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UnityCelShaderFX

Changelog

All notable changes to CelShaderFX will be documented in this file.

[1.0.0] - 2026-02-21

Section titled “[1.0.0] - 2026-02-21”

Core Features

  • Cel Shading - Color band quantization with 2-16 bands
    • Adjustable softness for smooth/hard transitions
    • Saturation control
    • Custom ramp texture support
    • Color palette quantization (up to 4 colors)
  • Outline Detection - Edge-based outlines with multiple algorithms
    • Sobel edge detection (default, balanced)
    • Roberts edge detection (sharper, thinner)
    • Canny edge detection (multi-stage, cleaner)
    • Difference of Gaussians (DoG, artistic)
    • JFA (Jump Flood Algorithm) cinematic outlines (up to 64px width, soft glow, inner/outer control)
    • Depth, normal, and curvature-based edge weights
    • Distance fade option
  • Kuwahara Filter - Edge-preserving smoothing for painterly looks
    • Basic variant (4-sector, fast)
    • Generalized variant (8-sector, balanced)
    • Anisotropic variant (flow-aligned, high quality)
    • Polynomial variant (smooth sector blending, high quality)
    • Adjustable radius and sharpness
  • XDoG Stylization - Extended Difference of Gaussians for manga/illustration rendering
    • Fine and coarse Gaussian sigma controls
    • Adjustable threshold and sharpness for ink vs pencil styles
    • B&W overlay and tonal color preservation modes
    • Resolution-independent line thickness
  • Hatching System - Cross-hatch and line-based shading
    • Procedural line generation
    • TAM (Tonal Art Map) texture support
    • Hybrid mode (procedural + texture)
    • Screen, World, and Blended coordinate modes
    • Multi-space blending for temporal stability
    • Adjustable density, rotation, thickness, spacing
    • Line wobble and taper for organic look
    • Up to 4 hatching layers
    • Intensity mapping with shadow threshold
  • Dithering - Ordered and noise-based dithering
    • Bayer matrices (2x2, 4x4, 8x8)
    • Blue noise dithering
    • Error diffusion (Floyd-Steinberg style)
    • Adjustable color levels and strength
  • Halftone - Print-style patterns
    • Dot, line, diamond, and crosshatch shapes
    • CMYK mode with individual screen angles
    • Adjustable scale, angle, and softness
  • Watercolor Effect - Watercolor painting simulation
    • Edge darkening (wet-in-wet effect)
    • Pigment granulation
    • Paper texture support
    • World-space projection for stability
  • Painterly Effect - Oil painting and brush strokes
    • Auto, directional, and radial stroke modes
    • Custom brush texture support
    • Canvas texture overlay
    • Color variation control

Pipeline Support

  • Built-In Render Pipeline
    • CelPostProcessEffect component
    • Full OnRenderImage implementation
  • Universal Render Pipeline (URP)
    • CelRenderFeature renderer feature
    • CelVolumeComponent volume override
    • Compatible with URP 12+
  • High Definition Render Pipeline (HDRP)
    • CelCustomPostProcess custom post-process
    • Volume-based configuration
    • Compatible with HDRP 12+

Architecture

  • Object Cel Shading - Per-object cel shading via MaterialPropertyBlock
    • Normal mapping, rim lighting, matcap, PBR specular
    • Per-object hatching with curvature alignment
    • Face SDF shadow support
    • GPU instancing compatible
  • Modular System
    • CelModularController for advanced programmatic control
    • 8 independent effect modules
    • Runtime enable/disable of individual effects
    • Module execution order system
  • Preset System
    • CelShaderPreset ScriptableObject
    • 10 built-in presets (Anime, Manga, Watercolor, etc.)
    • Preset interpolation/blending
    • Create custom presets from current settings
  • Object Exclusion
    • Layer-based exclusion
    • Component-based exclusion
    • Mask texture support

Editor Tools

  • Setup Wizard - Guided pipeline configuration
  • Preview Window - Real-time effect preview with split/compare modes
  • Preset Browser - Visual preset gallery
  • Texture Generator - Generate blue noise, hatch patterns, ramps

Shared Shader Library

  • 40+ HLSL include files for cross-pipeline compatibility
  • Platform abstraction macros
  • Shared effect implementations

Technical Details

Section titled “Technical Details”

Shader Features

  • Inverse ViewProj matrix for stable world-space reconstruction
  • Triplanar projection for hatching
  • TAM texture horizontal atlas sampling
  • Efficient shader keywords for variant selection

Performance

  • Early-out checks for disabled effects
  • Cached shader property IDs
  • Optimized kernel implementations
  • Quality presets (Mobile, Low, Medium, High, Ultra)

[Unreleased]

Section titled “[Unreleased]”

Planned

Section titled “Planned”
  • Additional TAM texture presets
  • More built-in paper/canvas textures
  • Animation support for effect parameters
  • Additional preset styles
  • Performance profiling tools

Version History

Section titled “Version History”
VersionDateDescription
1.0.02026-04-13Initial release

Support

Section titled “Support”

For issues, feature requests, or questions:

CelShaderFX is developed and maintained by Ibrahim Afara

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