Types of Ambient Occlusionīecause graphics cards haven't always been as powerful as they are today, different techniques have been implemented through the years to create realistic lighting with available technology. But overall, this happens when light from a primary source reaches an object and then is either shadowed, such as light hitting a wall with a corner and creating a realistic shadow on the part of the corner not facing the light source, or it is reflected, as would be the case with a light source hitting an object and reflecting onto an object in front of it, causing the appearance of muted light. Technically, ambient occlusion comes in various forms. While the movie ultimately received a mediocre rating, it helped set the precedent for the use of ambient occlusion in film and video games.
Before Crysis, ambient occlusion was used in 2001 in Ben Affleck's Pearl Harbor.
