does roblox have voxel terrain

by Pasquale Oberbrunner III 7 min read
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Voxel Terrain, also known as Legacy Terrain or Cubic Terrain, was a major Roblox feature introduced in 2011 which allowed users to build, generate, and add large amounts of cubical parts consisting of voxels, with little to no lag. These parts came in a wide variety of different materials and shapes, and could be used in many different ways.

Workspace that integrates voxel-based terrain into Roblox. Historically, it used a preset of meshes to render its terrain. In May 2015, smooth terrain was introduced, which later replaced the old style of terrain in 2017.

Full Answer

What happened to Roblox voxel terrain?

The 2011 update also introduced the terrain editor to Roblox Studio. Voxel Terrain was removed on January 1, 2017, replaced by a new technology called Smooth Terrain, after 5 years since introduction. Smooth terrain kept some of the same terrain types as the original, but also scrapped some and introduced a few new ones.

What is terrain in Roblox?

Terrain is a feature in Roblox that was introduced in 2011. It features a special object in Workspace that integrates voxel-based terrain into Roblox. Historically, it used a preset of meshes to render its terrain.

Does the terrain object still use voxels?

Like legacy terrain, it still uses voxels. However, the voxels are subtle due to advanced technology used to produce smoother terrain. As it is based off the BasePart class most properties the Terrain object inherits are not modifiable.

How to create craters in Roblox Studio?

In ROBLOX Studio the Terrain plugin allows you to create craters, mountains, etc., or you could just randomize it using the Terrain Generator script in the plugin. Read more about the terrain generator here. As it is based off the BasePart class most properties the Terrain object inherits are not modifiable.

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Does Roblox use voxel?

To understand how Terrain works, it is important to know a few of the fundamental concepts behind it. Firstly, Terrain is based on a voxel system. A voxel is basically a point in space, often arranged in a grid. In Roblox, each cell in the voxel grid measures 4x4x4 studs.

How do you terrain on Roblox?

1:1411:35How To Make Detailed Terrain in Roblox | ROBLOX Studio TutorialYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSection. This allows you to basically select copy and paste highlight all that kind of stuff at theMoreSection. This allows you to basically select copy and paste highlight all that kind of stuff at the terrain. So what you want to do is i'm going to click select and then drag.

How many voxels can Roblox handle?

A decently optimized game shouldn't even hit a thousandth of that (10 million voxels) so unless every single part is a mesh part with 10k+ polygons, then I think you'll be fine.

How do you get infinite terrain on Roblox?

0:3411:20How to make INFINITE TERRAIN | Roblox Studio - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo if you're gonna go over to the toolbox. And inside the toolbox we're gonna go to change theseMoreSo if you're gonna go over to the toolbox. And inside the toolbox we're gonna go to change these models to plugins. And we're going to look up infinite terrain. Just like this here.

When did roblox add terrain?

Terrain. The Terrain Generator is a ROBLOX Studio and ROBLOX Studio 2.0 Beta plug-in that generates a voxel based grid of a combination of different BaseParts to create various terrains and landforms via a very large script. It was added in October 2011 along with the actual Terrain object.

What does GUI stand for in roblox?

Graphical User InterfaceA GUI, which stands for Graphical User Interface, is used to display information about the game to the player.

Is Minecraft a voxel game?

Minecraft is a sandbox video game that uses voxels to store terrain data, but does not use voxel rendering techniques. Instead it uses polygon rendering to display each voxel as a cubic "block".

What is a 3D pixel called?

A volumetric pixel (volume pixel or voxel) is the three-dimensional (3D) equivalent of a pixel and the tiniest distinguishable element of a 3D object. It is a volume element that represents a specific grid value in 3D space.

What was the first voxel game?

The original Voxel Space engine was patented in 1996, and first released in software in the 1992 release Comanche: Maximum Overkill.

How do you make an advanced terrain in Roblox?

0:017:34Roblox Tutorial - Advanced Terrain (Deathrun Style) - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipFirst. We need resize align gap fill building tools by f3x. And this morn discrete plugin that'sMoreFirst. We need resize align gap fill building tools by f3x. And this morn discrete plugin that's kind of hidden called build v4. So first let's start with our dirt.

How do you make a terrain generator on Roblox?

