Game art breakdowns
Breakdowns of how well-known games achieve their looks, from VFX to materials and lighting. They are written for learning by dissecting existing work, and are a source of ideas you can recreate in Unity. 139 hand-picked Unity guides, tutorials, videos and repos, kept current.
- The Secrets Behind THAT Cyberpunk 2077 Montage
Breaks down how Cyberpunk 2077's famous montage scene was built from in-engine systems and editing.
youtube.com · May 2026 - Cairn technical art deep dive: Rendering gameplay-specific rock materials on top of level design
Using 3D blendmaps and compute shaders to keep climbable rock surfaces consistent between visuals and gameplay.
unity.com · Apr 2026 - Yooka-Replaylee: A fresh coat of paint
Concept artist's behind-the-scenes look at reimagining a platformer's look with new tech.
unity.com · Nov 2025 - How PlaySide Studios Built KILL KNIGHT's Visual Identity
An art pipeline and development challenges behind a stylized action game's visual identity.
unity.com · Oct 2025 - Shader Breakdown: Night in the Woods' Wobbly Dialogue Effect
Recreating the distinctive wobbly text shader from Night in the Woods. A deep dive into vertex displacement and shader graph techniques.
bartouv.github.io · Sep 2025 - Half Past Yellow on the gentle art of making enemies for Tempest Tower
How the crisp, clayish enemy look in a tower defense game was achieved.
unity.com · Apr 2025 - Simonschreibt.
Simonschreibt's blog of game visual breakdowns and technical details.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2025 - Sims 4: Mirrors
Analysis of how mirrors are rendered in The Sims 4.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2025 - The High Heel Problem
Game art investigation into the high heel problem in character models.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2025 - Infinity Nikki: Mysterious Shadow Drop
Looks at the shadow drop effect in Infinity Nikki.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2025 - Infinity Nikki: One-way Window
Looks at the one-way window effect in Infinity Nikki.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2025 - Anno 1800: Shadows of Beauty
Explores unusual shadow details noticed in Anno 1800.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2025 - Cyberpunk: Broken Edges
Looks at broken edges and outline artifacts in Cyberpunk.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2025 - Rendering Tiny Glades With Entirely Too Much Ray Marching
Pounce Light talk on Tiny Glade rendering: raymarched GI, tilt-shift DoF and stable shadows on old GPUs.
youtube.com · Dec 2024 - Street Fighter 6 effects column: the artists behind the VFX
Capcom column crediting and discussing the effects artists and craft behind Street Fighter 6.
streetfighter.com · Nov 2024 - Real-time VFX project breakdown with project files (ArtStation)
ArtStation breakdown of a realtime VFX project, with downloadable project files.
artstation.com · Oct 2024 - Cozy Space Survivors: breakdown of assets and effects (ArtStation)
Breakdown of how the pixel art assets and effects of a cozy survivors game were made.
artstation.com · Oct 2024 - PlatinumGames VFX: Infernal Demons and Homunculi (Umbran Studies)
Studio blog article on how effects for demon enemies were designed and built.
platinumgames.com · Aug 2024 - Inside Disco Elysium - graphics breakdown
Graphics breakdown of how Disco Elysium achieves its painted look.
youtube.com · Dec 2023 - Technical art behind the raging color of I See Red
Unity blog on the technical art behind the color-driven look of I See Red.
blog.unity.com · Jul 2023 - GTA V – Underestimated Glow
Explains how the nighttime glow on GTA V traffic lights works.
simonschreibt.de · Jun 2023 - Deus Ex – Alpha Terrain
Explains how Deus Ex alpha terrain blends with stone objects.
simonschreibt.de · May 2023 - Jedi: Fallen Order – Splishy Splashy
Looks at the water splash effects in Jedi: Fallen Order.
simonschreibt.de · May 2023 - Pokémon – Rapidash
Looks at the Rapidash fire effect in Pokemon.
simonschreibt.de · May 2023 - The Divine Fire
Looks at the fire effect in Divine Divinity.
simonschreibt.de · May 2023 - The Four Vertex Volume
Explains a four-vertex volume rendering trick.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2023 - Battlefront II: Layered Explosion
Looks at how Battlefront II builds layered explosion effects.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2023 - The Unreal Stencil Dragon
Builds a stencil dragon effect in Unreal, extending a project on one shader for many effects.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2023 - The Rain World Animation Process
Explains how Rain World's animation is produced procedurally.
youtube.com · Dec 2022 - Reverse engineering the rendering of The Witcher 3, part 21 - the painted world
Reverse engineers how The Witcher 3 renders its painted-world look, part 21 of a series.
astralcode.blogspot.com · Dec 2022 - Physics of JellyCar: Soft Body Physics Explained
Explains how JellyCar's soft body physics works.
youtube.com · Nov 2022 - Sand Rendering in Journey (GDC, John Edwards)
GDC talk on how Journey renders its sand.
youtube.com · Nov 2022 - Oskar Stålberg- Townscaper- A tour of Townscaper
Tour of Townscaper's technology, grid design and aesthetics, presented to an architecture audience.
youtube.com · Aug 2022 - GDC/ADDON 2022: How (not) to create Textures for VFX
GDC 2022 talk on mistakes and best practices when creating textures for VFX.
simonschreibt.de · May 2022 - Konsoll 2021: Oskar Stålberg - The Story of Townscaper
How Townscaper was built: irregular quad grid, WFC-driven tiles and the design decisions around them.
youtube.com · Mar 2022 - Tech Breakdown: Hiding Water in Boat Interiors
Tech breakdown of hiding water inside boat interiors.
phosphoer.medium.com · ~Feb 2021 - Mafia II – Hat vs. Hair
Looks at the hat versus hair problem in Mafia II.
simonschreibt.de · Nov 2020 - Tails of Iron: How Odd Bug used 2D lights to create mood | Unite Now 2020
How Odd Bug used 2D lights for mood in Tails of Iron.
youtube.com · ~Nov 2020 - Lexdev: Frostpunk Heatmap Case Study
Case study using compute shaders and variants for a Frostpunk-style heatmap.
lexdev.net · ~Oct 2020 - Lexdev: Civilization Fog of War Case Study
Case study using a simple compute shader for Civilization VI fog of war.
lexdev.net · ~Jun 2020 - Lexdev: Shader Case Studies
Lexdev's shader case study tutorials index.
lexdev.net · ~May 2020 - Lexdev: Gears Hammer of Dawn Case Study
Case study on making a sky-fired laser beam feel impactful.
lexdev.net · ~May 2020 - Lexdev: Overwatch Shield Case Study
Case study recreating Overwatch's shield effect with shaders.
lexdev.net · ~Apr 2020 - Level Game Production: Lonely Mountains Downhill
Developer interview on how Lonely Mountains: Downhill was produced and the technical choices behind its level design.
80.lv · Mar 2020 - ORGANIC TOWNS FROM SQUARE TILES - a talk by OSKAR STÅLBERG at INDIECADE EUROPE 2019
Generating cozy towns from cube tiles by combining Marching Cubes with Wave Function Collapse.
youtube.com · Mar 2020 - Hornwall Castle: Working on Environment Shaders and Ambiance
Environment art breakdown of Hornwall Castle covering shaders and ambiance.
80.lv · Feb 2020 - Unexplored 2 dev blog: tiles to curves
Dev blog on turning tile-based paths into smooth curves in Unexplored 2.
gamasutra.com · Jun 2019 - Konsoll 2018: Oskar Stålberg - Developing The Bad North Look
Procedural techniques, technical challenges and art reasoning behind Bad North's minimalist island look.
youtube.com · Jan 2019 - River 2k19 Edition
Revisits river effects in games with a 2019 edition.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2019 - Graveyard Keeper: How the graphics effects are made
Summary of tips and tricks behind the graphical effects in Graveyard Keeper.
gamedeveloper.com · Oct 2018 - Zelda – The Bling-Bling Offset
Looks at the offset bling-bling effect in Zelda.
simonschreibt.de · May 2018 - Stylized VFX in RIME – Water Edition
Talk on three stylized water-related effects in RIME at Unreal Fest Europe 2018.
simonschreibt.de · May 2018 - Cool Stuff with Textures
Talk on using textures for purposes beyond color, at the Digital Art Conference 2017.
simonschreibt.de · Sep 2017 - Stylized VFX in RIME | Simonschreibt.
Talk write-up on three stylized effects used in RIME.
simonschreibt.de · Jun 2017 - The Ocean: Wind Waker Graphics Analysis
Wind Waker graphics analysis of how the ocean is rendered.
medium.com · ~Jan 2017 - Wind Waker Graphics Analysis
Wind Waker graphics analysis covering how the game's stylized look is achieved.
medium.com · ~Nov 2016 - The Joy of VFX – Pintable
Looks at the VFX in a pinball table game.
simonschreibt.de · Jul 2016 - Shaders Case Study - Hearthstone: Golden Cards
Case study on how Hearthstone's golden card shimmer effect can be built with shaders.
youtube.com · Jun 2016 - A Brain Dump of What I Worked on for Uncharted 4
Programmer's recap of the work done on Uncharted 4.
allenchou.net · May 2016 - The Water of Flotsam
Devlog on the approaches used to build the look of water in Flotsam.
pajamallama.be · Mar 2016 - Alien vs Wolfenstein – Cutting Torch
Looks at the cutting torch effect in Alien vs Wolfenstein.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2016 - Dark Maus – Top Down Trees
Looks at how top-down trees are rendered in Dark Maus.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2016 - Diablo 3 – Wings of Angels
Looks at the wings of angels effect in Diablo 3.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2016 - Blubb! – Fish Tanks in Games
Looks at fish tanks in games.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2016 - Alpha 1 – My Top 5 Usecases
Five favorite use cases for the alpha channel.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2016 - Diablo 3 – The sacred spiderweb
Looks at the sacred spiderweb effect in Diablo 3.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2016 - Delayed Reference Method
Explains the delayed reference method in game rendering.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2016 - Fallout 4 – The Mushroom Case
Looks at the mushroom case in Fallout 4.
simonschreibt.de · Dec 2015 - What is Color Banding? And what is it not?
Explains what color banding is and how to avoid it.
simonschreibt.de · Dec 2015 - Fallout 4 – Wasteland Eyes
Looks at the shader behind eye movement in Fallout 4 wasteland characters.
simonschreibt.de · Nov 2015 - X:Rebirth – Geometric Lensflares
Looks at geometric lens flares in X:Rebirth instead of texture-based ones.
simonschreibt.de · Oct 2015 - Sacred 2 – Fake Mirror
Explains the fake mirror trick in Sacred 2.
simonschreibt.de · Jul 2015 - Rei Ayanami – Inner eyes
Interprets the inner eyes of Rei Ayanami in a game art analysis.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2015 - Zelda Wind Waker – Hyrule Travel Guide | Simonschreibt.
Travel guide that studies Wind Waker's environment and visual tricks.
simonschreibt.de · Nov 2014 - Windows AC/Row/Infinite
Overview of advanced window rendering tricks in games.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2014 - Don’t starve, Diablo – Parallax 7
Looks at parallax layers in Don't Starve and Diablo.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2014 - Tomb Raider – Laras Hot Secrets
Looks at Tomb Raider visuals and character secrets.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2014 - Handmade Normal Maps
Looks at handmade normal maps and what went wrong.
simonschreibt.de · Dec 2013 - Oblivion Territory: Tree vs. Palm
Compares the tree and palm in Oblivion territory design.
simonschreibt.de · Nov 2013 - World of Torch Siege – Blended Trunks
Breaks down how World of Torch Siege blends tree trunks into the terrain, with the author's anecdotes.
simonschreibt.de · Sep 2013 - Company of Heroes – Flamethrower
Explains how Company of Heroes renders its flamethrower flames and fire effect.
simonschreibt.de · Aug 2013 - Company of Heroes – Shaded Smoke
Explains how Company of Heroes shades smoke so it looks different depending on view angle.
simonschreibt.de · Aug 2013 - Binding of Isaac – Composition
Analyzes the visual composition and readability tricks used in The Binding of Isaac.
simonschreibt.de · Jul 2013 - 1nsane Carpet 2 – Repetitive Worlds
Looks at how 1nsane Carpet 2 builds repetitive, endlessly tiling worlds from reused elements.
simonschreibt.de · Jul 2013 - Bending Solid Geometry in Planetary Annihilation
Internship story on bending solid geometry in Planetary Annihilation.
allenchou.net · Jul 2013 - Lego – Studs
Explains how Lego games render the studs on bricks efficiently and convincingly.
simonschreibt.de · Jun 2013 - Dungeon Keeper 2 – Walls
Shows how Dungeon Keeper 2 builds its dungeon wall visuals from simple geometry and textures.
