Skybox Graphics Technique | Unity

A skybox is a technique used in computer graphics to create an illusion of an infinite 3D environment. It involves rendering a scene with a cube mesh around the camera, with each face of the cube textured with a static image representing the environment in that direction. The result is that the camera appears to be surrounded by a 3D environment, even though it is actually in a limited 3D space.

Skyboxes are often used in video games and other interactive applications to create a sense of immersion and to hide the technical limitations of the rendering engine. They are also used in architectural visualization and other applications where it is desirable to create a realistic 3D environment without the cost and complexity of rendering a fully detailed 3D model.

There are several ways to create skyboxes, including using specialized software or a combination of modeling and texturing tools. The images used for the skybox faces can be photographs, paintings, or other artistic creations. They can be static or animated, depending on the desired effect.

Use Skybox in Unity

1. To use a 6 Sided skybox in Unity, follow these steps:

1. In the Project window, create a new Material by right-clicking and selecting "Create > Material".
2. With the Material selected, go to the Inspector window and click the "Shader" dropdown. Select "Skybox > 6 Sided".
3. In the Inspector window, click the "Select Texture" button next to "Skybox Texture".
4. In the "Select Texture" window, select the six textures you want to use for your skybox. These should be named "Front", "Back", "Left", "Right", "Up", and "Down", and should be in either .png or .jpg format.
5. Drag the Material you created from the Project window to the "Skybox Material" field in the Scene window.

Now your skybox should be visible in the Scene and Game views. You can rotate the camera to see the different sides of the skybox.

Alternatively, you can use a pre-made skybox asset from the Asset Store or create your own skybox using a 3D modeling software and then importing it into Unity.

2. To use a Cubemap skybox in Unity, you can follow these steps:

1. In the Project window, create a new material by right-clicking and selecting Create > Material.
2. In the Inspector window, select the Shader dropdown and choose a skybox shader, such as "Skybox/Cubemap."
3. In the Inspector window, click the small circle next to the "Albedo" field. This will open a window where you can select a cubemap texture to use as the skybox.
4. Drag the material you created into the Skybox slot in the Lighting settings (menu: Window > Rendering > Lighting Settings).

Now, the skybox should be visible in the Scene view and in the game when you play it.

You can also create a skybox by using a Skybox component on a game object. To do this, create a new empty game object and add the Skybox component to it. Then, in the Inspector window, select a cubemap texture for the Skybox Material field.

Note: If you are using the built-in render pipeline, you can also use the Visual Environment component to set the skybox.

3. To use a Procedural Skybox in Unity, you'll need to do the following:

1. Create a new material and assign it the Skybox shader.
2. Drag the material onto the Skybox slot in the Lighting window.
3. Create a new empty game object and add a Skybox component to it.
4. Drag the material from step 1 onto the Skybox component's "Skybox Material" field.

Alternatively, you can use the built-in "Skybox/Procedural" shader to create a simple, procedurally-generated sky. To do this:

1. Create a new material and assign it the "Skybox/Procedural" shader.
2. Drag the material onto the Skybox slot in the Lighting window.
3. In the material's Inspector window, you can adjust various properties such as the sky color, clouds, and sun size to customize the appearance of the sky.

You can also use the "Skybox/Cubemap" shader to apply a cubemap texture to the sky. To do this:

1. Create a new material and assign it the "Skybox/Cubemap" shader.
2. Drag the material onto the Skybox slot in the Lighting window.
3. Drag a cubemap texture onto the "Cubemap" field in the material's Inspector window.

For more detailed instructions and information on using Skyboxes in Unity, you can refer to the official Unity documentation: https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/class-Skybox.html