3D engine

Projects

Features

Neptune 3D engine is build with extensibility in mind. It is still under heavy development but is already usable for projects such as nature rendering.

multi platform (designed to support several operating systems such as Windows and Linux). Currently, the Windows platform is fully managed
multi graphics API (designed to change the renderer easily). Currently, OpenGL is supported and a DirectX implementation is planned.
multi screen (supports rendering on several screens, several windows, several viewports simultaneously and in stereo if desired)
multi language (supports multiple languages for dialog boxes and error messages)

Already implemented

scene graph data structure with easy addition of new node classes
advanced viewport management: multiple screens, multi-pass rendering, compositing, HDR rendering, post-processing described with a graph
stereo rendering (anaglyphs, active stereo on single or multiple screens, auto-stereoscopic screens)
network support for rendering on multiple screens with several computers (transmission of camera parameters)
full OpenGL shading language support
extensible support for unusual input devices such as 3D mice and data gloves
screenshots management and video export (real-time or frame per frame)
serialization for fast loading/saving of scenes and scene objects
import/export of external files with easy addition of importer/exporters
support of OBJ meshes with materials (fully compatible with DAZ 3D models)
import/export of many file image formats, including HDR and HDR videos for sky domes
mesh primitives: box, sphere, sky dome, terrains, implicit surfaces (metaballs), grass blades, etc.
grass with levels of detail, dynamic lighting, shadows and intuitive density management
trees with indirect lighting and soft shadows for increased realism
local and remote consoles for logging, dynamic modification of the scene graph and parameters of the nodes and batch execution of commands
extensive commenting of the code for Doxygen generated documentation
versioning using Subversion (equivalent of CVS with additional features)

Under implementation

N3D Editor: external software for creation and modification of scenes with a modeler-like user interface
materials based on a graph description (to create shaders without programming)
shadow projection based on advanced shadow maps
ambient occlusion computed directly from Neptune 3D rather than an external software
sound management (with support for multiple sound cards simultaneously)
plugin for DAZ Studio to export scenes directly into the Neptune 3D format
physics using havok
full network support for synchronization of the scene graph between several computers

Future projects

plugin system for easy extension of the Neptune 3D core by third-party developers
support for other shader languages such as nVidia Cg
character animation with skinning
head tracking for improved immersion