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[petitfilou]

Hi,

First of all, outerra looks amazing, really looking forward to video updates.

I just had one question about shadows.  As to me that makes a lot of difference to 3d graphics in terms of believability. I know your work is in progress, so this is just a suggestion.

I saw your screenshots, and glad to see you've got some shadows in the tree areas. But would it be possible to, in the future, have more detailed broken shadows? leaves shadows?

Included screenies to explain better. Hope you don't mind.   thanks and keep up the great work.
[img=PunBB bbcode test]http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt169/richvanim/k248.jpg[/img]
[img=PunBB bbcode test]http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt169/richvanim/Outerra_shdws.jpg[/img]

[cameni]

Hi,

There are no shadows from the trees currently, what you see there is ambient forest darkness, derived from the computed probability of tree occurrence, intended to make ground in forests darker as the outer light is being heavily occluded.

Shadows from trees will come when we also implement seamless switching from billboard trees to model trees. But the billboard trees will have to be casting the shadows too, up to a certain distance, as I look now at the screens ..

[petitfilou]

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. I understand now why the shadows look soft.

Could you have some form of LOD for the shadows too?  like detailed ones with 3d model trees nearby and revert to soft darker ground for billboards in the distance?

Some form of radius.

If you could have the detailed shadows cast somehow on vehicles closeup, that 'd look great.

Im not a programmer, but the way you use very fine procedural textures as you get closer to the ground, can you use that technique for shadows?  as a different layer on top of the ground?

great stuff.  ;-)

[cameni]

There will be a different, softer shadow technique used for terrain self-shadowing and cloud shadows, so maybe this could be used also for the distant trees. Or just shifting the ambient map in the direction of cast shadows. We'll see yet.

Unfortunately the shadows can't be refined the way the terrain is, it's quite different approach so they have to have their own specific solutions. But the shadowing is still work in progress, being tuned and enhanced constantly, but the results so far aren't optimal.

[petitfilou]

Cheers for that.  Looking forward to the future of your engine. and to the new ideas you'll implement.

Good luck.