simonschreibt.de · Jun 2013 - Lego Batman – Crawler
Explains the crawler trick in Lego Batman, a game effect the author found impressive.
simonschreibt.de · May 2013 - Scribble Cel
Covers a scribbled cel-shaded look with animated hand-drawn line wobble, with several updates.
simonschreibt.de · May 2013 - Doom 3 – HDUI
Explains how Doom 3 draws its in-world holographic user interfaces on screens.
simonschreibt.de · May 2013 - Doom 3 – Volumetric Glow
Explains the volumetric glow effect in Doom 3 and how it is faked with simple geometry.
simonschreibt.de · May 2013 - Bioshock – Glossiness
Analyzes how Bioshock achieves its wet, glossy look on surfaces and materials.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2013 - Homeworld 2 – Hyperspace
Shows how Homeworld 2 creates its hyperspace jump visual effect.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2013 - Homeworld 2 – Engines
Explains how Homeworld 2 builds its glowing ship engine effects.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2013 - 007 Legends – The World
Explains how 007 Legends renders its miniature-looking world with a tilt-shift style trick.
simonschreibt.de · Apr 2013 - Diablo 3 – Resource Bubbles
Looks at the liquid-filled resource orbs in Diablo 3 and how the bubble effect is built.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - Homeworld 2 – Backgrounds Tech
Technical follow-up on how Homeworld 2's detailed spherical space backgrounds were created.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - Homeworld 2: Backgrounds
Explains how Homeworld 2 builds its colorful nebula backgrounds, with multiple updates.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - Dead Space 3 – Diffuse Reflections
Explains Dead Space 3's reflections that fade out with distance from the reflecting surface.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - Metal Gear Rising – Slicing
Explains how Metal Gear Rising lets players slice objects into many pieces and how it can be approximated.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - 1943 – Retro Shadows
Shows a retro blob-shadow style technique from an arcade machine game, noted as not for modern use.
simonschreibt.de · Mar 2013 - Airborn – Trees
Describes how Airborn builds its trees with simple billboard and mesh tricks.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Assassins Creed 3 – Bouncing Light
Explains how Assassin's Creed 3 fakes bounced light using colored ambient and fill lights.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Sacred 2 – Burning Map
Shows how Sacred 2's world map burns in and out using a burn-through transition effect.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Battlefield 2 – Flag Sound
Looks at how Battlefield 2 plays flag sounds depending on distance and direction, a sound-design trick.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Battlefield Bad Company 2 – Smoke Column
Explains how Battlefield Bad Company 2 renders huge distant smoke columns cheaply.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Sacred 2 – Pulse Shader
Shows how Sacred 2 makes lights pulse and blink using a pulse shader with on/off timings.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Sacred 2 – Crystal Reflexion
Explains how Sacred 2 gets convincing crystal reflections in its Ice and Blood add-on.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Left 4 Dead 2 – Puke
Analyzes how Left 4 Dead 2 renders the screen-splatter vomit effect.
simonschreibt.de · Feb 2013 - Kid Icarus – Tricks
Collects several small clever tricks found in the game Kid Icarus.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Assassins Creed 3 – LoD Blending
Shows how Assassin's Creed 3 blends between level-of-detail models to hide pops.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Assassins Creed 3 – Windows
Explains how Assassin's Creed 3 fakes interiors visible through building windows.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - World of Warcraft – Balloon
Looks at the animated balloon asset in World of Warcraft and how it is built.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Deus Ex – Scanlines
Looks at the scanline effect used on screens in Deus Ex.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Deus Ex 3 – Folds
Examines the folding-pattern shader effect in Deus Ex 3 and its sound pairing.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Deus Ex – Occlusion
Explains how Deus Ex handles occlusion and object visibility through walls, with updates.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Cel Shading
Compares ways of up-scaling a sprite for cel shading and why naive scaling falls short.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Divine Divinity – 2D Reflexion
Explains the 2D reflection effect in Divine Divinity, a rare reflection in a 2D game.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Warcraft 3 – Billboards
Looks at how Warcraft 3 uses billboards in an asset and why it works well.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013 - Diablo 3 – Trees
Explains the special look of Diablo 3's trees and how they are built.
simonschreibt.de · Jan 2013
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