One of the features of volumetric foliage is that it allows to render grass or small vegetation at infinite distance without using impostors (which are not affected by lighting), using in this case a new technique already implemented in game engines like unreal engine 5.2 (so it is easy to copy from the source code).
Below I put a link that explains how the “sparse volume textures” or SVT work:
I know that the -dagor engine- lags behind its American competitors in many aspects in terms of technology, such as unreal engine 5, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that they have worked hard to improve and find creative and optimized ways to add graphical enhancements to the game without falling behind the past.
Essentially, this is a type of volumetric technique optimized to work on most hardware that allows for infinite viewing distance foliage based on volumetrics, which acts as much or almost as much as volumetric clouds.
With a good use of real vegetation captured by photogrammetry or other point clouds, or NERF techniques, Gaussian splatting (scanned or digital), or any other such antics. They could convert it to the correct and optimal format with minimal memory cost, as unreal engine 5.3 does now.
What are the benefits of this foliage enhancement for players?
Currently, snipers have the advantage that anything hidden in foliage (Soldiers) is limited to the maximum viewing distance of the grass, so ranged enemies can be seen more easily than those nearby, which makes hiding in foliage for strategic and tactical combat ineffective and impractical. This limitation makes sense in terms of similar mathematical shenanigans and shenanigans. But if they can add volumetric grass, it will allow players to use this type of environmental element to cover their advance (Com is obvious), rather than just being cannon fodder for snipers outside of grass viewing distance (due to the technical limitations imposed by obsolete draw calls).
As an experienced sniper, I would prefer that they didn’t add any grass upgrades using the aforementioned technique, and leave the possibility of killing enemies from a distance easily, as it is currently (And many here already know that), but either we are all fools or none of us are.
Example implementation in others gamers:
