Imposters - by David Rosen

      Posted 10/04/10 03:17:00 pm  

We can achieve a lot of performance gains by using texture atlases and instancing, but it won't be enough for dense environments like forests and jungles. For these, we need imposters!

What are imposters?

Imposters are an extreme form of LOD (level of detail) optimization, replacing entire models with simple, flat pictures of themselves. They are much like the flat facades used in old Hollywood films, or the cardboard character cutouts used to promote books and movies. Here is an Overgrowth scene that has 3D trees interspersed with imposter trees: first you can see flat checkerboard imposters, then cutout checkerboard imposters, and finally the actual colored and shaded imposters.