README.md

NOVA Shader: Uber shader for Particle System

Docs (English, 日本語) | Samples (English, 日本語) | Demo (English, 日本語)

NOVA Shader is a multi-functional shader for the Particle System that supports Universal Render Pipeline (URP). General-purpose functions commonly used in visual effects are implemented so you can create high-quality effects efficiently.

Author: @Ugokashiya

It implements some distinctive features like Flow Map, Flip-Book (sequential texture animation), Dissolve, Fade, Rotation, Animated Tint Map, Emission, Distortion, and so on.

Features

For more information, please refer to the following documents, Samples and Demo.

Table of Contents

Details

• Setup
  • Requirements
    • Install
• Usage
  • Add Renderer Feature
  • Activate Depth Texture
  • Create and assign the Material
• Uber Unlit Shader
  • Render Settings
  • Vertex Deformation
  • Base Map
  • Tint Color
  • Flow Map
  • Parallax Map
  • Color Correction
  • Alpha Transition
  • Emission
  • Transparency
• Uber Lit Shader
  • Render Settings
  • Surface Maps
• Distortion Shader
  • Render Settings
  • Distortion
  • Flow Map
  • Alpha Transition
  • Transparency
• Abort Shadow Caster
• Use with the Custom Vertex Streams
  • Set up the Custom Data
  • Set up the Custom Vertex Streams
  • Set up the Material Property
• Use Mesh GPU Instancing
  • Enable Mesh GPU Instancing
  • Set up the Custom Vertex Streams
• Automatic set up the Custom Vertex Streams.
  • Fix Now
• Editor APIs Reference
• Licenses

Setup

Requirements

This library is compatible with the following environments.

• Unity 2021.3 or higher
• Universal Render Pipeline
• Shader Model 3.5

Note that Shader Model 4.5 is required to use Mesh GPU Instancing. And also, if you want to use Mirror Sampling, your hardware needs to support Inline Sampler States. And if you are using 3D Texture or 2D Texture Array, the compression format must support them.

And this document assumes that you have already set up the Universal Render Pipeline. For more information about the Universal Render Pipeline, please refer to the Unity Manual

Install

To install the software, follow the steps below.

1. Open the Package Manager from Window > Package Manager
2. "+" button > Add package from git URL
3. Enter the following
   • https://github.com/CyberAgentGameEntertainment/NovaShader.git?path=/Assets/Nova

Or, open Packages/manifest.json and add the following to the dependencies block.

{
    "dependencies": {
        "jp.co.cyberagent.nova": "https://github.com/CyberAgentGameEntertainment/NovaShader.git?path=/Assets/Nova"
    }
}

If you want to set the target version, write as follows.

• https://github.com/CyberAgentGameEntertainment/NovaShader.git?path=/Assets/Nova#1.0.0

Note that if you get a message like No 'git' executable was found. Please install Git on your system and restart Unity, you will need to set up Git on your machine.

To update the version, rewrite the version as described above.
If you don't want to specify a version, you can also update the version by editing the hash of this library in the package-lock.json file.

{
  "dependencies": {
      "jp.co.cyberagent.nova": {
      "version": "https://github.com/CyberAgentGameEntertainment/NovaShader.git?path=/Assets/Nova",
      "depth": 0,
      "source": "git",
      "dependencies": {},
      "hash": "..."
    }
  }
}

Usage

Add Renderer Feature

First, set up the Renderer Feature to apply Distortion. Click Add Renderer Feature > Screen Space Distortion from the bottom of the Inspector of the ForwardRendererData asset.

Add Screen Space Distortion

Confirm that Screen Space Distortion has been added as shown below.

Screen Space Distortion

Note
This setting is not necessary if you do not use the Distortion Shader.

Activate Depth Texture

Next, activate Depth Texture to use the Soft Particles or Depth Fade features. Check Depth Texture in the UniversalRenderPipelineAsset Inspector.

