A very simple toon lit shader example, for you to learn writing custom lit shader in Unity URP
7.7k
Stars
1.9k
Forks
2
Open issues
1
Contributors
AI Analysis
A simplified, educational toon shader example for Unity's Universal Render Pipeline (URP), designed to teach custom lit shader development rather than serve as a production-ready solution. This repository is explicitly a learning resource for shader programmers working with URP; it is not suitable for those seeking a complete, feature-rich toon shader system (the full version, NiloToonURP, is a separate commercial product). Best suited for game developers and graphics programmers studying sha...
Inferred from signals mentioned in the README (tests, CI, type safety) — not a review of the actual code.
AI's overall editorial judgment — not an average of the bars above, can weigh other factors too.
MIT-licensed URP toon shader tutorial widely used by Unity indie developers learning custom shading
This repository provides a concise, readable toon lit shader example targeting Unity URP, explicitly designed as a learning resource rather than a production-ready asset. Its primary audience is Unity developers—students, indie game makers, technical artists—who want to understand how custom lit shaders are structured in URP's render pipeline. It also doubles as a public showcase for the author's commercial product, NiloToonURP. With 7,676 stars and 1,865 forks, it has meaningful traction in the Unity shader education space.
Created in March 2020, shortly after Unity URP gained broader adoption. It evolved from a pure tutorial shader into a partial marketing vehicle for the author's closed-source commercial toon shader package, NiloToonURP.
Growth was likely driven by the relative scarcity of well-documented URP custom shader examples in 2020–2022, combined with strong demand from anime/toon-style game developers migrating to URP. Stars accumulated steadily; 0 new stars in the last 7 days suggests the repository has matured and organic discovery has plateaued rather than collapsed.
Adoption not verified at scale for production titles. The fork count (1,865) suggests meaningful hands-on use as a starting point or reference. However, the project is explicitly framed as a tutorial, and production adoption of the tutorial shader itself—versus the commercial NiloToonURP—cannot be confirmed from available metadata.
Likely a single-pass or multi-pass ShaderLab/HLSL shader targeting Unity URP's forward rendering path. Based on README framing ('simple, short and easy-to-read'), it appears to prioritize clarity over feature completeness, probably avoiding complex abstractions like custom RenderFeatures or multi-pass outlines found in production toon shaders.
not documented in README
Last push was 2026-07-02, the same as the evaluation date, indicating active maintenance. The README explicitly warns the tutorial shader 'may be removed in the future' in favor of the commercial product, which introduces a continuity risk despite current activity.
ADOPT IF: you are a Unity developer learning to write custom URP lit shaders and want a readable, MIT-licensed starting point for toon-style rendering. AVOID IF: you need a production-ready, feature-complete toon shader with support, mobile optimization, and ongoing compatibility guarantees—use NiloToonURP or lilToon instead. MONITOR IF: you have forked the tutorial shader for your own project, since the author has signaled it may be removed or replaced in the future.
Independent dimensions
Mainstream potential
2/10
Technical importance
5/10
Adoption evidence
4/10
- README explicitly warns the tutorial shader may be removed as the author shifts focus to the commercial NiloToonURP product, creating a deprecation risk for dependents.
- The repository increasingly serves as marketing for a paid product, which may reduce investment in the tutorial content over time.
- Unity URP API changes across major versions (URP 14, 16+) can break shader compatibility; tutorial content may lag behind Unity's evolving rendering architecture.
- 0 stars in the last 7 days suggests organic discovery has plateaued; community momentum for the tutorial itself appears to have flattened.
- No documented test coverage or CI pipeline; compatibility with new Unity/URP versions depends entirely on manual author validation.
The tutorial repo will likely remain available as a showcase and lead-generation tool for NiloToonURP but will receive only sporadic updates. New learners will continue to find it useful, but it may gradually fall behind current URP versions if the commercial product absorbs the author's attention.
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Information
- Language
- ShaderLab
- License
- MIT
- Last updated
- 1w ago
- Created
- 77mo ago
- Analyzed with
- anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5
Stars over time
Contributors over time
Top 100 contributors only — repos with more will plateau at 100.
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Unity's built-in URP Lit shader is physically-based and not stylized; this repo explicitly fills the toon/stylized gap that Unity's defaults do not address.
Shader Graph-based toon solutions are more accessible to non-coders but less instructive for learning raw HLSL/ShaderLab. This repo targets developers who want to understand shader code directly.
Poiyomi is a feature-rich production toon shader popular in VRChat. It is far more complex and not intended as a learning resource; different audience and purpose entirely.
lilToon is a highly optimized, multi-platform production shader. Like Poiyomi, it solves a different problem—shipping quality—rather than teaching shader construction.
The direct upgrade path from this tutorial. Closed-source and sold commercially. This free repo serves partly as a demonstration and lead-generation tool for NiloToonURP.
