobile game is MontanaBlack’s Kylo Rescue (also available on iOS). We caught up with the team at MoonRunner to find out how this works and how LootLocker helps.

Harnessing influencer power

Making games with influencers has proved to be a smart idea for MoonRunner. In just four years, they’ve achieved over two million downloads. So what’s it like to work in this way?

2022-08-19

Fri, 19 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Updated SDK description
Added MIT License
Added samples for common use cases

ScoreSpace: taking game jams to the next level

Wed, 10 Aug 2022 11:00:00 +0000

In 2018, Khaalid Booker (KB for short) created the ScoreSpace game jam, an event where devs build games with a high-score feature in just 72 hours. It isn’t just any game jam though – the participants rate the games themselves, with the top three going to streamers for testing and feedback. ScoreSpace then works with the developers to port their games to mobile and finesse the gameplay, before releasing them as “ScoreDrops” where players compete for the high scores (and prizes) over 48 hours.

And the 2022 Together Jam Winners Are…

Fri, 29 Jul 2022 11:00:00 +0000

Nearly a year ago we pitched an idea for a game jam to the folks at NBCUniversal, G4tv, and Game Jolt. A game jam to celebrate all the amazing development talent around the world. And a game jam to give them the opportunity to make games based on real intellectual property, with a significant cash prize.

Something like this had never been done before in such an open and accessible way. Or with a combined team of people as passionate about gaming and emerging game developers as we were. So it wasn’t long before Together Jam was born.

2022-07-25

Mon, 25 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fixed a bug with player file endpoints
Fixed a bug with white label login

Adding Game Polish: Animating with code to bring your game to life

Mon, 18 Jul 2022 07:00:00 +0000

When building and shipping a game - whether it's your first full game or 100th game jam you are always limited by time. Time to ship the game before the next AAA game release eats up everyone's attention, time before your next milestone delivery, or time before the jam's submission deadline ends. When you have these time constraints constantly hovering over your head, adding polish might be the last thing that you want to do - especially if you're a team with limited resources. Thankfully, it doesn’t always have to be a compromise.

What Elon Musk Can Teach Us About Game Development

Mon, 11 Jul 2022 13:00:00 +0000

Elon Musk. Tech entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Twitter memelord. Oh, and richest human on the planet. Last year he took YouTuber Everyday Astronaut on a tour of the Starbase rocket factory in Texas and again in his latest video looking specifically at SpaceX's Raptor 2 engine. In both interview he talked about a five-step first principal design process he uses for his revolutionary orbital rockets and to achieve his oh-so-simple ambition to make humanity “a multi-planetary species”. As game developers, we might not be aiming quite so high (both literally and metaphorically). But there is still a lot we can learn from Elon’s process and apply to our everyday work.

Why player feedback could be the strongest tool in your arsenal

Thu, 30 Jun 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Player feedback is vital when it comes to designing a successful game. It can help you improve the gameplay experience and find bugs, and see your game from different, more objective, perspectives. And it can save you wasting time and money fixing things that don’t need fixing. But getting that feedback can feel like a huge task in an already overwhelming development process. Don’t panic though – we’re here to tell you how to collect, manage, and evaluate feedback both before and after you release your game.

2022-06-24

Fri, 24 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Skip session check for white label methods

Powered by LootLocker: Bringing order to Kaiji craziness

Thu, 23 Jun 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Oluwapelumi Ayeni wanted to create the kind of 3D Kaiju game he thought was missing from the mobile games market. This was a huge undertaking for a solo developer. With some help from LootLocker, Kaiju Brawler 3D is now available to play on Android and iOS.

The allure of monster mayhem

Oluwapelumi, also known as Xadegamer is a 24 year old solo developer – born in Nigeria but now living and studying in the UK. After releasing a couple of mobile games, Party Ballon and Veggie Dash (both now unpublished) through his studio Xadetechnologies, he wanted to move on to make Kaiju Games.

2022-06-22

Wed, 22 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Ensure you can't call any methods before a session is started

2022-06-21

Tue, 21 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Implement LookupPlayer1stPartyPlatformIds methods

Setting Up Online Leaderboards in a Construct 3 Game

Fri, 17 Jun 2022 07:00:00 +0000

While lots of indie games are built using the Unity game engine, we love seeing all the creative experiences built with all the other game engines out there. Since we believe amazing games can come from every corner of the Earth by teams of all sizes with technology of all types, it’s only fair that we make sure LootLocker can be used with every game engine. While we plan to support game engines like Construct 3 with an official SDK in the future, for now we hope this guide can help you get one of our community’s favorite features, online leaderboards implemented in your Construct 3 game.

2022-06-17

Fri, 17 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added more parameter type options for all Leaderboard related methods
Added support for setting player files public or private
Added support for retrieving other player's public files

Powered by LootLocker: Helping solo developers push past their ‘limiting beliefs’ and make great games.

Tue, 14 Jun 2022 05:00:00 +0000

People often assume that only the best developers in the biggest companies can make games. We know this isn’t true, but sometimes it takes an epiphany for aspiring developers to realize they can just…do it. And what they go on to create, with limited time and money, is often remarkable. Ben Mora is a perfect example of this.

Putting a childhood dream into action

Ben’s a 33-year-old solo developer from the Kansas City area. He created his game ‘Super Spartan Bros’ in just 20 hours. Pretty impressive, huh? But Ben’s no veteran. He only started making games in 2020.

2022-06-13

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added more parameter type options when getting member ranks for leaderboards

Implementing Online Leaderboards in Your Godot Game Using LootLocker

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Note

This guide has been updated to work with Godot v4.2, support for Godot 3.x is available at GitHub

We believe great games can come from anywhere - regardless of team size, location, funding, or choice of engine. In fact, it's thanks to new game engines that many people first get involved in game development. Because of that, we want to make sure every game developer has access to the full toolbox of LootLocker features and are working on integrations for all popular game engines, including Godot.