Depth Texture

Depth Texture setting is also found in each Camera, so set it as necessary.

Note
This setting is not necessary if neither Soft Particles nor Depth Fade is used.

Create and assign the Material

Next, create a material with the Nova shader. Create a material and set the shader to Nova/Particles/UberUnlit and assign a texture to the Base Map.

Material

After creating a Particle System and assigning this material, you will see particles with the specified texture.

Particle

For more information on each shader and each function, see the sections below.

Uber Unlit Shader

The Uber Unlit shader is a multifunctional shader with no lighting applied. Use this shader for particles that do not need lighting, such as glowing effects.

To use this shader, assign the Nova/Particles/UberUnlit shader to your material. The following is the description of each property that can be set from the Inspector.

Render Settings

The Render Settings control how the Material is rendered.

Render Settings

Property Name			Description
Render Type			You can specify the type of rendering from the following options. Opaque Cutout Transparent (Default) If you select Cutout, the CutOff property will be displayed. When Transparent is selected, the Blend Mode property will be displayed.
	CutOff		This property is visible only when the Render Type is set to Cutout. Controls the threshold to clip semi-transparent areas. The higher this value is, the more alpha will be cropped.
	Blend Mode		This property is visible only when the Render Type is set to Transparent. You can specify the color blend method from the following options. Alpha (Alpha Blending / Default) Additive Multiply
Render Face			You can specify the rendering face from the following options. Front (Default) Back Both
Render Priority			If the Render Type is the same, the one with the lower Render Priority will be drawn first.
Vertex Alpha Mode			You can specify how to use the alpha value of the vertex color from the following options. Alpha: Use as alpha value (Default). Transition Progress: Use as Progress in Alpha Transition function (see below).
ZWrite			You can set ZWrite value. Auto: ZWrite is disabled when the Render Type is set to Transparent, and it is enabled when the Render Type is set to any other values. Off: ZWrite is always disabled. On: ZWrite is always enabled.
ZTest			You can set ZTest value. Disabled Never Less Equal Less Equal (Default) Greater Not Equal Greater Equal Always

Vertex Deformation

With Vertex Deformation, you can control the deformation of vertices.

Vertex Deformation

Property Name			Description
Texture			Sets the Vertex Deformation Map. The specifications are as follows. Push vertices in the normal direction of the object space based on the value of a single specified texture channel. You can select a channel by Channels property. Areas of the texture with a value of zero will not be pushed out, and areas with larger values will be pushed out more towards the exterior. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Intensity			Sets the Vertex Deformation intensity.

Base Map

Base Map controls the base color texture and its settings.

Base Map

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify the type of the Base Map from the following options. Single Texture: Use 2D texture (Default). Flip Book: Use Flip-Book animation. Flip Book Blending: Use Flip-Book animation with interpolated frames. The required texture type will change depending on the mode you selected.
Texture			Set the Base Map. If you specify Flip Book as the Mode, you need to set Texture2DArray. And if you specify Flip Book Blending, you need to set Texture3D.
Rotation			Set the amount of rotation of the Base Map.
	Offset		Shifts the center coordinate of rotation.
Mirror Sampling			If true, mirrors the texture to create a repeating pattern.
Flip-Book Progress			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Flip Book or Flip Book Blending. The progress of the Flip-Book or Flip-Book Blending.

Tint Color

Tint Color controls the color to be multiplied.

Tint Color

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify the area to apply the Tint Color from the following options. None: Disable the Tint Color (Default). All: Apply to the entire surface. Rim: Apply to the rim.
	Progress		This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Rim. The larger this value is, the more only the areas near the edges will be colored.
	Sharpness		This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Rim. The larger this value is, the sharper the edge of the rim will be.
	Inverse		This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Rim. If checked, reverse the range of the rim.
Color Mode			You can specify how you set the Tint Color. Single Color: Single Color (Default). Texture 2D: Specified by the texture. Texture 3D: Specified by the 3D texture (Animatable).
Color			This property is visible only when the Color Mode is set to Single Color. The color to be multiplied.
Texture			This property is visible only when the Color Mode is set to Texture 2D or Texture 3D. The texture whose color will be multiplied.
Progress			This property is visible only when the Color Mode is set to Texture 3D. The progress of the 3D Texture.
Blend Rate			The color multiplication factor. If this value is zero, the color will not be applied; if it is one, the color will be multiplied as is.

