Glossary for Ambient Occlusion (AO)

[Hawaii Beach 1]

why isn't it a thing yet?

[BONKERS 32]

Not to terribly much reason to I think. Not many games have multiple AO options, and every game specific implementation is different from the last. Not many stick to standard techniques.

SSAO is a generic blanket term if it's used in a game as an option. You don't know what else specific and unique to that one implementation in the game is doing different than another that uses "SSAO".

Companies like Ubisoft often iterate their own offshoot, derivative techniques with just about every game.

Unless they are using something set in stone to a certain degree like HBAO, HDAO, or HBAO+. There's just too much little variation than can be reported on.  (Even these can be different from one game to another in terms of how they look visually and how they perform depending on how they decide to set it up. )
Tons of games just call their option "Ambient Occlusion". Which really means nothing other than giving you a description of what basic idea of a visual effect it enables.


If you just want info on AO in general there are other web pages out there.

[Mirh 103]

I guess it has no glossary page because not having a "place" in tables never really put it in the spotlight.

 

Besides, if your point was more about explaining how to hack it.. I guess this depends on us first figuring that out for AA

[Hawaii Beach 1]

You must have mistaken, I said a glossary page and not a field on game pages.

Like the AA page, we should provide a quick description of the available AOs. You can force AO on a lot of games which already is in the wiki but doesn't link to a AO glossary as it doesn't exist, and like the AA glossary we should provide a brief description of what it is.

 

AFAIK there's the following

• SSAO
• HDAO
• HBAO
• HBAO (plus)