Nvidia is acquiring gaming-technology developer Ageia Technologies under undisclosed terms. Ageia says its PhysX hardware and software are currently featured in more than 140 games for the Sony Playstation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii platforms as well as specialized computers from Dell and other PC vendors.
PhysX is all about making radical changes to the ways in which physical objects move and react to one another in the gaming environment. The technology allows game developers to abandon the use of scripted animations for dynamic interactions that more closely emulate real-world physics.
The technology enables characters with complex, jointed geometries to display more life-like motion and interaction. Even better, dense smoke and fog billow around objects in motion, and explosions generate dust and collateral debris. The goal is to create a more immersive environment for game players.
“The Ageia team is world-class, and is passionate about the same thing we are — creating the most amazing and captivating game experiences,” said Nvidia Chief Executive Jen-Hsun Huang.
Pervasive Parallel Programming
Huang said the computer industry is moving toward a model that combines a flexible central processing unit (CPU) with a massively parallel processor. The combination allows computer-intensive applications like real-time graphics to be rapidly crunched without dragging down CPU performance, he said.
To spearhead the transition, Nvidia has developed a Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA), which enables software programmers to code sophisticated algorithms with the standard C language and simplified extensions.
“Nvidia’s CUDA technology, which is rapidly becoming the most pervasive parallel programming environment in history, broadens the parallel-processing world to hundreds of applications desperate for a giant step in computational performance,” Huang said. “Applications such as physics, computer vision, and video/image processing are enabled through CUDA and heterogeneous computing.”
Getting Physical
Ageia’s PhysX currently requires the use of a separate processor, but…