Flow Map

You can use the Flow Map to distort the Base Map to the specified directions.

Flow Map

Property Name			Description
Texture			Sets the Flow Map. The specifications are as follows. Shifts the UV values of the Base Map based on the texture color channels. The color channels used is determined by the X value and Y value of the Channels properties. The smaller the value from 0.5, the more the UV value shifts in the negative direction, and vice versa. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Intensity			Sets the Flow Map intensity.
Targets			Set the targets to which the flow map will be applied (multiple selections are possible). Base Map Tint Map Alpha Transition Map Emission Map

Parallax Map

Parallax Map can create a parallax effect.

Parallax Map

Property			Description
Mode			Specifies the mode of the parallax map from the following options: Single Texture: Regular 2D texture (default) Flip Book: Flip-Book animation Flip Book Blending: Flip-Book animation with blending The texture type changes depending on the selected mode.
Texture			Sets the parallax map. If Flip Book is selected in Mode, a Texture2DArray needs to be set. If Flip Book Blending is selected in Mode, a Texture3D needs to be set. The specifications of the parallax map are as follows: Changes the surface's concavity based on the color value of the specified channel The value of 0 is the original state, and the closer it gets to 1, the more concave it becomes Since a texture is used as a value, not a color, be sure to uncheck the sRGB Color checkbox in the texture settings.
Strength			Sets the strength of the parallax map when applied.
Targets			Sets the targets to apply the parallax map (multiple selection possible). Base Map Tint Map Emission Map

Color Correction

Color Correction correct the colors up to this point.

Color Correction

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify how to correct the colors. None: Disable the Color Correction (Default). Greyscale: Chage the colors to greyscale. Gradient Map: Use the gradient map.
	Texture		This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Gradient. Sets the Gradient Map. The specifications are as follows. Replace the luminance with the colors of the gradient map. Change the U value for sampling the gradient map according to luminance. Therefore, we need to use a texture with a horizontal gradient.

Alpha Transition

Alpha Transition controls the alpha value using a texture.

Alpha Transition

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify Alpha Transition Mode from the following options. None: Disable the Alpha Transition (Default). Fade: Transition using the fade texture. Dissolve: Transition using the dissolve texture.
Map Mode			You can specify the type of the Alpha Transition Map from the following options. Single Texture: Use 2D texture (Default). Flip Book: Use Flip-Book animation. Flip Book Blending: Use Flip-Book animation with interpolated frames. The required texture type will change depending on the mode you selected.
Texture			Sets the Alpha Transition Map. The specifications are as follows. Changes the alpha value based on the texture color channel. The color channels used is determined by the X value of the Channels properties. The smaller the R value, the easier it is to disappear, and vice versa. If you specify Flip Book as the Mode, you need to set Texture2DArray. And if you specify Flip Book Blending, you need to set Texture3D. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Flip-Book Progress			This property is visible only when the Map Mode is set to Flip Book or Flip Book Blending. Sets the progress of Flip-Book or Flip-Book Blending.
Transition Progress			Sets the progress of Transition.
Edge Sharpness			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Transition. Sets the sharpness of the edge.

Emission

The Emission control how the particles are glowing.