Adding Online Leaderboards to Your GDevelop Game with LootLocker

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 06:00:00 +0000

As part of our ongoing work to make sure LootLocker can be integrated into all popular game engines, we didn't want to wait until we have a full-blown SDK before giving the communities of GDevelop a chance to start playing around with our plug and play backend service. That's why we've created this guide to show how quickly you can integrate LootLocker leaderboards into your GDevelop game using JavaScript and ur REST APIs.

2022-06-08

Wed, 08 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added Player files support

Essential Law for Game Devs: Introducing Tim Repa-Davies

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 09:00:00 +0000

When aspiring game developers first start to dream of a career crafting video games, they likely imagine days spent building engrossing worlds, shaping assets in art tools, or coding innovative new mechanics.

Video game law? That’s something that probably doesn’t come to mind quite so much. And if it does, it perhaps isn’t seen as particularly exciting or relevant to the creative side of making games. After all, law is just an admin function unrelated to the process of actually making games, right?

2022-06-01

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added player_created_at field to LootLockerSessionResponse model
Added acquisition_date field to LootLockerInventory model
Improved error handling for server requests

Holding Out for a Hero - How to Use Character Classes and Heroes

Fri, 27 May 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Hopefully you’ve already seen our post demystifying assets. If not, we suggest you read it first before you continue. Don’t worry, we’ll wait.

All done? So now you’re an expert on assets, we’re going to take a look at how you can apply them to another core concept of LootLocker – character classes and heroes.

Hang on, what are character classes?

Character classes let you easily create different player character types – rogue, mage, warrior, or priest, for example. You can then set the default assets each one comes with (also known as the default loadout), as well as the types of assets they can use or equip. So a warrior could have a sword by default and only be able to equip plate armor. Whereas a mage would come with a staff and robe, but wouldn’t be able to use the warrior’s weapons or armor.

Announcing Together Jam!

Wed, 25 May 2022 12:00:00 +0000

If you've been following our blog for a while now you will remember late last year we (quietly) announced that we would be hosting a game jam together with Game Jolt, NBCUniversal, and G4 in 2022. Well, the time has come for that game jam to be officially announced!

Come Together

Welcome to Together Jam, a game jam to highlight the emerging game developers around the world. The game jam will run from June 17th until July 3rd, 2022 over on Game Jolt. What's so special about this jam is that we've worked closely with NBCUniversal to give everyone access to some of their classic characters from TV shows and movies. More on that below.

Fast Travel Games: Getting VR Publishing Right

Mon, 23 May 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Right now, in 2022, the opportunity for game devs in virtual reality is tremendous. But once you’ve made your VR game you need to get it published. Before we look at that process, however, it’s worth framing the opportunity. So let’s rewind back in time a little.

In the years that followed 2016’s sensationally popular Oculus Rift Kickstarter, most of the conversation about VR was framed by hype. A lot was promised and predicted, but it didn’t always have too much to do with actual reality.

2022-05-23

Mon, 23 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Improved error handling for null responses

Powered by LootLocker: Helping solo developers build games for community events

Fri, 20 May 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Ryan is a 20 year old, self-taught developer from the UK. He created the game ‘Catch Up!’ as part of an itch.io game jam. These events are full of talented solo developers, making wildly creative games. So a tool as easy to use (and affordable) as LootLocker comes in extremely handy.

Developing a festive spirit

The Game Jam that Ryan entered was called Secret Santa 2021. Not familiar with Game Jams? They’re group events where lots of developers are challenged to each make a game from scratch within a short space of time often based on a secret theme revealed at the start of the jam.

2022-05-19

Thu, 19 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fixed an issue with LookupPlayerNames methods

Making the Most of Your Assets

Wed, 18 May 2022 03:00:00 +0000

Assets are an important part of LootLocker. In fact, they can literally take your game to the next level. But what exactly are they, and how do you use them? Here’s a quick overview to help you get on the front foot with all-things asset.

Explaining assets

In simple terms, an asset is an item you can connect to a player – something they can earn, buy, or just have. So that’s things like weapons, treasure chests (which are full of other assets), or currency, for example. Players store assets in their inventories, but they’re not always tangible items – a respawn point counts as an asset, for example. That means they can also be things that your game reads but the player doesn’t know exists.

2022-05-16

Mon, 16 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fixed a crash when a player reached the highest possible level

LootLocker’s $2M seed round, and what it means for game developers around the world

Wed, 11 May 2022 12:30:00 +0000

Here at LootLocker, we’re thrilled to have closed our latest seed financing round, which saw an amazing, experienced group of investors put over $2 million into the company and our backend technology for games.

What that means, first and foremost, is that we can do even more to support and empower the thousands of developers that use LootLocker across hundreds of brilliant games. In fact, we couldn’t have done this without those game developers. You’ve already helped us greatly improve our backend technology, motivated us to deliver the quality your games deserve, and let us understand how we can best meet your needs. The numbers of you that use LootLocker also showed our investors how much interest there is in a technology like this. We can’t thank you enough!

2022-05-11

Wed, 11 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Renaming assetID to assetInstance ID on all assetInstance function parameters
Added ObsoleteAttribute(with false, so deprecated) to UpdateKeyValuePairByIdForAssetInstances(), it was not working correctly, will be marked as obsolete when SDK is updated next time.
Added new UpdateKeyValuePairByIdForAssetInstances() with correct parameters.
Added UpdateKeyValuePairForAssetInstances() that updates asset instances by key/value name
Added SetDefaultCharacter function.

