Environment

Description

The Environment class provides functionality for controlling global environmental lighting and fog settings. It allows easy configuration of ambient lighting gradients and fog density to create different atmospheric effects.

Namespace

Universe.Helper

Properties

Property Type Description
fog bool Enables or disables fog in the scene
fogDensity float Density of the fog when enabled (default: 0.02)
fogColor rgba Color of the fog (default: white)
skyColor rgba Color of the ambient light from the sky/above (default: white)
medianColor rgba Color of the ambient light from the sides (default: light gray [0.8, 0.8, 0.8, 1])
groundColor rgba Color of the ambient light from below (default: dark gray [0.2, 0.2, 0.2, 1])

Methods

OnStart 

void OnStart()

Called when the script starts. Applies all environment settings to the scene.

Example Usage 

// Create a sunny day environment
Environment sunnyDay = new Environment();
sunnyDay.fog = false;
sunnyDay.skyColor = [0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.0]; // Light blue sky
sunnyDay.medianColor = [0.7, 0.7, 0.7, 1.0];
sunnyDay.groundColor = [0.3, 0.3, 0.3, 1.0];

// Create a foggy environment
Environment foggyDay = new Environment();
foggyDay.fog = true;
foggyDay.fogDensity = 0.03; // Thicker fog
foggyDay.fogColor = [0.8, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0]; // Bluish-gray fog
foggyDay.skyColor = [0.7, 0.7, 0.8, 1.0]; // Overcast sky
foggyDay.medianColor = [0.6, 0.6, 0.6, 1.0];
foggyDay.groundColor = [0.2, 0.2, 0.2, 1.0];

// Create a sunset environment
Environment sunset = new Environment();
sunset.fog = true;
sunset.fogDensity = 0.01; // Light atmospheric fog
sunset.fogColor = [1.0, 0.6, 0.4, 1.0]; // Orange-red fog
sunset.skyColor = [1.0, 0.5, 0.3, 1.0]; // Orange-red sky
sunset.medianColor = [0.7, 0.4, 0.3, 1.0];
sunset.groundColor = [0.3, 0.2, 0.2, 1.0];

Technical Details

  • The ambient light uses a gradient system with three colors: sky (above), median (middle/sides), and ground (below)
  • These colors create a more natural lighting effect than a single ambient color
  • Fog creates distance-based color blending toward the fog color
  • Higher fog density values make the fog effect stronger and reduce visibility distance

Use Cases

  • Creating different times of day
  • Simulating weather conditions
  • Setting mood and atmosphere for different environments
  • Creating visual distance cues through fog

Notes

  • Only one Environment component should be active at a time
  • Changes to the Environment settings at runtime will only take effect if the OnStart method is called
  • For dynamic time-of-day systems, you might need to modify the environment properties and call the LightUtil methods directly

Dependencies

  • Uses LightUtil to apply environmental settings