Emission

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify the area to be glowed. None: Disable the Emission (Default). All: The entire surface will glow. By Texture: The area specified by the texture will glow. Edge: Edges (areas where alpha is greater than 0 and less than 1) will glow.
Map Mode			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to By Texture. You can specify the Mode of the Emission Map from the following options. Single Texture: Use 2D texture (Default). Flip Book: Use Flip-Book animation. Flip Book Blending: Use Flip-Book animation with interpolated frames. The required texture type will change depending on the mode you selected.
Texture			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to By Texture. Sets the Emission Map. The specifications are as follows. The larger the texture color channles value, the more likely it is to glow. The color channels used is determined by the X value of the Channels property. If you specify Flip Book as the Mode, you need to set Texture2DArray. And if you specify Flip Book Blending, you need to set Texture3D. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Flip-Book Progress			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to By Texture and the Map Mode is set to Flip Book or Flip Book Blending. Sets the progress of Flip-Book or Flip-Book Blending.
Color Type			You can specify the type of the emission color from the following options. Color: Use the specified single color as the emission color. Base Color: Use the RGB values up to this point as the emission color. Gradient Map: Use a gradient map to specify the emission color. Gradient Map can only be selected when Mode is set to By Texture or Edge.
Color			This property is visible only when the Color Type is set to Color. Sets the emission color as HDR color.
Keep Edge Transparency			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Edge. If checked, the edges will not be transparent.
Gradient Map			This property is visible only when the Color Type is set to Gradient Map. Sets the Gradient Map. The specifications are as follows. When Mode is By Texture: Sampling the R value of the Emission Map as the U value of the Gradient Map. When Mode is Edge: Sample alpha values as U values of the Gradient Map. You need to use a texture with a horizontal gradient as the Gradient Map.
Intensity			Sets the intensity of the emission.

Transparency

Control the transparency in various ways.

Transparency

Property Name			Description
Rim			If checked, the rim will be transparent.
	Progress		Sets the progress of transparency.
	Sharpness		The larger this value is, the sharper the edge will be.
	Inverse		Inverse the transparency area.
Luminance			If checked, areas with low brightness will be transparent.
	Progress		Sets the progress of transparency.
	Sharpness		The larger this value is, the sharper the edge will be.
	Inverse		Inverse the transparency area.
Sort Particles			If checked, soft particles will be enabled. To use this feature, the Depth Texture in URP settings must be enabled.
	Intensity		The larger this value, the larger the transparent area.
Depth Fade			Makes the areas near and far from the camera transparent. To use this feature, the Depth Texture in URP settings must be enabled.
	Distance		Set the transparency range. The area closer than Near and farther than Far from the camera will be transparent.
	Width		The distance from the beginning of transparency to the end of complete transparency.

Uber Lit Shader

The Uber Lit shader is a multifunctional shader with lighting applied. Use this shader for particles that need lighting, such as mesh effects. This shader reflects lighting compliant with Unity's PBR lighting specification.

To use this shader, assign the Nova/Particles/UberLit shader to your material. This shader is based on the Uber Unlit shader with additional processing and properties.

The description of the added properties is as follows.

Render Settings

The following red-framed properties have been added to Render Settings.

Render Settings

Property Name			Description
Work Flow Mode			You can specify the mode of PBR workflow from the following options. Specular Metallic For more information on workflow, please refer to the following URL https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMetallicVsSpecular.html https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMaterialParameterSpecular.html https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMaterialParameterMetallic.html
Receive Shadows			If checking the box, it will be received shadows from directional lights.
Specular Highlights			If checking the box, it will be enabled specular highlighting.
Environment Reflections			If checking the box, it will be affected ambient light from the Reflection Probe and Skybox. For more information on the effects of ambient light, please refer to "Environment Reflection" at the following URL. https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/GlobalIllumination.html

Surface Maps

Several surface properties have been added for lighting.

