Real Time Ray Tracing is almost here...
So... lately there has been quite a buzz about GPU/CPU real time ray tracing and the possibilities this will open for games, but also for films and commercials as well as for animation.
Two of the main contenders are Octane from OTOY. An unbiased rendering application that is GPU driven and is proving to give very impressive results. It is both standalone and has versions for Maya and Max (these last ones support animation and thus, motion-blur).
(Click on the image to go to a fxguide post about Octane)
The other one starting to be well known is Isotropix Clarisse iFX that released a PLE beta for Windows and Linux and is planning to soon release a version for mac (at that point I'll definitively give it a try). Clarisse is not only a render system but includes tools for scene set-up and asset management as well as a whole 32-bit compositing package.
(Click on the image to go to an old fxguide post about Clarisse)
Another to take a look at is TeamUp Technologies Inc. TeamUp A multiplatform collaboration tool that uses Cloud powered Multi-Optics® rendering technology that is also real-time. Here is a teaser I watched a while back.
And finally if you are new to real time ray-tracing and you want to get a quick look at what it could do for you check out this webgl page that allows you to play around with a real time path tracer. It'll give you a feel for what it is to work with a real time ray tracer.
http://madebyevan.com/webgl-path-tracing/
Personally I think this opens a whole new world of possibilities in terms of lighting and look-dev. Faster turnover means faster iterations which leaves more time for tweaking your lighting and rendering to take it to the next level. Can't wait to get my hands on one of these renderers and play with it to see what I can come up with in a very short amount of time!