Editing Blender (software) (section)

====EEVEE{{anchor|Eevee}}====
EEVEE (or Eevee) is a [[Real-time computer graphics|real-time]] [[Physically based rendering|PBR]] renderer included in Blender from version 2.8.<ref>{{cite web|date=2017-03-23|title=Eevee Roadmap|url=https://code.blender.org/2017/03/eevee-roadmap/|access-date=2019-06-11|publisher=Code.blender.org}}</ref> This render engine was given the nickname EEVEE,<ref>{{cite web|title=Ton Roosendaal - EEVEE|url=https://twitter.com/tonroosendaal/status/809474433903722496|first=Ton|last=Roosendaal|publisher=Twitter|access-date=2019-06-11}}</ref> after [[Eevee|the Pokémon species]]. The name was later made into the [[backronym]] "Extra Easy Virtual Environment Engine" or EEVEE.<ref>{{cite web|title=Blender Developers Blog - Viewport Project – Plan of Action|url=https://code.blender.org/2016/12/viewport-project-plan-of-action/|date=2016-12-15|publisher=Code.blender.org|access-date=2019-06-11}}</ref>

With the release of Blender 4.2 LTS<ref>{{Cite web |title=4.2 LTS - Blender Developer Documentation |url=https://developer.blender.org/docs/release_notes/4.2/ |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=developer.blender.org}}</ref> in July 2024, EEVEE received an overhaul by its lead developer, Clément Foucault, called EEVEE Next. EEVEE Next boasts a variety of new features for Blender's real-time and [[Raster graphics|rasterised]] renderer, including screen-space [[Global illumination|global illumination (SSGI)]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Foundation |first=Blender |title=EEVEE's Future |url=https://code.blender.org/2021/06/eevees-future/ |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Blender Developers Blog |date=4 June 2021 |language=en}}</ref> virtual [[Shadow mapping|shadowmapping]], sunlight extraction from HDRIs, and a rewritten system for reflections and indirect lighting via light probe volumes and cubemaps.<ref>{{Cite web |last=blender |title=EEVEE-Next |url=https://projects.blender.org/blender/blender/issues/93220 |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Blender Projects |language=en-US}}</ref> EEVEE Next also brings improved volumetric rendering, along with support for ''displacement shaders'' and an improved [[depth of field]] system similar to Cycles.

Plans for future releases of EEVEE include support for hardware-accelerated [[Ray tracing (graphics)|ray-tracing]]<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Foundation |first=Blender |title=EEVEE Next Generation in Blender 4.2 LTS |url=https://code.blender.org/2024/07/eevee-next-generation-in-blender-4-2-lts/ |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Blender Developers Blog |date=11 July 2024 |language=en}}</ref> and continued improvements to performance and shader compilation.<ref name=":5" />