Atmospheric Height Fog | Optimized Fog for Consoles, Mobile and VR

Shader-driven setup that stays editable

Atmospheric Height Fog is a Unity fog package built with Amplify Shader Editor, so the effect lives in a shader workflow instead of a fixed, closed setup. The shaders can be modified with ease, which makes the fog easier to adapt when a scene needs a specific look or when the art direction changes during production.

That shader-first approach also matters for transparent materials. Fog support can be added through functions available for Amplify Shader Editor, Shader Graph, or custom-written shaders. ApplyHeightFog is available for Amplify Shader Editor, another ApplyHeightFog function is available for Shader Graph, and AtmosphericHeightFog.cginc functions are available for custom transparent shaders. In practice, that gives the fog a place in scenes where glass, water edges, VFX materials, or other transparent surfaces still need to sit inside the same atmospheric depth as the rest of the world.

A UI Default shader with Height Fog support is also included for cases where UI is used in a World Space Canvas. That is a practical detail for scenes that place interface elements inside the 3D environment rather than keeping them flat on the screen.

Fog controls that shape depth and motion

At its core, the package provides simple yet beautiful height fog with directional light and animated noise support. The goal is a volumetric-like effect while using lower computation power, which makes the effect suitable for scenes that need atmosphere without pushing into a heavier fog solution.

The available controls cover distance-based fog, dual-color fog, height-based fog, directional light fog, and fog axis selection. 3D animated noise adds movement, while volume blending support helps the fog transition more naturally across spaces. Fog presets provide quick starting points, and Basic Time Of Day uses Day-Night preset interpolation for a straightforward time-of-day shift.

Zero global keywords usage is included for 2019.1+, which keeps the implementation from relying on global keyword overhead. That kind of detail is useful when a project already has multiple shaders and systems competing for attention inside the render setup.

Render pipelines, camera modes, and production reach

Compatibility covers Standard Render Pipeline 2022.3+, Universal Render Pipeline 2022.3+, 6.0+, and 6.3+, plus HD Render Pipeline 2022.3+, 6.0+, and 6.3+. Shaders for 6.1 and 6.2 are included, though TECH releases are not officially supported. The recommended path is to use LTS releases only.

The fog works with forward and deferred support, perspective and orthographic support, and scene view visibility support. VR support is included as well, which keeps the effect relevant for headset-driven scenes as well as standard desktop workflows.

That range makes the package easier to place in real production work. A project may use a standard camera, an orthographic setup, or a VR scene, and the same fog system still follows the same shader-based approach across those camera and rendering modes.

Integrations that matter when the scene includes water and custom shaders

Amplify Shader Editor gets full shader editing support. Crest for Standard RP by Wave Harmonic, Crest for Universal RP by Wave Harmonic, R.A.M 2019 for URP by Nature Manufacture, Lux Water for Standard RP by Forst, Stylized Water For URP by Alexander Ameye, and Stylized Water by Staggart Creations are all listed as integrations, with manual setup required for each of them.

Those integrations point toward the kinds of projects this fog is meant to sit beside: water-heavy scenes, shader-driven environments, and setups where transparent materials need to share the same atmospheric layer as the terrain and lighting. The manual setup note is important, because it makes the integration path clear before the effect is dropped into a larger scene.

For teams building around editable shaders, transparent materials, and multiple Unity render paths, Atmospheric Height Fog provides a direct way to add depth without changing the surrounding workflow. The practical takeaway is simple: it is a fog system that stays flexible, covers Standard, URP, and HD pipelines, and keeps room for both custom shaders and VR-ready scenes.