Tanoa - Performance optimizations? yes/no

[MrSanchez 243]

Hey,

Sorry if there's already a thread similar to mine out there but I wanted to make a seperate one to discuss something rather important imo about Tanoa.

It's going to be a jungle map with a lot of vegetation, whenever I hear the words vegetation and ArmA I think about severe FPS drops, is there any information available yet regarding optimizations that the Tanoa DLC will introduce?

I personally hope that the assets from Tanoa will be available to all modders along with any vegetation optimizations.

Kind regards,

Sanchez

[Defunkt 431]

Based on Chernarus, which is pretty heavily forested in places as well as Altis/Stratis, the engine seems a great deal less happy with buildings than it does with vegetation.

[CaptainAzimuth 714]

Based on Chernarus, which is pretty heavily forested in places as well as Altis/Stratis, the engine seems a great deal less happy with buildings than it does with vegetation.

This 200%.

However, i think what would be interesting is if they'd release the engine updates before the Expansion. For example, the water effects, reflection and stuff. In fact, do you guys think it'd be smart if BIS implemented DX12 in the base Engine before the expansion?

[windies 11]

I honestly doubt DX12 alone is going to do much for ArmA. Problems really aren't with the API being used but the engine. I would be more interested in hearing if any of the work on Enfusion is going to make it's way into the expansion and therefor into ArmA 3.

[fn_Quiksilver 1633]

Smaller world size + More water (less terrain) + Less objects + Less buildings + Oukej working on AI for awhile = probably better optimized given engine constraints.

[LODU 19]

There is also the possibility to optimize the reduced visibility that causes the dense vegetation.

I did a tropical vegetation, in which I can put several squads and keep an acceptable level of fps, but this is possible because I have a lot of addons optimized lods and the last lods are textured with a card textureatlas.

To reproduce the atmosphere of the rainforest, we must put the fog, to simulate humidity and low visibility.

All this waiting directx12 allows even when playing properly in a jungle world: there are different types of vegetation, which are not necessarily all-creating "lag".

The coastal part, with bushes "naupaka", palm trees and some emblematic hardwoods, does not cause lag.

The "inland", with large plains of tall grass, with scattered palm trees, does not cause either lag.

The "rainforest" part is more difficult to recreate, but nothing is impossible and with experience, much documentation, we come to understand how the different layers are arranged (ground, understory, mid layer, emerging, etc.) and how to combine them in 3D to simulate an environment of great density and darkness.

At first I was separate floor plants, then I realized he must group them into thickets, mixing 3D techniques with the texture baking hipoly on plans 3d alpha: this provision can represent the best of what we try to show, while saving the polygon and texture.

But there are other techniques in pure 3d, since the game engine easily swallows millions of polygons without much complaining (provided optimized, of course).

The main challenge is the rendering of the long distance visibility of the canopy and the transition between different lods is the main difficulty: personally, I found, experimenting many, many different techniques that simulate it.

So much for my views and I wait to see what will make the devs on the topic to add the techniques that will be available at the output tanoa: I think primarily the possibility of being hidden by the foliage and fallen trees.

On the other hand, break down large trees like kapoks, ceiba pentadra, is not very realistic, for a mission commandos, for example, and I think that only means trees should be destructible, if any, if the is desired full optimization: there are sacrifices / choice, to play comfortably.

[inlesco 233]

In any case, Tanoa is going to be great for many types of missions with the dense environments - Predator assaults, full-dark night ops, horror, etc.

Hopefully there's gonna be brown models to simulate 'burnt-up' jungle and stuff. Great for post-apocalyptic scenarios and responsive destruction.

[brightcandle 114]

In Arma 2 lingor managed to run similar to the other maps despite its jungle setting. However that map had to severely reduce the amount of foilage so that it wasn't really a jungle but more a wood with some other foilage about and careful use of microterrain limited the visibility distance more than the actual foilage. I anticipate the same type of trade off in Arma 3 will be necessary otherwise performance will be unacceptable poor just as it is on Altis today around the big towns.

[semiconductor 309]

Although I'm sure BI will try to optimize engine, the amount of foliage will most likely compensate any optimizations. At best performance will remain the same.

In any case, Tanoa is going to be great for many types of missions with the dense environments - Predator assaults, full-dark night ops, horror, etc.

Interesting way to say "Tanoa is going to be great mostly for missions that benefit from dense environments". :) Edited July 13, 2015 by Semiconductor

[tremanarch 6]

Although I'm sure BI will try to optimize engine, the amount of foliage will most likely compensate any optimizations. At best performance will remain the same.

Interesting way to say "Tanoa is going to be great mostly for missions that benefit from dense environments". :)

interesting way to say "yes". ;)