Technical Overview
R.A.M 3 – River Auto Material 3 Unity 1.3.0 is much more than a shader; it is a full-stack water simulation and terrain toolset. Utilizing a spline-based architecture, it handles complex tasks like automatic terrain carving and flow-map generation in real-time. For developers, the support for DOTS and the SRP Batcher is critical, as it allows for large-scale river systems without the typical performance hit seen in older spline solutions. The API is extensive, allowing for runtime simulation and procedurally generated water bodies.
Integration Tips
- SRP Support Package: After importing RAM 3, you must navigate to the ‘HD and URP support’ folder and import the specific package for your pipeline. This replaces the standard shaders with pipeline-specific ones (HDRP/URP), ensuring features like screen-space reflections work correctly.
- Terrain API: If using the terrain carving feature, ensure you have a backup of your TerrainData. The system modifies the terrain heightmap and splatmaps directly to align with the river spline.
- Buoyancy Integration: The included buoyancy script provides a vector that can be fed into your custom Rigidbody controllers. Instead of writing your own water physics, use the provided vector to apply ‘flow’ forces to boats or swimming characters.
Best Use Cases
- Open World RPGs: The ability to connect rivers to lakes and seas with automatic vertex alpha blending allows for a seamless, interconnected water network across a massive world map.
- Physics-Based Puzzle Games: Utilizing the simulation tool and flow-map painter, you can create environments where water direction and power are central gameplay mechanics that affect object movement via the buoyancy API.