SIGGRAPH 2026 Advances in Real-Time Rendering in Games course
Natasha Tatarchuk<br>real-time rendering, Activision, Electronic Arts, Sony, I/O Interactive, Roblox, Meta, real-time ray tracing, real-time path tracing, path tracing, AAA games, multiplatform rendering, cloud rendering and path tracing techniques for multiplatform AAA games, machine-learning upscaling, adaptive tessellation improvements on GPU, real-time volumetric effects, rendering kit-based UGC representations in dynamic worlds, UGC, games, rendering, geometry, compute shaders, performance<br>Normal<br>Tatarchuk, Natasha<br>23<br>2026-07-12T20:40:00Z<br>2026-07-14T05:31:00Z<br>2247<br>12811<br>106<br>30<br>15028<br>16.00
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Course Description
Modern video games<br>employ a variety of sophisticated algorithms to produce groundbreaking 3D<br>rendering pushing the visual boundaries and interactive experience of rich<br>environments. This course brings state-of-the-art and production-proven<br>rendering techniques for fast, interactive rendering of complex and engaging<br>virtual worlds of video games.
This year the<br>course includes speakers from the makers of several innovative games and game engines,<br>such as Activision, Electronic Arts, Sony, IO Interactive, Roblox, Meta, and<br>more. The presenters will cover a wide range of topics, from innovations in<br>real-time ray tracing and path tracing techniques for multiplatform AAA games,<br>to demystification of development of machine-learning based algorithms for<br>upscaling, adaptive tessellation improvements on GPU, real-time volumetric<br>effects, as well as efficient approaches for rendering kit-based UGC<br>representations in dynamic worlds, and more.
This is the course<br>to attend if you are in the game development industry or want to learn the<br>latest and greatest techniques in the real-time rendering domain!
Previous years� Advances course<br>slides: go here
Syllabus
Advances in Real-Time Rendering in<br>Games: Part I
Tuesday, 21 July 2026 9:00am - 12:15pm<br>PDT
Location: Petree D
Advances in Real-Time Rendering in Games - Game<br>and Rendering Trends, a 2026 Take.
Natalya Tatarchuk (Activision)
Speeding up Path Tracing<br>via ORCA (Online Radiance Cache Acceleration)
Jon Greenberg (EA SEED)
Upgrading PSSR on PlayStation5 Pro
Daniel Craig (Sony Interactive<br>Entertainment)
Variable Rate Ray Tracing in Call<br>of Duty: Modern Warfare 4
Michał Olejnik (Activision Infinity<br>Ward)
Closing Notes for Part I
Natalya Tatarchuk (Activision)
Advances in Real-Time Rendering in<br>Games: Part II
Tuesday, 21 July 2026 2:00pm - 5:15pm<br>PDT
Location: Petree D
Welcome and Introduction to Part II
Natalya Tatarchuk (Activision)
Smolder � Real-Time Volumetric<br>Effect Rendering in Glacier and 007 First Light
Alexander Mueller (IO Interactive)
SLIM: Scaling User-Generated 3D Worlds<br>on Roblox
Sergey Makeev (Roblox)
Adaptive Tessellation and<br>Subdivision
John Hable (Meta)
Closing Notes for Advances in Real-Time Rendering<br>in Games
Natalya Tatarchuk (Activision)
Prerequisites
Working<br>knowledge of modern real-time graphics APIs like DirectX or Vulkan or Metal and<br>a solid basis in commonly used graphics algorithms. Familiarity with the<br>concepts of programmable shading and shading languages. Familiarity with shipping<br>gaming consoles hardware and software capabilities is a plus but not required.
Intended<br>Audience
Technical<br>practitioners and developers of graphics engines for visualization, games, or<br>effects rendering who are interested in interactive rendering.
Course<br>Organizer
Natalya<br>Tatarchuk is a<br>graphics engineer and rendering enthusiast at heart, currently serving as Chief<br>Technology Officer at Activision Publishing. In this role, she leads the technology<br>strategy and execution across major Activision franchises - including Call<br>of Duty - driving innovation at the intersection of cutting-edge tech and<br>game development at scale.
Previously,<br>Natalya was Distinguished Technical Fellow and Chief Architect, VP of<br>Wētā Tools at Unity, where she advanced state-of-the-art rendering,<br>graphics performance, and character creation tools for film and games. Before<br>that, as VP of Graphics for the Unity Editor and Engine, she led Unity�s graphics<br>initiatives across the real-time rendering stack.
Natalya�s<br>roots in AAA game development include nearly a decade at Bungie, where she<br>contributed to the groundbreaking visuals and engine architecture for Destiny<br>and the Halo franchise�including Halo 3: ODST and Halo: Reach.<br>She led the graphics group and contributed to engine development, the visual<br>innovation and cross-platform rendering of Destiny franchise.
Earlier<br>in her career, she worked at AMD�s Graphics Products Group, where she pushed the<br>boundaries of parallel computing and explored advanced real-time graphics<br>techniques, graphics hardware design, and next-generation API development.
One<br>of Natalya�s passions is fostering knowledge-sharing in the real-time graphics<br>community, as she strongly believes that advancing the...