Chapter 1
The magic of the microscopic pixel
Chapter 2
The blocky dawn of three dimensions
Chapter 3
Painting with light and shaders
Chapter 4
Cultural tapestries in virtual worlds
Ch 3 · Painting with light and shaders
nintendo Painting with Light and Shaders
Code the light, shade the screen, watch the pixels come alive!
BETA
nintendo Drag glowing pixels to discover how modern lighting keeps retro game art magical.
nintendo Sega pioneered this style with Jet Set Radio in 2000, before Nintendo perfected it in 2002 with Link's expressive cartoon physics.
Quiz
Which 2000 Dreamcast game was one of the very first to use cel-shading to mimic graffiti and anime art?
Quiz
How did the developers of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker make cartoon Link feel more alive?
Fun Fact
Baking shadows: For decades, game lights were completely fake. Artists painted shadows directly onto floor textures to make objects look like they were touching the ground.
nintendo Photogrammetry turns thousands of real-world photos into highly detailed 3D game environments.
Quiz
What is the technique of taking multiple photos of real objects to reconstruct them as 3D game models called?
Glossary
shader (noun)
A computer program used in three-dimensional graphics to determine the rendering of light, shadow, and color. Nintendo utilized custom shaders in 2002 to give The Wind Waker its timeless, hand-drawn aesthetic.
A computer program used in three-dimensional graphics to determine the rendering of light, shadow, and color. Nintendo utilized custom shaders in 2002 to give The Wind Waker its timeless, hand-drawn aesthetic.
Quiz
What does real-time ray tracing simulate to create realistic shadows and reflections?