Ocean Shader + Buoyancy Project

Unreal 5 | Tech Art | Programmer (BP & HLSL) | Solo

A project where I built a custom ocean shader and buoyancy system in Unreal 5 with material editor, HLSL and blueprints.

Originally created for a university major project, I recently remastered this project as I wasn’t happy with, he original result. The project focusses around my research and learnings into creating shaders that can be incorporated with gameplay mechanics in games.

The shader is developed to be fully customisable allowing full control over have the water surface looks and acts. Making use of an algorithmic approach written in HLSL to improve ease of use and functionality. Incorporating techniques such as Gerstner waves, fractional Brownian motion, domain warping and Jacobian based wave foam + colour differentiation.

Buoyancy is physics based and is calculated through a custom component allowing buoyant objects that sync up to the shaders waves to be set up with ease with no repeated code. Buoyancy can be adjusted per object.

The development of this project challenged me first in learning how shaders can be developed but then also as to how they can be used functionally with gameplay. I faced issues adapting to this at first but, through the process of trail and error and heavy research into shaders and algorithmic approaches to water in games. I was encouraged to transform a project I was initial unhappy with to one I am a truly proud off.

Additional info about the project and further technical breakdowns of mechanics can be found on the itch page linked to this project page.