Voxel Space
| Developer(s) | NovaLogic, Kyle Freeman |
|---|---|
| Type | 3D graphics engine |
| Website | http://www.novalogic.com/ |
Voxel Space was a voxel raster graphics rendering engine invented by Novalogic developer and vice-president of technology, Kyle Freeman.[1][2] The company was issued a patent for the technology in early 2000.[3][4][5]
History
[edit]The original Voxel Space engine was patented in 1996, and first released in software in the 1992 release Comanche: Maximum Overkill. The engine was then revamped into Voxel Space 2 (which supports the use of polygons as well as voxels, and was used in Comanche 3 and Armored Fist 2),[6] and later Voxel Space 32 and used in Armored Fist 3 and Delta Force 2.
Based on Kyle Freeman's experience with voxels in medical-imaging technologies used in CT scan[7] and MRI scanners, similar technology was used in games such as Outcast. With the advance of computation power in modern computers there do exist browser-based versions of similar technology based on the Voxel Space terrain rendering used in Comanche.[8]
The version of the engine used in the Comanche series utilized ray-tracing every pixel of the volumetric terrain data.[citation needed]
Versions
[edit]- Voxel Space 3D:
- Voxel Space 2:
- Voxel Space 32: 32-bit rendering, 16 million color support, 360 degrees of transformation.[9]
List of games
[edit]The technology was used in a number of commercial game titles.[10]
- Werewolf
- Comanche series
- Delta Force series
References
[edit]- ^ "NovaLogic Awarded Patent for Unique 3-D Graphics Engine; Voxel Space 2 Becomes Game Publisher's Third Patented Invention. - Free Online Library". thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
- ^ "Beyond Triangles – GigaVoxels Effects in Video Games" (PDF). 17 August 2009. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
- ^ "Voxel's Unite in Graphic Glory as NovaLogic is Issued Patent - IGN". ign.com. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
- ^ "Gamasutra - Nova Logic Patented". gamasutra.com. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
- ^ "patent US6020893A, System and method for realistic terrain simulation". patents.google.com.
- ^ "NG Alphas: NovaLogic". Next Generation. No. 20. Imagine Media. August 1996. pp. 62–63.
- ^ Schuytema, Paul (July 1994). "The Wizard of Voxels". Hex, Bugs & Rock 'N Roll. Computer Gaming World. pp. 140–144.
- ^ "Voxel Space in the game Comanche". GitHub. Retrieved 2017-09-24.
- ^ "FlightSim.Com - NovaLogic Awarded Patent For Voxel Space Graphics Engine". flightsim.com. Retrieved 2015-08-13.
- ^ "NovaLogic: Legal Information". novalogic.com. Retrieved 2015-08-13.