Surface Maps

Property Name			Description
Normal Map			Set up the normal map.The specifications of the normal map are as follows. The only normal maps that can be set up are those for tangent space. If normal map isn't specified, vertex normals are used The normal scale value can be specified. The default scale is 1.0. For more infomation of the normal map Please refer to the following URL for details on the normal map. https://docs.unity3d.com/2021.3/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMaterialParameterNormalMap.html
Metallic Map			It is displayed when the Work Flow Mode is set to Metallic. Set up the metallic map.The specifications of the metallic map are as follows. If the metallic map isn't set, the value of the metallic property will be used as the uniform metallicity. If the metallic map is set、the value of the metallic property will be used as multiplier value. The Channels property allows specifying the channel where the metallic value is stored. Default is R channel. Please refer to the following URL for details on the metallic map. https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMaterialParameterMetallic.html
Specular Map			It is displayed when the Work Flow Mode is set to Specular. Set up the specular map. The specifications of the specular map are as follows. If the specular map isn't set, the color of specular property will be used as the uniform specular color. If the specular map is set, the color of specular property will be used as the multiplier color. Please refer to the following URL for details on the specular map. https://docs.unity3d.com/2018.4/Documentation/Manual/StandardShaderMaterialParameterSpecular.html
Smoothness Map			Set up the smoothness map. The specifications of the smoothness map are as follows. If the smoothness map isn't set, the value of the smoothness property will be used as the uniform smoothess. If the smoothness map is set, the value of the smoothness property will be used as the multiplier value. The Channels property allows specifying the channel where the smoothness value is stored. Default is α channel.

Distortion Shader

Using the Distortion shader, you can apply distortion effects to the screen, such as heat waves.

To use this shader, assign the Nova/Particles/Distortion shader to your material. The following is the descriptions of each property that can be set from the Inspector.

Render Settings

The Render Settings control how the Material is rendered.

Render Settings

Property Name			Description
Render Face			You can specify the rendering face from the following options. Front (Default) Back Both
ZTest			You can set ZTest value. Disabled Never Less Equal Less Equal (Default) Greater Not Equal Greater Equal Always

Distortion

Distortion controls how it is distorted.

Distortion

Property Name			Description
Texture			Sets the Distortion Map. The specifications are as follows. Distorts the screen based on the texture color channels. The color channels used is determined by the X value of the Channels Property. 0.5 is the reference value, and the further away from the reference value, the stronger the distortion. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Intensity			Sets the distortion intensity.
Rotation			Set the amount of rotation of the Distortion Map.
	Offset		Shifts the center coordinate of rotation.
Mirror Sampling			If true, mirrors the texture to create a repeating pattern.

Flow Map

You can use the Flow Map to distort the Distortion Map to the specified directions.

Flow Map

Property Name			Description
Texture			Sets the Flow Map. The specifications are as follows. Shifts the UV values of the Distortion Map based on the texture color channles. The texture color channels used is determined by the X value of the Channels property. The smaller the value from 0.5, the more the UV value shifts in the negative direction, and vice versa. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Intensity			Sets the Flow Map intensity.

Alpha Transition

Alpha Transition controls the alpha value using a texture.

Alpha Transition

Property Name			Description
Mode			You can specify Alpha Transition Mode from the following options. None: Don't use the Alpha Transition (Default). Fade: Transition using the fade texture. Dissolve: Transition using the dissolve texture.
Texture			Sets the Alpha Transition Map. The specifications are as follows. Changes the alpha value based on the texture color channel. The color channles used is determined by the X value of the Channels property. The smaller the R value, the easier it is to disappear, and vice versa. Note that you need to uncheck sRGB Color in the texture import setting because the pixels will be used as values, not colors.
Progress			Sets the progress of Transition.
Edge Sharpness			This property is visible only when the Mode is set to Transition. Sets the sharpness of the edge.

Transparency

Control the transparency in various ways.

Transparency

Property Name			Description
Rim			If checked, the rim will be transparent.
	Progress		Sets the progress of transparency.
	Sharpness		The larger this value is, the sharper the edge will be.
	Inverse		Inverse the transparency area.
Luminance			If checked, areas with low brightness will be transparent.
	Progress		Sets the progress of transparency.
	Sharpness		The larger this value is, the sharper the edge will be.
	Inverse		Inverse the transparency area.
Sort Particles			If checked, soft particles will be enabled. To use this feature, the Depth Texture in URP settings must be enabled.
	Intensity		The larger this value, the larger the transparent area.
Depth Fade			Makes the areas near and far from the camera transparent. To use this feature, the Depth Texture in URP settings must be enabled.
	Distance		Set the transparency range. The area closer than Near and farther than Far from the camera will be transparent.
	Width		The distance from the beginning of transparency to the end of complete transparency.

Abort Shadow Caster

Enabling the Shadow Caster feature will allow you to cast shadows from NovaShader.

Shadow Caster

Property Name			Discription
Enable			Check this to enable ShadowCasterPass
Apply Vertex Deformation			If checked, Vertex Deformation will be applied to shadow casting calculations
Alpha Test Enable			If checked, Alpha Test will be enabled for calculating shadow casting, and shadows will not be cast in areas that do not pass.
	Cutoff		Areas where the Alpha value is less than the Cutoff value will not cast a shadow (this will be a different value from the Cutoff of the drawing process)
Alpha Affected By			Items that affect Alpha value during shadow casting calculation
	Tint Color		If checked, Tint Color will affect Alpha value
	Flow Map		If checked, Flow Map will affect Alpha value
	Alpha Transition Map		If checked, Alpha Transition Map will affect Alpha value
	Transparency Luminance		If checked, Transparency Luminance will affect Alpha value

Shadow Caster Demo

Use with the Custom Vertex Streams

Using the Particle System's Custom Vertex Streams, you can animate the properties of the Material. In the following example, we will use the Custom Vertex Streams to rotate the texture.

Set up the Custom Data

First, set up the Particle System's Custom Data. In this case, we have set a value that changes from 0 to 1 over time to Custom1.X.

Custom Data

Set up the Custom Vertex Streams

Next, set the Custom Vertex Streams as shown below to pass Custom1.x to TEXCOORD1.x.

Custom Vertex Streams

Set up the Material Property

Next, select COORD 1X from the Rotation dropdown to use the value passed to TEXCOORD1.x as shown below.

Coord

The texture will now rotate.

Rotation

Use Mesh GPU Instancing

You can use the Particle System Mesh GPU Instancing to draw particles efficiently. The following section describes how to use Mesh GPU Instancing for materials using this shader.

Note
When displaying particles on the preview screen using PreviewRenderUtility, we have confirmed a bug on the Unity side that does not render correctly when Enable Mesh GPU Instancing is enabled.

Enable Mesh GPU Instancing

To use Mesh GPU Instancing, you need to set the Render Mode of the Renderer module to Mesh. Then, check the Enable Mesh GPU Instancing checkbox.

Enable Mesh GPU Instancing

Set up the Custom Vertex Streams

Next, set up the Custom Vertex Streams as shown below.

Custom Vertex Streams

The Custom Data section can be filled with values from other modules, such as Noise, but make sure that all of INSTANCED1.xyzw and INSTANCED2.xyzw are filled without excess or deficiency.

Now you can use Mesh GPU Instancing.

Automatic set up the Custom Vertex Streams.

We have seen several cases where Custom Vertex Streams are set up manually.
In addition, the vertex streams required by the GPUs vary depending on their settings.

It has a feature that automatically set up the Custom vertex streams as Fix Now.

Fix Now

If vertex streams are different from what the CPUs require,
Fix Now button and error will appear at bottom of the inspector.

At this time, pressing this button will automatically set the typical vertex stream needed.

Fix Now

If you are not familiar with setting up Custom Vertex Streams,
It is recommended that you use Fix Now to correct errors to avoid unwanted errors.

Editor APIs Reference

• RenderErrorHandler

Licenses

This software is released under the MIT license. You are free to use it within the scope of the license, but the following copyright and license notices are required.

• LICENSE.md

In addition, the table of contents for this document has been created using the following software

• toc-generator

See Third Party Notices.md for more information about the license of toc-generator.