Geomerics
Encyclopedia
Geomerics is a software company based in Cambridge
, UK
, that specialises in creating lighting technology for the video game industry.
The company's main product is Enlighten, software code that calculates indirect lighting ("radiosity") in real time for live action games running on systems such as the PlayStation 3
, Xbox 360
, and personal computer
s. The company licenses this code to games companies for incorporation into their proprietary rendering engines
. The software has also recently been recently ported to NVIDIA
's CUDA
platform.
The first system to incorporate the software is the Frostbite 2 engine, created by the EA
DICE studio, used in in Battlefield 3
(2011), and Need for Speed: The Run
(2011). Enlighten has also been licensed for a variety of other titles including Eve Online
.
as a spin out
from Cambridge University
. Since 2007 its Chief Executive has been Gary Lewis, who prior to joining the company was the Global Chief Operating Officer at Take 2 Interactive in New York.
Enlighten has been in development since 2006 and will see major distribution with the release of Battlefield 3
in 2011 and updates to ongoing massively multiplayer online game
Eve Online
. According to the company,
"Enlighten's revolutionary technology ensures that, for the first time, lighting can be updated in real time, in game, on today's consoles."
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, that specialises in creating lighting technology for the video game industry.
The company's main product is Enlighten, software code that calculates indirect lighting ("radiosity") in real time for live action games running on systems such as the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, and personal computer
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
s. The company licenses this code to games companies for incorporation into their proprietary rendering engines
First-person shooter engine
A first-person shooter engine is a video game engine specialized for simulating 3D environments for use in a first-person shooter video game. First-person refers to the view where the players see the world from the eyes of their characters...
. The software has also recently been recently ported to NVIDIA
NVIDIA
Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
's CUDA
CUDA
CUDA or Compute Unified Device Architecture is a parallel computing architecture developed by Nvidia. CUDA is the computing engine in Nvidia graphics processing units that is accessible to software developers through variants of industry standard programming languages...
platform.
The first system to incorporate the software is the Frostbite 2 engine, created by the EA
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
DICE studio, used in in Battlefield 3
Battlefield 3
Battlefield 3 is a first-person shooter video game developed by EA Digital Illusions CE and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released in North America on October 25, 2011 and in Europe on October 28, 2011 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and EA Mobile confirmed a port for...
(2011), and Need for Speed: The Run
Need for Speed: The Run
Need for Speed: The Run is a racing video game, the 18th title in the Need for Speed franchise, and developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. The Wii and 3DS versions were developed by Firebrand Games, the team behind Undercover and Nitro...
(2011). Enlighten has also been licensed for a variety of other titles including Eve Online
EVE Online
Eve Online is a video game by CCP Games. It is a player-driven, persistent-world MMORPG set in a science fiction space setting. Characters pilot customizable ships through a galaxy of over 7,500 star systems. Most star systems are connected to one or more other star systems by means of stargates...
.
History
The company was formed by Angle PLC an LSE listed company (LSE:AGL) in 2005. The project was lead by Chris J. L. DoranChris J. L. Doran
Chris J. L. Doran is a physicist, Director of Studies in Natural Sciences for Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. He founded Geomerics, and is its Chief Operating Officer....
as a spin out
Spin out
A spin-out, also known as a spin-off or a starburst, refers to a type of corporate action where a company "splits off" sections of itself as a separate business....
from Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. Since 2007 its Chief Executive has been Gary Lewis, who prior to joining the company was the Global Chief Operating Officer at Take 2 Interactive in New York.
Enlighten has been in development since 2006 and will see major distribution with the release of Battlefield 3
Battlefield 3
Battlefield 3 is a first-person shooter video game developed by EA Digital Illusions CE and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released in North America on October 25, 2011 and in Europe on October 28, 2011 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and EA Mobile confirmed a port for...
in 2011 and updates to ongoing massively multiplayer online game
Massively multiplayer online game
A massively multiplayer online game is a multiplayer video game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously. By necessity, they are played on the Internet, and usually feature at least one persistent world. They are, however, not necessarily games played on...
Eve Online
EVE Online
Eve Online is a video game by CCP Games. It is a player-driven, persistent-world MMORPG set in a science fiction space setting. Characters pilot customizable ships through a galaxy of over 7,500 star systems. Most star systems are connected to one or more other star systems by means of stargates...
. According to the company,
"Enlighten's revolutionary technology ensures that, for the first time, lighting can be updated in real time, in game, on today's consoles."