Real-Time Special Effects for a Computer Game Using Particle Systems

An implementation of a particle system as part of the rendering pipeline of a 3-D computer game is described. Due to the interactive nature of such a computer game one of the most important issues in this implementation is the real-time rendering capability of the created special effects. A short summary of the game’s rendering pipeline is given, restrictions on special effects without a particle system’s being integrated are described and used to show where tremendous improvements are possible with the deployment of a particle system. The fundamental changes of the original rendering pipeline necessary to accommodate the particle system are considered and looked at in detail. As an example of a special effect made possible by the introduction of a particle system the calculation and rendering of a lightning stroke is presented. Due to the nature of the application the emphasis is not on physically correct evaluation of a lightning beam but instead on visual appearance, i.e., the aim is not so much to make it look real, but to make it look like a typical special effect.