Why the Smartest Developers Choose LootLocker

Tue, 10 May 2022 09:00:00 +0000

We might not be the biggest or most flashy backend service out there. But we can confidently say we’re the only one that really knows, and looks after, our users. So if you’re not sure which backend to choose, here’s why LootLocker is the only choice for building, launching and running the best games out there. In fact, we’re so confident in our product that we won’t start charging you for it until your game’s successful. Even if you’ve already launched it.

2022-05-10

Tue, 10 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Introduce ability to get player names using player ID's from different platforms

2022-05-04

Wed, 04 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fix issue where using EndSession on White Label Login would not destroy the session
Create new version of EndSession which takes no input

Powered by LootLocker: Helping young developers find out who’s the best at falling into honey

Tue, 03 May 2022 06:00:00 +0000

We caught up with Jonah from JCWYT (pronounced ‘jay-see-wit’) – creators of the game FOOAAAHH! (pronounced ‘foo-wah’). Jonah told us all about his journey into game development, his honey-splatting game, and why he chose LootLocker to help him make it. Make sure to check FOOAAAHH! out yourself on their website.

The game-making background of a self-taught teen

Jonah is 15 years old. He’s from Seattle, Washington. And he’s a game developer who describes himself as ‘really bad at programming’. He works on JCWYT projects with his friend Callum, and gets occasional outside help from some surprising places.

Easy Leaderboard for GameMaker

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 07:00:00 +0000

We've released an extension for GameMaker that makes it super easy to add online leaderboards to your game: we call it Easy Leaderboard by LootLocker!

In addition to the extension, we've also created a sample game called Rocky Runner that demonstrates the leaderboards in action.

Implementing Easy Leaderboards can be done in 5 simple steps, which we'll explain more thoroughly below.

Create a free LootLocker account
Create a leaderboard
Copy Game API key & leaderboardID
Run InitializeLootLocker() from any Create event
Run LootLockerCallback() from Async - HTTP event

That's it - it's that easy!

2022-04-28

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fix issue where failing the request when trying to start a guest session would wipe the internal playerID

We're Supporting the ScoreSpace Game Jam

Tue, 26 Apr 2022 15:00:00 +0000

We're excited to announce that we will be sponsoring the upcoming ScoreSpace Game Jam which begins on April 29th over on Itch.io!

We met up with the founder of ScoreSpace Khaalid Booker ('KB' for short) at GDC earlier this year and immediately clicked over what we were both doing. It didn't take long before we agreed to support ScoreSpace and provide our leaderboard services for the games being produced through the game jam.

Indie Game Developer Resources 2022

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Game development is probably one of the most challenging forms of software development - having to bring together realtime gameplay, art, animation, effects, and all the other systems that go on in the background - all while worrying about performance. Not to mention having to design a fun and (hopefully) intuitive user experience. Kudos to all of you out there that setting off alone (or in small groups) to build games independently.

2022-04-20

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Add support for Sign in with Apple

2022-04-14

Thu, 14 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fix ResetAssetCalls method not working

LootLocker on YouTube

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 09:00:00 +0000

In addition to all the guides, documentation, and API references we provide to make using LootLocker as simple as possible, we've also started creating YouTube videos to help walk you through integrating LootLocker into your games.

Our first videos are about leaderboards and player authentication, so check them out below. We have a lot more in the works, so stay tuned!

Make sure to like and subscribe and leave some comments with any ideas for videos you'd like to see in the future.

2022-04-11

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Make it possible to use either string or int when getting leaderboard member score

Powered by LootLocker: Helping a developer aged 15 (yes, 15!) to get his first game out on Android

Wed, 06 Apr 2022 08:00:00 +0000

Red Diamond is a one-man studio. A young man too. Arthur is one of the new generation who waste no time getting games designed, developed and released.

If you’re good enough, you’re old enough

Meet Arthur: an entirely self-taught game developer from Moldova. His first game, Into Space, is out now on Android. It’s a classic arcade shooter (a genre thirty years older than Arthur himself), in which you protect your spaceship from incoming asteroids.

How to Create an Energy System (That Can’t Easily be Cheated)

Tue, 29 Mar 2022 08:00:00 +0000

In games, and especially mobile games like Candy Crush or Archero, it’s not uncommon to introduce a mechanic that gates the player to prevent them from running through content too fast. Mechanics like this could for example be:

Lives
Energy
Cooldowns
Idle Earnings

These mechanics often use the device’s time to check if a certain amount of time has passed. So on a mobile device, that would be the local clock and time zone. A problem with this is that players can just set their time manually instead, circumventing any time-gated systems. This allows players to time cheat to for example get more lives, instant energy refills, or big idle earnings.

2022-03-22

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added initial support for Xbox One

How to Make Flappy Bird with Online Leaderboards

Thu, 17 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Introduction
1.1 Setting up
1.2 Adding physics
1.3 A quick break to animate our bird
1.4 SDK Setup
1.5 Submitting scores to the leaderboard
1.6 Showing the leaderboard
1.7 Giving players names
1.8 Centering on scores
1.9 Polishing the UI
2.0 Adding some scenery
2.1 Polishing the death effect
2.2 Adding sound effects
Summary

Introduction: FlappyLoot

Let’s make a Flappy Bird game with Unity and LootLocker. We’ll call it… FlappyLoot.

Powered by LootLocker: Helping the new generation at Empty Box to keep their focus on creativity

Mon, 07 Mar 2022 08:00:00 +0000

The team at Empty Box are all aged between 21 and 24. They’re self-taught, dynamic developers whose latest game, NanoHive, is already a hit. They’re using LootLocker to keep their time free for the jobs they most enjoy.

New kids on the block

Empty Box is a team of seven developers, hailing from Denmark, Romania and elsewhere in Eastern Europe. They’re seriously impressive: their skills come almost entirely from self-teaching, they already have games out there that you can play today, and none of them were yet born when Tomb Raider 2 came out.

