NVIDIA Demos
Encyclopedia
In order to showcase the abilities of GeForce
chipsets, Nvidia
creates technology demo
s that render in real-time on the chipsets in question (while videos are usually also made available). This listing attempts to mention recent, more notable releases.
series. Dawn is a forest fairy
, and is used as the basis for some later Nvidia demos. The demo features extensive use of the card's shader
s. It has been proven to run better on the competing Radeon 9000 series graphic cards of the time despite a wrapper being required.
that draws pictures of his specimens, stars in this demo created for the GeForce 6 series
.
the formerly wimpy computers of gaming enthusiasts everywhere into blazing performance rigs. Demonstrates PixelShaders 3.0, Radiant Lighting and Depth of field
.
themes of the demoscene
, this GeForce 7800 showcase once again features an eponymous female form, levitating with an intricately rendered head of hair. Again, upgraded shaders are used.
(The Box of Smoke demo also runs on Nvidia's Geforce 6 and 7 series, whereas Adrianne and Froggy require an 8 series to run.)
method that employs a sum-of-Gaussians formula to simulate the scattering of light that occurs under the surface of a translucent substance such as skin. The result is a subtle diffusion of shadows that allows illumination to bleed into areas that would ordinarily be in total shadow.
The model itself is based upon a 3d scan of prosthetic makeup
character actor Doug Jones
.
demo, in addition to being a tech demo, is a short story interpretation of the tale from Greek mythology
. The demo showcases emotional character facial animation, implemented with "texture buffers", as well as character rendering with multiple passes for shadows, skin shading, depth and color accelerated with "stream out". It also includes examples of dynamic stone which "grows" through the generation of geometry on the GPU using "geometry shaders".
GeForce
GeForce is a brand of graphics processing units designed by Nvidia. , there have been eleven iterations of the design. The first GeForce products were discrete GPUs designed for use on add-on graphics boards, intended for the high-margin PC gaming market...
chipsets, Nvidia
NVIDIA
Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
creates technology demo
Technology demo
A tech demo is a prototype, rough example or an otherwise incomplete version of a product, put together with the primary purpose of showcasing the idea, performance, method or the features of the product...
s that render in real-time on the chipsets in question (while videos are usually also made available). This listing attempts to mention recent, more notable releases.
Dawn
Dawn is likely the most well-known Nvidia demo-piece yet. It was crafted to display the power of the GeForce FXGeForce FX
The GeForce FX or "GeForce 5" series is a line of graphics processing units from the manufacturer NVIDIA.-Overview:...
series. Dawn is a forest fairy
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
, and is used as the basis for some later Nvidia demos. The demo features extensive use of the card's shader
Shader
In the field of computer graphics, a shader is a computer program that is used primarily to calculate rendering effects on graphics hardware with a high degree of flexibility...
s. It has been proven to run better on the competing Radeon 9000 series graphic cards of the time despite a wrapper being required.
Dusk
This demo was timed to appear during GeForce FX 5900's release. The eponymous main character Dusk is highly reminiscent of Dawn; sharing her wings, hair, and a similarity of form. She could be an urban version of Dawn, a striking opposite of the faerie's soft leafiness in her black street outfit. The Dusk demo added realtime shadows that were not present in "Dawn".Vulcan
Vulcan is another FX 5900 demo. It features volumetric shading and multiple light sources.Blobby Dancer for AMD64
Blobby Dancer for AMD64 is a liquid dancer, in a surreal, psychedelic-like environment. The demo was developed to take advantage of the increased performance offered by the 64-bit processing architecture of the AMD Athlon 64 processors. Blobby Dancer was also developed after the Geforce 6 series were.Timbury
Timbury, an entomologistEntomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
that draws pictures of his specimens, stars in this demo created for the GeForce 6 series
GeForce 6 Series
The GeForce 6 Series is Nvidia's sixth generation of GeForce graphic processing units. Launched on April 14, 2004, the GeForce 6 family introduced PureVideo post-processing for video, SLI technology, and Shader Model 3.0 support .-GeForce 6 Series features:-SLI:The Scalable Link...
