Gaussian Splatting
Scenes made of splats instead of polygons
Also known as: 3D Gaussian Splatting · 3DGS · Gaussian splats · Splat
Definition
3D Gaussian Splatting is a way of representing and rendering a captured scene as millions of small, soft, colored 3D blobs called Gaussians instead of polygons. It is created from photos or video, like photogrammetry, and renders in real time with realistic soft detail such as reflections and fine foliage. Unlike a mesh it has no clean surface, UVs or material, so it cannot be used as a normal game asset without conversion.
In production
Use splats for capture, previews, environments you only need to look at, and film or virtual production, with capture apps such as Polycam and web viewers. They are not a replacement for game-ready meshes: the files are large, hard to light dynamically and difficult to edit. Artists should know the technique because it keeps appearing in capture tools and engine plugins.