Getting Player Authentication Right

Thu, 03 Mar 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Verifying exactly who your players are unlocks a whole load of new game features and possibilities, many of which can dramatically increase the commercial success of your game. That makes getting it right critically important. However, what works for one game might not be ideal for another. Some will want to authenticate their players by having them login to a game-specific account, while others will not want to interrupt the time-to-game flow.

2022-02-24

Thu, 24 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added support for reading Data Entities on Assets

Improving Wordle with LootLocker (How to Make Wordle Part 2)

Tue, 22 Feb 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Introduction
2.1 Creating an account
2.2 Installing the SDK
2.3 Configuring LootLocker
2.4 Calling the LootLocker server
2.5 Same word for everyone
2.6 Storing our words in the cloud
2.7 Adding a leaderboard
2.8 Player Identity
2.9 Multiple devices, one account
2.10 Playing with friends
Summary

Introduction

In the first part of our guide, we showed you how to create Wordle in Unity. We set up all the gameplay features and mechanics, and uploaded the game to Itch.io.

2022-02-21

Mon, 21 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added ping endpoint

Inside the More Than 200 Games Powered by LootLocker

Fri, 18 Feb 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Games are LootLocker’s reason to be. Across our team we don’t just serve game makers – we also adore everything games are – because we also love to build and play them.

That enthusiasm and passion for games is what fuels the effort we put into developing a flexible, reliable, and intuitive cross-platform game backend. There’s little more rewarding to us than seeing LootLocker help a game meet and exceed its creative and commercial ambitions.

2022-02-18

Fri, 18 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added new version of StartGuestSession which takes a custom player identifier

Build Your Own Wordle in Unity (How to Make Wordle Part 1)

Tue, 08 Feb 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Introduction: How Wordle works
1.1 Setting up the project and UI
1.2 Coding the keyboard
1.3 Creating the game mechanics
1.4 Creating Wordle's iconic color code
1.5 Giving the player feedback
1.6 Juicing it up with little details
Summary

Introduction: How Wordle works

As we write this guide, it’s early February 2022. And the word game Wordle is seriously viral.

It’s challenging and creative, but extremely simple. It’s easy to learn, but hard to master. And the colorful way it shows your results (without giving away answers) is endlessly shareable.

#GameToolsTuesday

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 11:00:00 +0000

Last week we created the #GameToolsTuesday hashtag on Twitter as a means to highlight and promote all of the different type of technology used to make building games easier and more accessible. Every Tuesday we plan to engage the community to share their favorite tools or tools they have built themselves.

View tweet

So, if you are building a tool - be it a small engine plugin or as an entire business - or using a tool that you couldn't live without, give the tool (or creator) a shoutout by tweeting @MyLootLocker with the #GameToolsTuesday hashtag!

2022-01-26

Wed, 26 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Ensure the SDK once again works in Unity 2019

2022-01-25

Tue, 25 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fixed capitalization mistake in SDK initialization error
Fixed a couple of issues where the automatic re-authentication would start a new session for a player with the wrong identifier

Powered by LootLocker: How Robin went from Mad Max mods to creating his own motoring mayhem game

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Robin from Nethash used LootLocker to help create Rust Racers – a game he says is “Mad Max, making tender love to Rocket League, while Fortnite watches from the closet”. Before using Lootlocker, Nethash were trying to build everything from scratch, with a tiny team.

Looking for a way out of development limbo

Robin had a vision for his full debut as a developer: a massively multiplayer, car-crushing vehicle combat game, set in a cyberpunk dystopian future. He had thousands of hours of practice, creating popular mods like Gmod Mad Max for games like Garry’s Mod.

2022-01-18

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added support for White Label Login session tokens

A Look Back at 2021

Mon, 10 Jan 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Happy New Year, and "god fortsättning" as they say here in Sweden (which basically translates to "good continuation"). It feels very Swedish to celebrate that fact that life just continues. I guess if you don't celebrate that you might take it for granted, right?

2021 was an incredibly busy year for us at LootLocker. We began growing the team, released a whole load of new features, and travelled to the US to participate in Techstars. In fact, there's a lot more we've been working on but aren't quite ready to announce just yet.

2022-01-09

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Re-enable support for Nintendo Switch

How to Install and Configure the LootLocker SDK for Unity

Fri, 31 Dec 2021 23:00:00 +0000

Installing Git

We’re going to install the LootLocker SDK into Unity.

To do this, we need to install Git first. This will allow us to add the SDK to our project quickly and easily. (If you already have Git installed, you can skip this first part)

Go to: https://git-scm.com/downloads
Choose the right download for your platform:
Follow the Git installer’s instructions.

Adding the SDK to Unity

Now with Git installed, we can add LootLocker to our project quickly and easily.

How to Monetize Your Game With a Backend (Part 2)

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 19:00:00 +0000

A few weeks ago we went over the basics of what backends are, what you can do with them, and what kinds of monetization strategies are possible when using a backend-as-a-service.

This time, we want to take this topic a step further. Now, we’re going to chat about everything else your backend can do, and how to get your monetization right.

Let’s dive back in.

Quick recap from our last blog

If you missed our last article (or just want to brush up on your reading), you can check it out here. But here’s the TL;DR breakdown:

Powered by LootLocker: Hokko Life by Wonderscope

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Game Name: Hokko Life

Genre: Life Simulator

Platform: Steam Early Access

Game Engine: Unity

After a long day at work or at school, it’s funny how many of the games we play are violent and fast paced; as if our body, mind, and soul aren’t already tired enough from the slog of daily life. You’d think after working hard all day we’d naturally want to spend time decompressing with a quiet, peaceful, and cozy game like Hokko Life. Well, clearly people do want this as Hokko Life was in the top charts when launched on Early Access earlier this year!

