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BUILD | SOFTWARE
KEY RELEASE Will Freeman eyes Sundog’s sky rendering tech SilverLining
WHAT IS IT?: A C++ library for real-time sky and cloud rendering COMPANY: Sundog Software PRICE: $2,500 single app royalty free license (see web) www.sundog-soft.com
Sundog founder Frank Kane
Above: SilverLining 2.11 allows users to render highly realistic clouds and other atmospheric elements
FOR THOSE unfamiliar with Sundog Software’s SilverLining software, the clue is in the name. It is a renderer of the sky, clouds, and just about everything else that makes up a planet’s atmosphere. Conceived – of course – to deliver photorealistic results, SilverLining has just undergone a maintenance overhaul in the form of its new 2.11 update, and according to its creators, the benefits for the technology’s users will be numerous. As well as ironing out some bugs and providing improved support for round-earth coordinate systems, SilverLining 2.11 also updates to latest DirectX SDK, and changes the way custom random number generators are handled. REACH FOR THE SKY Where SilverLining is really gaining ground, however, is with its increasing number of integrations with high-profile game engines. “We’re always looking at providing integrations and support for new game engines that are gaining in popularity and are extensible,” says Sundog founder Frank Kane. “A new integration is in the works right now – but I can’t say with who yet. Already we integrate with Ogre3D, OpenSceneGraph, and Gamebryo Lightspeed – which remains popular in the Far East – and we’ve built SilverLining in such a way that it can drop in easily to any engine built on top of DirectX or OpenGL.” Recognising many studios will continue to want to use their own proprietary rendering technologies, Sundog has also endeavoured to expose all the hooks to
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its low-level rendering calls so they can be wired into any new engines as they emerge. “We’re also taking advantage of emerging capabilities on modern graphics hardware,” reveals Kane. “Our 2.0 release featured a new type of cloud based on GPU ray-casting, which allows us to render really thick, dense cloud
We’re always looking at providing integrations and support for new game engines that are gaining in popularity and are extensible. Frank Kane, Sundog Software layers that look great and render fast on modern hardware. We’ve also got support built in for DirectX 11 and high dynamic range rendering.” And for Kane, it doesn’t end with the 2.11 update, as Sundog prepares a host of new features. “We still have a few tricks up our sleeves for making further improvements to the quality and performance of the clouds we render with GPU ray-casting that will be rolling out later in the year,” reveals Kane. “We’ll continue to stay on top of supporting new technologies, compilers, and rendering engines as they emerge.” For Sundog’s customers, it really does seem that the sky’s the limit.
HEAD IN THE CLOUDS?
AS HIGHLY specialised middleware goes, you don’t get much more acutely tailoured solutions than Sundog’s SilverLining. But do developers really need something specifically for rendering accurately behaving cumulus clouds? “It’s just a huge time-saver, and we’ve tried to price it such that it’s a no-brainer for any game that features expansive, outdoor scenes,” says Sundog founder Frank Kane. For that reason, Sundog Software’s offering has proved especially popular with MMORPGs and flight sims. To say that implementing physically-based skies and 3D volumetric clouds that look convincing is no trivial task is an understatement. Even for those studios uninterested in conveying physical reality, SilverLining promises to save a lot of artist man hours. “There’s no need to model and position individual clouds or create skyboxes if you’re using SilverLining,” confirms Kane. “You just give it a time, location, and weather conditions to simulate, and the rest happens automatically.”