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

Fog that adds depth without asking for a heavy setup

Atmospheric Height Fog is a simple height fog system with directional light and animated noise support. It aims for a volumetric-like result while using lower computation power, which makes the effect useful when a scene needs visible depth but still has to stay within a lighter rendering budget.

The look is not locked into one treatment. Distance-based fog, height-based fog, dual-color fog, and fog axis selection give the creator several ways to shape how the atmosphere sits inside a scene. Animated noise can keep the fog from feeling static, while volume blending support helps the effect move more naturally across different areas. Fog presets are included as well, so a consistent base look can be reused instead of rebuilt every time.

Working the fog into the project’s render path

Compatibility covers Standard Render Pipeline 2022.3+, Universal Render Pipeline 2022.3+ / 6.0+ / 6.3+, and HD Render Pipeline 2022.3+ / 6.0+ / 6.3+.

Shaders for 6.1 and 6.2 are included, but TECH releases are not officially supported, and the asset is recommended with LTS releases only. That keeps the setup tied to stable project versions rather than experimental ones. The fog also supports forward and deferred rendering, perspective and orthographic cameras, scene view visibility, and VR support, so the same atmosphere can follow the project’s camera and rendering choices without forcing a different workflow for each view.

Extending the atmosphere into transparent shaders and UI

A major practical advantage is the way the fog can be carried into transparent materials. Fog support can be added with functions available for Amplify Shader Editor, Shader Graph, or any custom-written shader, which helps keep separate assets from cutting cleanly through the atmosphere.

There is ApplyHeightFog support for Amplify Editor and for Unity Shader Graph, while AtmosphericHeightFog.cginc functions can be used to add fog support to custom transparent shaders. The package also includes a UI Default shader with Height Fog support when UI is used in a World Space Canvas. That gives the fog a wider role than background scenery alone, letting it influence materials and overlays that need to share the same depth treatment.

Presets, blending, and changes over time

Fog presets make it easier to start from a defined look, and Basic Time Of Day support is handled through Day-Night preset interpolation. That lets the atmosphere shift with lighting changes rather than staying frozen in one state.

Volume blending support adds another level of control for transitions between fog areas. Zero global keywords usage is included for 2019.1+, which keeps the implementation cleaner inside the project. The result is a fog setup that can stay consistent across scenes while still allowing different spaces or lighting conditions to feel distinct.

Where it connects with shaders, water tools, and VR work

The developer also provides integration with several third-party tools. Amplify Shader Editor has full shader editing support. Crest for Standard RP and Crest for Universal RP both require manual setup. R.A.M 2019 for URP also requires manual setup. Lux Water for Standard RP, Stylized Water For URP, and Stylized Water by Staggart Creations are all listed with manual setup required as well.

That makes the fog easier to place alongside other shader-heavy parts of a scene, especially where transparent materials or water systems already exist. For projects targeting consoles, mobile, or VR, the appeal is the combination of a soft atmospheric look, shader-level flexibility, and support across the main render pipelines. It fits best when fog needs to be part of the scene’s structure, not just an overlay at the edge of the frame.