Introduction

In this chapter, we will be creating some of the common special effects used in 3D games to help increase the level of realism, and thereby help the player to immerse themselves in the virtual world.

The examples in this chapter assume that at least the bare bones of a 3D scene are already present, with one or more 3D objects being rendered successfully to the screen. If inspiration for how to achieve this is in short supply, Chapter 2, Building 2D and 3D Terrain and Chapter 3, Procedural Modeling, provide some examples on possible ways to get started.