1:087:48How to Make an Automatic Terrain Generator (Procedural ... - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo if you want lower terrain you're going to make this a smaller. Number if you want higher terrainMoreSo if you want lower terrain you're going to make this a smaller. Number if you want higher terrain then make it a bigger. Number. This second constant is the grid scale for terrain generation.

How do you get random terrain generation on Roblox?

0:0015:10Terrain Generation - Roblox Studio (Perlin Noise and 2D Arrays)YouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd with the script i'm going to be generating. Some parts together and it should look. Like. ThisMoreAnd with the script i'm going to be generating. Some parts together and it should look. Like. This okay so the first thing i need to generate my terrain is a grid.

How do you change the terrain on roblox?

0:204:27Roblox Studio How to Change Terrain Material Color - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd in order to change the material. Color you want to go over to workspace. And then click onMoreAnd in order to change the material. Color you want to go over to workspace. And then click on terrain. And so once you have workspace and terrain clicked it will show up the properties.

How do you rotate terrain in roblox?

Part to Terrain First, rotate the part into the position you want, and at the rotation you want. In this instance, 30 degrees. Then, select the terrain material you want in the GUI, and then click on the part you want to turn into terrain. Done!

How do you change the terrain texture on roblox?

1:587:10How to Make and Use Custom Roblox Materials! - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipService go into properties. Find what you want to overdrive. So it doesn't have to be the materials.MoreService go into properties. Find what you want to overdrive. So it doesn't have to be the materials. But it could be and it could also just be terrain.

History

Voxel terrain was first announced at the 2011 Roblox Rally. Here, developers Simon Kozlov (Gemlocker) and Ben Deckinga (bjdeck) showcased the terrain. It seems it was originally made to bypass the problems that arose with places being too small, or not being able to have enough parts.

Types

It could be placed down as a block, vertical ramp, corner, inverse corner, or horizontal wedge. It also had the following types.

Trivia

The stamper tool's gravel image is a different texture then when it is placed down.

When was Terrain introduced in Roblox?

Terrain is a feature in Roblox that was introduced in 2011. It features a special object in Workspace that integrates voxel-based terrain into Roblox. Historically, it used a preset of meshes to render its terrain. In May 2015, smooth terrain was introduced, which later replaced the old style of terrain in 2017.

Why is Roblox deprecating old terrain?

On August 19, 2016, Roblox deprecated old terrain, due to its low usage and high maintenance cost. It was scheduled to be removed on January 1, 2017. This was later restated in a blog post. Roblox encouraged usage of smooth terrain by giving developers an option to convert existing old terrain.

What is smooth terrain?

Smooth terrain is an update to terrain released in 2015. It is the current terrain type. Smooth terrain is more smoother and more realistic compared to the block y legacy terrain. Like legacy terrain, it still uses voxels.

Why are voxels subtle?

However, the voxels are subtle due to advanced technology used to produce smoother terrain. As it is based off the BasePart class most properties the Terrain object inherits are not modifiable. An explosion will lower the values of cells in its blast radius if the explosion is set up to do so.

Is smooth terrain better than blocky terrain?

Smooth Terrain has higher graphical fidelity than blocky terrain, and is more detailed than simple 4x4 blocks. In August 25th 2016, the deprecation and coming removal of old terrain was announced, and in January 2017 all places were forcibly converted to smooth terrain.

When did Zombiesdale replace old terrain?

In January 2017 , it was officially replaced, as games with old terrain were converted. Games that still relied on old terrain were negatively impacted from this, such as Zombiesdale, which was known for its extensive use of old terrain.

Is Roblox Terrain similar to Minecraft?

Many people thought that the legacy terrain resembled Minecraft 's terrain, however they were barely similar in any way, both in textures, and the fact that most Roblox terrain cells were shaped differently from blocks unlike the terrain in Minecraft.

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What’s in A voxel?

  • Voxel Terrain, also known as Legacy Terrain or Cubic Terrain, was a major Roblox feature introduced in 2011 which allowed users to build, generate, and add large amounts of cubical parts consisting of voxels, with little to no lag. These parts came in a wide variety of different materials and shapes, and could be used in many different ways. Unlike...
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Memory Format

Disk Format

Memory Format, Take Two

Results and Future Work

  • To represent a voxel, you need a material (which is an enum) and occupancy (which is a floating-point value in 0..1 range). Material storage is straightforward; wejust store an index into the material table, which currently has 23 entries. To conserve space, we store occupancy as a quantized 8-bit value, which adds up to two bytes per voxel. In a m...
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