However, the techniques which are currently in common use must compromise either on terrain size or on close-up detail. Thatcher Ulrich demonstrates an extension that eliminates the tradeoff between terrain size and close-up detail. Increases in the performance of graphics accelerators free additional CPU cycles that can be used for real-time physical world modeling. Modifying the geometry of an object is more effective than mapping a new or animated texture, because correctly deformed objects will look right from any angle and in any lighting conditions. Max I. Fomitchev discusses the implementation of deformable surfaces for real-time 3D games that simulate realistic environments.
Collision detection is a huge issue and an active area of research in graphics simulation.
Using techniques such as the dot product and cross product, Jeff Lander investigates some common problems that can be important to a variety of game applications. With the help of a virtual Jello simulator, Jeff Lander investigates how particle dynamics affects collision response. Despite the rich colors, intricate textures, and dazzling effects in today's games, the human brain still notices that something is missing, and that something might just be shadows . Running with this idea, Jason Bestimt and Bryant Freitag discuss real-time dynamic shadowing using shadow volumes, presenting techniques and code listings for creating accurate shadows in 3D environments. The Microsoft DirectX7 API offers the opportunity for programmers to tap into some fairly remarkable graphics capabilities, including the ability to render primitives to texture surfaces.