Shift: A Rendering Sandbox for Computer Graphics Research

Shift is a modern rendering engine based on the Vulkan API that was designed for the graphics programmers to learn, practice, research, and optimize various rendering techniques.

Shift consists of 3 main parts:

Note: Since Shift 1.0 is done as a bachelor's thesis, more information about Shift structure and documentation will be released after the thesis publication in the future versions.

You can learn watch Shift rendering demo videos and images on the webpage!

Features

A brief list of features in Shift 1.0:

Model loading (GLTF, FBX, OBJ and more).
Texture loading (PNG, TGA, JPG).
Light System with Directional and Point lights supported.
Physically Based Rendering (For GLTF only models for now).
HDR ToneMapping (Reinhard, Lottes, Uncharted 2 and ACES).
A unique UI based upon Dear ImGui that provides a view of textures and render targets in real-time. Also allows you to move and tweak lights. The UI is designed in a way to be easily attached to any system/class in Shift.

To load a custom 3D scene, go to Renderer::LoadScene() in Renderer.cpp. It contains an example of how to do just that. Scene loading is not a part of Shift 1.0, but it is a main priority for the future versions of Shift.

Prerequisites

Have a Windows 10/11.
Download the MSVC 2022 compiler (is the only one supported as of Shift 1.0).
Download the LunarG Vulkan SDK (ticking all boxes is recommended).
Set the VULKAN_SDK_PATH in .env.cmake to your SDK install directory.

Dependencies

Shift CMake system pulls all dependencies except for the Vulkan related ones (that come with Vulkan SDK). Here is a list of the dependencies that will be pulled: