PSX Extreme

Site Stats

The Last Remnant To Utilize SpeedTree

Everyone got all excited with the mention of Square-Enix's newest RPG next-gen project, The Last Remnant, and now there's one more reason to be excited.

Interactive Data Visualization has announced that their award-winning middleware, SpeedTreeRT, will be utilized in The Last Remnant. This addition will let developers create ultra-realistic trees and plants for the environment, which sounds somewhat basic on the surface, but there's plenty more to this than meets the eye. SpeedTree features more than 200 core species of plants and trees, plus "user-configurable and seamless LOD transitions" and "adjustable wind effects."

"Since it's able to render not only a large number, but a large variety of trees quickly, SpeedTree has really been an important tool for us in developing The Last Remnant," said Square Enix Chief Artist Kimihiko Miyamae.

The game is being powered by the Unreal Engine 3, which is yet another reason we think this game will be absolutely glorious when it finally arrives. SpeedTree is just another feather in S-E's cap at this point, but it's no real surprise. The company has been breaking new ground in video game visuals for years, so saying The Last Remnant should be gorgeous is hardly a stretch.