Godspeed by Barji

Wed, 24 Nov 2021 10:00:00 +0000

If you haven't seen already, we've been working with up-and-coming YouTube game developer Barji on a few videos these last few months. Barji has been building a speed running game called Godspeed and has been using LootLocker to support a variety of features in it, like Collectables and Leaderboards.

Not only are Barji's videos funny and entertaining to watch, they also demonstrate how easy it is to get started using LootLocker! Barji has made two videos so far and we look forward to seeing what comes next.

2021-11-23

Tue, 23 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Fix issue where development mode did not work when verifying steam user

2021-11-18

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Add support for Guest Login
Add support for White Label Login
Remove unused platforms in the settings dropdown
Improve the settings view visuals

Techstars, it's a wrap!

Sun, 14 Nov 2021 23:00:00 +0000

Wow, time flies when you're having fun and working hard! With the program (officially called the Comcast NBCUniversal Lift Labs Accelerator, Powered by Techstars) now over, we're already looking back with nostalgia at everything we did over the last twelve weeks. It was a wild ride with a lot of long days and late nights, but we're extremely excited to have had the chance to participate in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with other amazing companies.

2021-10-22

Fri, 22 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Add support for submitting score with leaderboard key

How to Monetize Your Game with a Backend (Part 1)

Thu, 14 Oct 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Monetizing your games in the most suitable way possible can bring a game studio a myriad of gains.

It lets you grow your business, build out IP into a series, elevate the potential of your team, and keep you making more games. Today’s studios are somewhat spoiled for choice when it comes to how they make money. Whether you’re using in-app purchases, subscriptions, DLC or something else entirely, there are a wealth of options. Picking the right one for your game and audience is key here.

2021-10-07

Thu, 07 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Add support for getting UGC Assets by creator player ID
Fixed broken API URL

Progression & Rewards Video Tutorial

Wed, 29 Sep 2021 09:00:00 +0000

We've teamed up with Zyger again to show how quickly you can set up a progression system with rewards in your Unity game using LootLocker! Check out the video below and give it a like and subscribe to support Zyger's great work!

2021-09-25

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Add support for metadata in leaderboards
Fix various broken methods
Update project README

Powered by LootLocker: HellFight by Paku

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 08:00:00 +0000

Genre: Rogue-lite / souls-like

Platform: Itch.io & Newgrounds

Game Engine: Unity

Today we are launching an ongoing series of blog posts called Powered by LootLocker where we will be featuring a variety of games built using LootLocker. As advocates for all types of games made by all sorts of people we want to use this series as an opportunity to highlight the variety of games and game developers using LootLocker, while hopefully increasing their exposure to the world.

We're hiring!

Tue, 07 Sep 2021 07:00:00 +0000

After a little more than a year in business we're looking to start growing our team. We've got several open positions listed that we're looking to fill as soon as possible.

Are you interested in joining an exciting startup whose mission is to help game developers achieve their dreams?

Are you passionate about creating the infrastructure that powers the games of tomorrow?

Do you like being part of a small, remote-first team that prioritizes quality of life over long work days?

How to: Weighted Random Selections

Tue, 24 Aug 2021 08:00:00 +0000

A few months ago I wrote about our latest asset context, Drop Tables. Drop Tables, like Loot Boxes, use a weighted rarity system to determine which asset(s) you are rewarded. Since building these features, I have been asked by several developers to outline the method I used to randomly select an asset based on predefined weighting. While I would like to take all the credit, I actually used a method I read about several years ago that was really smart. Since I can’t find the post any longer, I’ll attempt to explain it in my own words.

2021-08-22

Sun, 22 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Unified positive response from the sdk. You can now use response.success to know when it is successful. Removed references to response.status
Added GetAllMemberRanks api

Techstars!

Tue, 17 Aug 2021 08:00:00 +0000

We are excited to announce that we have been invited to participate in the 2021 class of the Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs Accelerator, powered by Techstars!

You can find more information about the program and the other companies in our class in the official announcement post. It's a really international group this year and we're excited to be representing the Nordics.

LootLocker was selected from over hundreds of applicants, so we feel very special. As a Techstars company we will have the opportunity to grow faster and become more successful thanks to the mentorship and networking that the program offers. The program runs for 13 weeks, ending with Demo Day in early November.

2021-08-11

Wed, 11 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Added UUIDs to Assets and Contexts. These are consistent across both environments.
Added Key/Value Storage to Character Classes.

Server API

Added UUIDs to Assets and Contexts. These are consistent across both environments.

Admin API

Added UUIDs to Assets and Contexts. These are consistent across both environments.
Added Key/Value Storage to Character Classes.

Asset Key/Value Storage Templates

Tue, 10 Aug 2021 05:00:00 +0000

We recently launched a new feature called Asset Key/Value Storage Templates (quite a mouthful!) so I thought I’d write a bit about it and how it can be used to make your life easier.

But first, a little background.

As you may or may not know, one of LootLocker’s core concepts is the asset. Assets are items of property that can be connected to a player - something a player can earn, purchase, or possess. Assets are also extremely flexible and can be used in many creative ways, outside of their relationship to a single player. At its core, an asset is an empty shell looking to be assigned a context, complexity, and get populated with relevant data before being accessed by your game.

What to Expect When Your Game Turns Into a Viral Hit

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Every game developer hopes to see their game hit the top of the charts. The thrill of seeing people play it on the train, glowing reviews in gaming outlets, and your own section on Twitch (the increased revenue doesn’t hurt, either!) But nobody really prepares you for success.

What happens when you get that surge of new players and become so popular that even non-gamers have heard about you?

With great success comes great responsibility. The more players you have, the more pressure you’re under to improve the game, add new content, fix bugs and keep the game alive. It’s a tough gig and one game can easily turn into an entire career.

BugSplat Partnership

Tue, 29 Jun 2021 14:00:00 +0000

We're excited to announce another partnership - this time with our friends at BugSplat! This partnership will make finding, diagnosing, and fixing crashes and game bugs a more integral part of the development and post-release process.

There is no such thing as a bug-free game, and now when games are being released earlier and earlier in the development process and transitioning to games-as-a-service it’s never been more important to react quickly to major bugs and crashes that impact the game experience.

2021-06-24

Thu, 24 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Added support for Amazon Luna Platform

Server API

You can now remove and add assets to/from player inventories with a single call

Leaderboard Video Tutorial

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 15:00:00 +0000

We teamed up with YouTuber Zyger to show how easy it is to implement leaderboards in your game. Check out the video below and don't forget to smash that like and subscribe button to show Zyger some love!

Picking a Backend – Why It’s Vital, and How to Pick One

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 17:00:00 +0000

Backends are now vital to almost any game’s success. Building your own is a Herculean task. But there is another way, and it’s easier than you might imagine.

That’s a fairly obvious statement. Lavish visuals and meticulous game design are nothing without the likes of quality code and robust AI. But there’s another layer that sits behind everything else that’s equally important – particularly in the era of games as live entities.

2021-06-07

Mon, 07 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Server API

Delete leaderboard now returns 204 response code with no body. Make sure to send the new LL-version header to get this behavior.

Admin API

Delete leaderboard now returns 204 response code with no body. Make sure to send the new LL-version header to get this behavior.

2021-06-04

Fri, 04 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added ability to get and set names of players
Changed "LootLockerMember" class name to "LootLockerLeaderboardMember"

Hokko Life Out Now!

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 16:00:00 +0000

Yay - it's launch day for another game using LootLocker! Today Hokko Life is launching on Steam and we couldn't be more excited for Wonderscope solo developer Robert.

Robert has been working on Hokko Life for many years and has poured his passion, soul, and personality into the game. Together with indie publisher Team 17 he has created an amazing game that lets you disconnect from all the chaos of real life and escape to the beautiful, peaceful town of Hokko.

2021-06-02

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Added endpoints for reading and setting player names

2021-05-31

Mon, 31 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Admin API

Fixed bug that would cause drop table groups to silently fail creation or update if an invalid ID property was sent in the payload.
Fixed bug where the same asset could not be dropped more than once from the same drop table.
Added support for multiple rolls (evaluations) of the same drop table when computed.
Excluded unique assets from drop table drops for players that already owns that unique asset.
Added names to drop table groups for easier identification.
Introduced prevent_duplicate_drops concept to drop tables.

2021-05-18

Tue, 18 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Updated leaderboards to allow for a key to be used in place of the ID in URLs
Added Drop Tables

Server API

Updated leaderboards to allow for a key to be used in place of the ID in URLs
Added Drop Tables

Admin API

Updated leaderboards api to allow for a key to be used in place of the ID in URLs

Drop Tables

Tue, 11 May 2021 08:00:00 +0000

This week we are launching a new Asset Complexity called Drop Tables. The Drop Table Complexity provides logic for randomly selecting individual or multiple Assets from predefined groups based on their rarity weighting or tags. This can be useful if your game has a boss with specific loot, for example. To explain how Drop Tables work, I will set up a Drop Table Asset for one of my favorite bosses, Ragnaros from World of Warcraft. A version of this guide can also be found in our user documentation.

PatchKit Partnership

Fri, 07 May 2021 10:25:00 +0000

We are partnering with PatchKit, the white-label game launcher technology company used by publishers like TinyBuild and Bossa Studios. Through this partnership we will be integrating LootLocker’s cross-platform player management and live ops systems into PatchKit’s launcher technology.

While nearly all games launching on PC release through Steam and other game stores, many developers and publishers want the added freedom to distribute their games directly themselves. Thanks to PatchKit, this is now possible through their cloud-based distribution platform and light-weight customizable launcher tool. This partnership allows us to supercharge the PatchKit game launcher with LootLocker's cross-platform player accounts, messaging, microtransactions, and other live ops tools.

Leaderboards

Mon, 03 May 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Our brand new Leaderboard system is now live and accessible through the LootLocker Management Console and ready for integration into your game by using the latest Unity and Unreal SDKs! In addition to a fresh new look and functionality (more on that below) we have also begun the process of moving our frontend technology to a more modern stack, with React, NextJS and Tailwind CSS, and started building new features in Golang when possible for added responsiveness!

2021-05-03

Mon, 03 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Game API

Released the new leaderboards API, documentation and reference can be found here:
- https://docs.lootlocker.com/how-to/leaderboards#what-are-leaderboards
- https://ref.lootlocker.com/game-api/#leaderboards

Server API

Released the new leaderboards API, documentation and reference can be found here:
- https://docs.lootlocker.com/how-to/leaderboards#what-are-leaderboards
- https://ref.lootlocker.com/server-api/#leaderboards

Admin API

Released the new leaderboards API. Documentation and reference can be found here:
- https://ref.lootlocker.com/admin-api/#leaderboards

Indie Game Developer Resources 2021

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 09:00:00 +0000

Game development is an ever evolving process. Every year there are new trends, technologies, platforms, and techniques for building, distributing, and marketing your games successfully - not to mention having to build a company as well!

To help you out, we've scoured the internet over the past year and compiled the best resources to help you on your game development journey in 2021. We've broken down these resources into three sections, Company & Funding, Guides, and Websites. Not every link may apply to your needs, but hopefully there is something of value for everyone depending on where they're at in the development process.

2021-04-21

Wed, 21 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal SDK

Added support for leaderboards
Added support for drop tables

Unity SDK

Added access to the new leaderboard APIs

EQU8 Anti-Cheat Partnership

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 08:00:00 +0000

We are excited to announce that we are partnering with EQU8 Anti-Cheat!

