ABSTRACT
W hen most people think about computer and video games, the first thingthat comes to mind is the stunning three-dimensional graphics. Realtime 3D rendering is an exceptionally broad and profound topic, so there’s simply no way to cover all of the details in a single chapter. Thankfully there are a great many excellent books and other resources available on this topic. In fact, real-time 3D graphics is perhaps one of the best covered of all the technologies that make up a game engine. The goal of this chapter, then, is to provide you with a broad understanding of real-time rendering technology and to serve as a jumping-off point for further learning. After you’ve read through these pages, you should find that reading other books on 3D graphics seems like a journey through familiar territory. You might even be able to impress your friends at parties (…or alienate them…).
