Free to try: Browser shooter showcases next-gen photorealistic graphics

DLSS 5 is not the only innovation that could change game graphics in the future. The 3D Gaussian Splatting technology developed by Iakov Sumygin aims to set a new standard for realism by moving away from classic polygon graphics, and gamers can already try it out in a browser shooter.

Instead of building virtual worlds from countless triangles, 3D Gaussian Splatting uses many soft, semi-transparent colored points. These so-called “splats” store information such as position, shape, color and transparency. When combined, they create scenes that almost look like photographs, at least from a distance. Up close, details still appear somewhat blurred. At the moment, static lighting also reduces the sense of realism.

One advantage of the technology becomes clear when scanning real environments. Gaussian Splatting is designed to capture fine structures such as dirt, cracks, plants and lighting conditions from photos in a very natural way. This could make it possible to transfer real locations into games faster than with classic polygon graphics. However, post-processing may require more effort. The problem with 3D Gaussian Splatting is that while the splats look real, they do not initially behave that way in-game. For the game, walls, floors and stairs are only visible pixels, not solid objects. Sumygin therefore had to add invisible helper layers.

Demo tested – quite impressive, but still unfinished

The playable browser shooter is based on a scan of a real abandoned building and runs directly via PlayCanvas. Essentially, players walk through the building and randomly encounter enemies. That alone is enough to get a first impression of the 3D Gaussian Splatting graphics, and the result is quite impressive.

The graphics in the demo are not perfect, but they still feel like a small preview of what photorealistic graphics could look like in the future. Compared with bodycam shooters, the realism here does not come from the perspective, but from the graphics themselves. The targeted use of blur enhances this effect even further. The demo is also being received quite well on Reddit, although some users note that the weapons and enemies do not yet visually match the environment.

It is worth noting that the demo requires relatively powerful hardware. Even with an RTX 4080 Super, Ryzen 7 7800X3D and 64 GB of RAM, we regularly experienced stutters. However, this is likely mainly due to browser streaming: the environment is not fully loaded in advance, but streamed in as needed. In an installed game, the graphics should run more smoothly.