What is 3Dfx?
3Dfx Interactive has developed a great technology (3dfx) that gives gamers more of what we want - great graphics, great effects and speed to boot! The techology featured in the chipsets are the same as used in arcade games.3Dfx is not a general-purpose Windows accelerator or combination multimedia accelerator targeted at a wide range of applications. It is aimed exclusively for entertainment and delivers an experience that is on par with 32-bit game consoles.
The Different Chipsets
The chipsets made by 3Dfx Interactive are the Voodoo Graphics, Voodoo Rush, and in the first quarter of 1998, the Voodoo 2. The Voodoo Graphics-based boards is a 3D-only card that works along side of an existing 2D graphics accelerator card to perform full-screen 3D only. The Voodoo Rush chipset is incorporated onto a board that is integrated into a 2D/3D board setup.The next generation of Voodoo will be the Voodoo 2, or V2. It promises three times the performance of the Voodoo Graphics chipset.
What's in a Name?
Many companies have incorporated the Voodoo chipset onto their boards. Here are a few:
| VOODOO GRAPHICS |
VOODOO RUSH |
| Diamond Multimedia |
Monster 3D |
Intergraph Computer Technology |
Intense 3D |
| Orchid Technologies |
Righteous 3D |
Jazz Multimedia |
Adreneline Rush 3D |
| Skywell Technology |
Magic 3D |
Hercules Computer Technology |
Stingray 128/3D |
| Guillemot International |
MaxiGamer |
California Graphics |
3D Emotion |
| Deltron-RealVision |
Flash3D |
| TechWorks |
Power3D |
| Canopas Corporation |
Pure3D |
| Quantum3D |
Obsidian Products |
Seeing is Believing
Well, you can check it out for yourself. On our Game review pages, we have some example screen shots. The first shot on the left for Quake II and Mechwarrior 2 are both enhanced by 3Dfx.
Technically speaking, some features and benefits of the 3Dfx technology are:
| FEATURES |
BENEFITS |
| Perspective-correct texture |
Reduces polygon counts mapping with Z-buffering and eases hidden-surface removal |
| Level-of-detail mip mapping |
Eliminates texture aliasing |
| Bi-linear and advanced texture filtering |
Eliminates pixelization |
| Texture compositing and morphing |
Provides lifelike lighting effects and eliminates "object popping" |
| Animated texturing |
Combines video with 3D |
| Anti-aliasing |
Eliminates "jaggies" |
| Gouraud modulation |
Provides specular and diffuse lighting effects |
| Sub-pixel correction |
Eliminates polygon and texture misalignment |
| Per-pixel alpha blending effects |
Provides realistic atmospheric effects as well as translucency and transparency |
| Industry-standard OS and API |
Simplifies game software support development |
Keep up to date on the release of the upcoming Voodoo 2 and find out more information about 3Dfx technology at these links:
Operation 3Dfx
Voodoo Extreme
Voodoo Webring
Check your newsstand in March 1998 for the magazine,"Voodoo: The Official 3Dfx Interactive Magazine" by Dimension Publishing.
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