ReflectionProbe

ReflectionProbe

Inherits: VisualInstance < CullInstance < Spatial < Node < Object

Captures its surroundings to create fast, accurate reflections from a given point.

Description

Capture its surroundings as a dual paraboloid image, and stores versions of it with increasing levels of blur to simulate different material roughnesses.

The ReflectionProbe is used to create high-quality reflections at a low performance cost (when update_mode is UPDATE_ONCE). ReflectionProbes can be blended together and with the rest of the scene smoothly. ReflectionProbes can also be combined with GIProbe and screen-space reflections (Environment.ss_reflections_enabled) to get more accurate reflections in specific areas. ReflectionProbes render all objects within their cull_mask, so updating them can be quite expensive. It is best to update them once with the important static objects and then leave them as-is.

Note: Unlike GIProbe, ReflectionProbes only source their environment from a WorldEnvironment node. If you specify an Environment resource within a Camera node, it will be ignored by the ReflectionProbe. This can lead to incorrect lighting within the ReflectionProbe.

Note: By default, Godot will only render 16 reflection probes. If you need more, increase the number of atlas subdivisions. This setting can be found in ProjectSettings.rendering/quality/reflections/atlas_subdiv.

Note: The GLES2 backend will only display two reflection probes at the same time for a single mesh. If possible, split up large meshes that span over multiple reflection probes into smaller ones.

Tutorials

Reflection probes

Properties

bool	box_projection	`false`
int	cull_mask	`1048575`
bool	enable_shadows	`false`
Vector3	extents	`Vector3( 1, 1, 1 )`
float	intensity	`1.0`
Color	interior_ambient_color	`Color( 0, 0, 0, 1 )`
float	interior_ambient_contrib	`0.0`
float	interior_ambient_energy	`1.0`
bool	interior_enable	`false`
float	max_distance	`0.0`
Vector3	origin_offset	`Vector3( 0, 0, 0 )`
UpdateMode	update_mode	`0`

Enumerations

enum UpdateMode:

UPDATE_ONCE = 0 —- Update the probe once on the next frame (recommended for most objects). The corresponding radiance map will be generated over the following six frames. This takes more time to update than UPDATE_ALWAYS, but it has a lower performance cost and can result in higher-quality reflections. The ReflectionProbe is updated when its transform changes, but not when nearby geometry changes. You can force a ReflectionProbe update by moving the ReflectionProbe slightly in any direction.
UPDATE_ALWAYS = 1 —- Update the probe every frame. This provides better results for fast-moving dynamic objects (such as cars). However, it has a significant performance cost. Due to the cost, it’s recommended to only use one ReflectionProbe with UPDATE_ALWAYS at most per scene. For all other use cases, use UPDATE_ONCE.

Property Descriptions

bool box_projection

Default	`false`
Setter	set_enable_box_projection(value)
Getter	is_box_projection_enabled()

If true, enables box projection. This makes reflections look more correct in rectangle-shaped rooms by offsetting the reflection center depending on the camera’s location.

Note: To better fit rectangle-shaped rooms that are not aligned to the grid, you can rotate the ReflectionProbe node.

int cull_mask

Default	`1048575`
Setter	set_cull_mask(value)
Getter	get_cull_mask()

Sets the cull mask which determines what objects are drawn by this probe. Every VisualInstance with a layer included in this cull mask will be rendered by the probe. To improve performance, it is best to only include large objects which are likely to take up a lot of space in the reflection.

bool enable_shadows

Default	`false`
Setter	set_enable_shadows(value)
Getter	are_shadows_enabled()

If true, computes shadows in the reflection probe. This makes the reflection probe slower to render; you may want to disable this if using the UPDATE_ALWAYS update_mode.

Vector3 extents

Default	`Vector3( 1, 1, 1 )`
Setter	set_extents(value)
Getter	get_extents()

The size of the reflection probe. The larger the extents the more space covered by the probe which will lower the perceived resolution. It is best to keep the extents only as large as you need them.

Note: To better fit areas that are not aligned to the grid, you can rotate the ReflectionProbe node.

float intensity

Default	`1.0`
Setter	set_intensity(value)
Getter	get_intensity()

Defines the reflection intensity. Intensity modulates the strength of the reflection.

Color interior_ambient_color

Default	`Color( 0, 0, 0, 1 )`
Setter	set_interior_ambient(value)
Getter	get_interior_ambient()

Sets the ambient light color to be used when this probe is set to interior_enable.

float interior_ambient_contrib

Default	`0.0`
Setter	set_interior_ambient_probe_contribution(value)
Getter	get_interior_ambient_probe_contribution()

Sets the contribution value for how much the reflection affects the ambient light for this reflection probe when set to interior_enable. Useful so that ambient light matches the color of the room.

float interior_ambient_energy

Default	`1.0`
Setter	set_interior_ambient_energy(value)
Getter	get_interior_ambient_energy()

Sets the energy multiplier for this reflection probe’s ambient light contribution when set to interior_enable.

bool interior_enable

Default	`false`
Setter	set_as_interior(value)
Getter	is_set_as_interior()

If true, reflections will ignore sky contribution. Ambient lighting is then controlled by the interior_ambient_* properties.

float max_distance

Default	`0.0`
Setter	set_max_distance(value)
Getter	get_max_distance()

The maximum distance away from the ReflectionProbe an object can be before it is culled. Decrease this to improve performance, especially when using the UPDATE_ALWAYS update_mode.

Note: The maximum reflection distance is always at least equal to the extents. This means that decreasing max_distance will not always cull objects from reflections, especially if the reflection probe’s extents are already large.

Vector3 origin_offset

Default	`Vector3( 0, 0, 0 )`
Setter	set_origin_offset(value)
Getter	get_origin_offset()

Sets the origin offset to be used when this ReflectionProbe is in box_projection mode. This can be set to a non-zero value to ensure a reflection fits a rectangle-shaped room, while reducing the amount of objects that “get in the way” of the reflection.

UpdateMode update_mode

Default	`0`
Setter	set_update_mode(value)
Getter	get_update_mode()

Sets how frequently the ReflectionProbe is updated. Can be UPDATE_ONCE or UPDATE_ALWAYS.