.
Nalu
Another GeForce 6800 demo, Nalu features a mermaid, based again on Dawn.Clear Sailing
Once again using a marine theme, this demo showcases the animation of liquid on the GeForce 6 series. A pirate ship seeking to escape its regal pursuer on the high seas demonstrates water surface, foam and splash effects, along with enhanced fire, explosions and smoke.Mad Mod Mike
The rotund, jetpack-clad mountain of a man in this GeForce 7800 demo modsModding
Modding is a slang expression that is derived from the verb "modify". Modding refers to the act of modifying a piece of hardware or software or anything else for that matter, to perform a function not originally conceived or intended by the designer...
the formerly wimpy computers of gaming enthusiasts everywhere into blazing performance rigs. Demonstrates PixelShaders 3.0, Radiant Lighting and Depth of field
Depth of field
In optics, particularly as it relates to film and photography, depth of field is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image...
.
Luna
Something of a throwback to the abstract science fictionScience fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
themes of the demoscene
Demoscene
The demoscene is a computer art subculture that specializes in producing demos, which are non-interactive audio-visual presentations that run in real-time on a computer...
, this GeForce 7800 showcase once again features an eponymous female form, levitating with an intricately rendered head of hair. Again, upgraded shaders are used.
Adrianne
The Adrianne demo was modeled after real-life model and television personality Adrianne Curry, using complex shading and deformation techniques typically reserved for offline-rendered animation. Adrianne's skin shader is the most complex in the scene; 1,400 instructions per pixel, 15 render passes, five separate bump maps, and a complex, physically based lighting model that simulates sub-surface scattering.Froggy
The skin shader is a modified version of the Adrianne skin shader with modified scattering properties derived from photos of real frog skin. The shader has high-detail bump and detail maps and a complex, physically based lighting model that simulates sub-surface scattering.Box of Smoke
As you move the smoke generator within the box, the computational fluid dynamics simulation is being processed in real time on the GPU.(The Box of Smoke demo also runs on Nvidia's Geforce 6 and 7 series, whereas Adrianne and Froggy require an 8 series to run.)
Cascades
The cascades demo showcases D3D 10 features by rendering a dynamically generated highly detailed floating 3D rock on the GPU and running a particle physics based simulation of a waterfall on the GPU which interracts with this 3D rock.Human Head
The human head demo renders a multi-layered facial skin model using a new subsurface scatteringSubsurface scattering
Subsurface scattering is a mechanism of light transport in which light penetrates the surface of a translucent object, is scattered by interacting with the material, and exits the surface at a different point...
method that employs a sum-of-Gaussians formula to simulate the scattering of light that occurs under the surface of a translucent substance such as skin. The result is a subtle diffusion of shadows that allows illumination to bleed into areas that would ordinarily be in total shadow.
The model itself is based upon a 3d scan of prosthetic makeup
Prosthetic makeup
Prosthetic makeup is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects...
character actor Doug Jones
Doug Jones (actor)
Doug Jones is an American film and television actor best known to science fiction, fantasy, and horror fans for his various roles playing non-human characters, often in heavy makeup, in films and television series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth and Fantastic Four: Rise...
.
Medusa
The MedusaMedusa
In Greek mythology Medusa , " guardian, protectress") was a Gorgon, a chthonic monster, and a daughter of Phorcys and Ceto. The author Hyginus, interposes a generation and gives Medusa another chthonic pair as parents. Gazing directly upon her would turn onlookers to stone...
demo, in addition to being a tech demo, is a short story interpretation of the tale from Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
. The demo showcases emotional character facial animation, implemented with "texture buffers", as well as character rendering with multiple passes for shadows, skin shading, depth and color accelerated with "stream out". It also includes examples of dynamic stone which "grows" through the generation of geometry on the GPU using "geometry shaders".
External links
- nzone.com nZone demo downloads page
- HDPS Wiki: NVidia demos