Experiencing cheaters and hackers in your game is the worst, and often wrecks the experience for other players, forcing them to stop playing your game entirely. Thanks to the amazing technology from EQU8, cheaters and hackers can be recognized sooner and be dealt with quicker. Together with LootLocker’s cross-platform player accounts and backend services, these players will soon be more effectively banned from playing and have their accounts, wallets, content, and leaderboard positions frozen temporarily or wiped permanently from your game.

A Splash of New Paint

Tue, 13 Apr 2021 09:00:00 +0000

Today we are launching two well-needed updates to the LootLocker platform: a visual (and slight functional) overhaul to the LootLocker Management Console and the LootLocker Documentation websites! We've been working on these updates since the beginning of the year and are excited to finally see them live. Here's what you can expect to find the next time you login or view our docs.

Management Console

The next time you login to the Management Console, you will immediately see the new changes thanks to our new Home Screen that pulls together a lot of information about your currently active game, some useful links, the latest LootLocker news, and provides quick access to your other games.

2021-04-09

Fri, 09 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Server API

Added purchases endpoints to allow inspection of player purchases by servers

(Some) Games Using LootLocker

Tue, 06 Apr 2021 09:00:00 +0000

We've been working full time with LootLocker for about a year now and we're happy to announce a handful of upcoming and released games that are running on our technology! As you may have noticed, we recently updated our homepage to include these games as a way to promote these awesome titles, as well as a way of showing examples of the diversity of game genres that can make use of our technology.

2021-04-06

Tue, 06 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Completely extracted Admin SDK for normal Game SDK
Added ability to update config using the Project Settings of Unity
Fixed minor bug where response text was not being updated
Added support for Unity Package Manager
Added dependency to use Unity's newtonsoft json package

User-Generated Content

Tue, 16 Mar 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Late last year we soft-launched the ability for LootLocker users to support User-Generated Content in their games. User-Generated Content (or UGC) is a popular feature these days where games let their players create custom content that can be used in the game, like skins, items, or even entire mods to provide new ways to play the game. Of course, the most famous UGC-based game today is Roblox where players can create entirely new games on the platform.

2021-03-11

Thu, 11 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal SDK

Fixed names clashing with other Unreal plugins classes
Added ability to create Characters and assign Classes to Characters
Please Note: Some blueprints might break with this update - we will try to avoid this in the future

Selecting the Right Backend for Your Game

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Since game backend-as-a-services began appearing on the market several years ago, competition has become quite fierce. Several backend services have been purchased by larger companies, while other backends have had to shut down. There are now 5 main backends to pick from, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.

Here is a breakdown and comparison of the most popular backends that will hopefully help you decide which backend is right for you and your game.

2021-02-13

Sat, 13 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added new APIs for the updated character creation and class system
Separated Admin SDK into its own package

2021-01-27

Wed, 27 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unreal SDK

Config modification changes

LootLocker Unreal SDK

Mon, 25 Jan 2021 12:00:00 +0000

Today we officially launched the LootLocker Unreal SDK, providing quick and easy LootLocker integration into Unreal projects via C++ or Blueprint. The SDK also includes a Demo Project that demonstrates how various API calls can be made - feel free to use these in your games!

Together with the SDK, we have also released documentation that covers installation, set up, and API calls for C++ and Blueprint. The documentation, along with other resources, can be found at docs.lootlocker.com.

A Look Back at 2020

Wed, 06 Jan 2021 09:00:00 +0000

Happy New Year!

2020 was a busy year for us at LootLocker as we officially launched the service and raised our first funding round. We've also been very busy on the product development-side of things, adding new features and overall improvements to the platform. Here are a few of the highlights from our 2020 releases:

User-Generated Content

Use LootLocker to let players securely upload custom game content, moderate the content, and then curate the approved content. With UGC becoming a more common feature in games, we are excited to provide a simple out-of-the-box solution for indies to take advantage of this popular feature.

2021-01-04

Mon, 04 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

More name space segmentation

Our Favorite Gaming Newsletters

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:00:00 +0000

There is a LOT of game industry content out there to consume these days, and it often gets overwhelming. From traditional media, to social media and podcasts it can feel nearly impossible to keep up with the latest news, trends, and happenings in the games industry.

Recently we have found that newsletters have been a really great way to get distilled and curated content sent directly in your inbox. Here are three of our favorites:

2020-11-11

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Added support for UGC
Added Easy Use Prefabs

The LootLocker Mobile App

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 10:00:00 +0000

The LootLocker mobile App has been deprecated and this article is no longer relevant.

In addition to our new Unity SDK and recently overhauled documentation, we launched an official app! The LootLocker mobile app demonstrates how LootLocker features can be used in a game, and how the LootLocker Management Console can communicate directly with the game.

The LootLocker mobile app can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play Store links below.

Documentation Overhaul

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 11:00:00 +0000

We have spent the last few weeks completely overhauling our documentation to make sure it's as detailed and helpful as possible. This includes user documentation for every feature and step-by-step walkthrough for installing and setting up the Unity SDK.

Head over to docs.lootlocker.com to check it all out, or visit the links to specific sections:

If you have any feedback or questions, please don't hesitate to reach out via email or directly on our Discord.

LootLocker Unity SDK

Fri, 16 Oct 2020 09:00:00 +0000

This week we officially launched the LootLocker Unity SDK making it even easier to integrate LootLocker into your Unity project. The Unity SDK includes 3 elements:

The SDK, which also includes the optional Admin SDK
The SampleApp, which demonstrates LootLocker in action in an Unity scene
The TestScenes, which demonstrate each API in their own scene (Game/Samples/Scenes)

The SDK has been fully documented from installation, to set up, and usage with sample calls for every API endpoint. You can find this documentation, along with the rest of the LootLocker documentation at docs.lootlocker.com.

