FreeVector Frequently Asked Questions

What Type of Engine is FreeVector?

    FreeVector is basically a DX9 outdoor engine, with per poly and box collision of objects on the terrain. It uses next generation methods for rendering the terrain and world objects. It is script driven and uses config files to create the levels. No compiling is required at all. FreeVector is mainly a First Person Shooter engine.

Can I Build Indoor Levels?

    FreeVector has the ability to go from indoors to outdoors but the player is always stuck to the terrain floor. The difference between indoors and ourdoors is that the terrain is not rendered indoors.

Can I Control the Rendering System?

    Yes. FreeVector uses separate shaders to render each component. These can be modified to alter the rendering of these objects as desired.

What Tools Do I Use?

    FreeVector can use any modeling program that can export to DirectX 9 .X format.

How Big Can I Make the Terrain?

    The terrain size is 1024 x the Terrain Space Value set in the terrain config file. A terrain space of 64 makes the terrain 65536 x 65536 units.

What is the Game License?

     You may make as many games as you like with FreeVector and pay no royalties whatsoever.

What type of Graphics Card do I Need?

     FreeVector out of the box supports pixel shader 1.1. However, for most of the games and the outline shader demo, you will need a pixel shader 2.0 capable graphics card. This is an ATI 9550 or Higher or a GeForce 6200 or Better.

Can I Access the Fixed Function Commands?

     Yes. There is a scriptable interface to the DX9 fixed function commands.

Do I Need to Know HLSL?

     Knowing High level Shader Language will allow you to create any type of rendering allowable by the variables of the shader engine.

What Built In Graphics Features Does it Have?

     FreeVector has built in Bump Mapping, Glow, Shadow Mapping and Outline shading.

What Version of DirectX Does it Need?

     DirectX 9b

How Do I use the Built in Outline Shader?

     The outline shader requires a card that is pixel shder 2.0 capable.

Does it Use Level Of Detail?

     Yes. FreeVector automatically handles LOD for world objects and has 2 levels of detail for foliage objects.

What Type of Collision Does it Use?

     Player to World Objects use a sphere to poly or box system, per bone collision for avatars and sphere per poly collision for projectiles.

What Type of Games Can I Make?

     FreeVector is designed to make Single Player First Person Shooters. It is basically an outdoor terrain engine with per poly or box collision for world objects.

Can I make Multiplayer Games?

     Unfortunately, FreeVector is for single player games. It can however make a multiplayer game on a single machine where one player uses the joystick and the other uses the keyboard.