Screen Space Ambient Occlusion

Hello!

During the last week we have investigated some of the lighting settings that are available

in Unity. We have made small adjustments to the color of the light, furthermore we

have adjusted the appearance of shadows in holes and creases. This might seem like subtle changes,

but well tuned lighting and shading effects can have great positive impact on the immersiveness and realism of the scene.

The images below shows the effects of applying Screen space ambient occlusion(SSAO), a computer graphics technique for real time approximation of ambient occlusion. What this technique does, is that it darkens corners, cavities and other surface points that are close to each other.

Take a careful look where the house facade meet the sidewalk:

1. With SSAO

2. Without SSAO