2020-10-16

Fri, 16 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Unity SDK

Launched Unity SDK

Gameye Panel: Backend for Indies

Thu, 24 Sep 2020 09:20:00 +0000

Last week we participated in the Gameye Industry Insights panel discussing game backends for indies together with Gamebreaking Studios. We had a lot of fun discussing the technology behind backends and why we believe all studios should harness the power of a backend (especially LootLocker!)

The panel session has now been uploaded to YouTube and embedded below - enjoy!

LootLocker Branding Guideline

Mon, 10 Aug 2020 09:00:00 +0000

We love our logo! It's colorful, fun, and memorable and doesn't take itself too seriously. That being said, we respect the design and always want to ensure quality. If you're thinking about using our logo for something please keep it tasteful by following this guide.

Logotype

The LootLocker logo comes in a variety of lockups. Above all, please do not edit, change, distort, recolor, or reconfigure the LootLocker logo.

Vertical

5 Things They Don't Tell You Before Starting an Indie Studio

Mon, 13 Jul 2020 09:00:00 +0000

Sorry for the click bait title!

Well, sorry-not-sorry, because it got you this far - and hopefully now you’ll continue reading. In a brief departure from our world of backend technology, this post is a modified version of a presentation I made at the Nordic Games Conference several years ago - a reflection on my learnings and, dare I say, wisdom accumulated from leadership experience at indie studios Poppermost Productions and Hatrabbit Entertainment. I thought maybe, just maybe, some of my reflections will help other entrepreneurs at various stages of starting or running their own studios.

LootLocker Public Roadmap

Wed, 01 Jul 2020 10:00:00 +0000

In case you haven’t already seen it, we recently released our public roadmap! The roadmap doesn’t cover everything we’re working on as we are constantly iterating on already existing features and making improvements to the management console. Instead, our public roadmap provides a transparent look into the direction of our technology.

The public roadmap also gives LootLocker users a chance to impact our development by voting on features that they would like to see developed sooner, or commenting on features that they have a question about or an idea for how it could be made even better.

LootLocker on Discord

Mon, 15 Jun 2020 11:00:00 +0000

At LootLocker we decided to use Discord as our primary communications platform for both internal and external conversations. Why use Discord - a tool designed for gaming communities - instead of Slack or Microsoft Teams?

Well, at LootLocker we believe in transparency, community, and most importantly staying as close to our game developers as possible. We love Slack and have used it together and in previous companies for many years now, but as a business-to-business company we always found it to be a frustratingly closed environment when working with external parties - be it contractors or potential clients. You would have to manually create and manage each account separately, and often pay for accounts just to give them the right amount of access to your company's internal communication.

Money in the Bank

Mon, 01 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +0000

We are very excited to share that we have completed our first funding round for LootLocker, bringing in around $250,000 into the company! Our new shareholders add more than just money to the company - these investors read as a "who's who" of Sweden's game industry elite with their decades of experience. We couldn’t be more happy with the insights these new investors bring to the company and look forward to working with them as we continue building LootLocker.

Game Backends: What and Why

Tue, 12 May 2020 07:00:00 +0000

Did you know game backends are not just for big budget free-to-play games, or mobile games with millions of dollars of VC money? That’s right - a game backend can be an important part of every game regardless of scope, budget, or team size. A game backend could make your next game even better.

So what is a game backend, and what do they do? Simply put, a game backend is a server that your game communicates with at different points throughout your game in order to save or retrieve information. For example, your game might call upon your backend whenever a player starts the game in order to collect information you have stored on the player, like their XP and level, or current game progression. Saving information in the cloud (as they say) is helpful for several reasons:

Using LootLocker with Unity

Fri, 01 May 2020 05:49:00 +0000

Update: LootLocker now has a Unity SDK. Learn more about it here.

Since LootLocker does not have an SDK for Unity yet, we've prepared an example project showing how to integrate LootLocker in your game using our RESTful API.

RESTful APIs

Let's start with explaining what a RESTful API is, and how LootLocker has implemented it. If you are already familiar with HTTP verbs, headers and know what the request body is, you can skip this section.

Who is LootLocker?

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 10:00:00 +0000

Before diving into the nuts and bolts of this blog - examining the core features of LootLocker, the benefits of a game backend, and case studies of the games using LootLocker - perhaps we should introduce ourselves first!

Behind LootLocker is Andreas Stokholm and Alexander Bergendahl.

Andreas is the CTO of LootLocker and have been developing backends for games and e-commerce platforms for the past 10 years. Most recently Andreas was a Backend Engineer at Avalanche Studios and a Senior Backend Engineer at Karma.

Hello World

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 10:00:00 +0000

And just like that, we exist!

Welcome to LootLocker, and the LootLocker blog! We built LootLocker to put the power of common game, backend, and live ops systems in the hands of every developer, regardless of team size and competence. Usually game backends are a scary word, only reserved for MMOs or large budget productions. They require developing from scratch or the tireless integration of different complex services — and even if you did end up setting one up yourself, you the developer were tethered to the backend for the rest of your life as you added new features to your game or wasted valuable time managing catalogus of assets or your player profiles.

Data Processing Agreement

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The agreement governing LootLocker’s processing of personal data on behalf of its customers.

Fair Use Policy (30 April 2025)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The LootLocker Fair Use Policy in force until 1 November 2026. Superseded by version 2.

Privacy Policy (30 April 2025)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The LootLocker Privacy Policy in force until 1 November 2026. Superseded by version 2.

Terms of Service (30 April 2025)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The LootLocker Terms of Service in force until 1 November 2026. Superseded by version 2.