# String VFX

> String VFX is a realtime visual effects studio based in Espoo, Finland. We create VFX for games, VR experiences and brand activations using Unreal Engine, Houdini and EmberGen, and we specialise in making high-end effects run in realtime on tight performance budgets.

- Website: https://stringvfx.com/
- Email: milan@stringvfx.com
- Location: Espoo, Finland
- Core tools: Unreal Engine, Houdini (incl. Vellum and VATs), EmberGen

## Services

- **Gameplay VFX for Unreal Engine**: Boss and ability effects, dynamic environment systems and team-identification shaders, designed and shipped on tight deadlines.
- **VR and XR effects**: High-fidelity effects, lighting and atmosphere optimised to run on low-end PC VR hardware.
- **Houdini-to-Unreal pipelines**: Simulations baked into textures and Vertex Animation Textures (VATs), Vellum tearing and custom pipelines for large-scale dynamic events.
- **Fire, smoke and volumetrics**: EmberGen fire and water transitions, and realtime volumetric dust and magic using Heterogeneous Volumes in Unreal.
- **Stylized and anime VFX**: Non-PBR 80s anime emulation, stepped Niagara animations, and hybrid hand-painted/procedural shading in full 3D.
- **VFX optimisation**: Profiling and optimizing large-scale particle counts and shader overdraw to fit strict realtime performance budgets.
- **Pipeline setup and mentoring**: Embedding with studios to establish their VFX pipeline and mentor their artists to build long-term capacity.

## Selected work

### Petra: The Glory Of The Nabateans

- Type: VR Experience
- Key tools: Houdini, Unreal Engine
- Video: https://stringvfx.com/videos/project1.mp4

A highly-acclaimed VR experience where we pioneered the use of Heterogenous Volumes in Unreal for realtime volumetric dust and "djinn" magic. We overcame on-site photogrammetry challenges to deliver cinematic lighting, complex water simulations for player immersion, and civilization timelapses, all heavily optimized to run in realtime.

### Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn

- Type: Game VFX
- Key tools: Houdini, EmberGen, Unreal Engine
- Video: https://stringvfx.com/videos/project2.mp4

Brought on under a tight deadline, we rapidly designed and shipped critical gameplay VFX for this Unreal title. Our work included impactful boss FX, dynamic plant-growing systems, and team identification shaders. We also integrated with the studio, establishing their VFX pipeline and mentoring their artists to build long-term capacity.

### Jameson – VR

- Type: Brand Experience
- Key tools: EmberGen, Unreal Engine
- Video: https://stringvfx.com/videos/project3.mp4

Optimization was the key challenge for this lower-end PC VR experience. We delivered high-fidelity realtime fire and water-transition effects by leveraging EmberGen's speed and custom Unreal shaders. We also designed moody, atmospheric lighting that respected a very tight performance budget.

### Aurora

- Type: Realtime Demo
- Key tools: Houdini (Vellum, VATs), Unreal Engine
- Video: https://stringvfx.com/videos/project4.mp4

For this Unreal cinematic, we built a custom pipeline to drive large-scale dynamic events. The highlight was an entire tree-freezing sequence, driven by positional data baked from Houdini into textures. We also used Houdini Vellum for dynamic tearing simulations and baked fluid dynamics into Vertex Animation Textures (VATs) for realtime performance.

### Ramses & Nefertari: Journey to Osiris

- Type: VR Journey
- Key tools: Unreal Engine, Houdini
- Video: https://stringvfx.com/videos/project5.mp4

A fast-paced, low-end PC VR project praised for its visual effects. On a tight schedule, we delivered optimized destruction simulations, atmospheric lighting, and magical glows that all ran efficiently on minimal hardware, contributing to the project's positive reception.

### Orbitals

- Type: Game VFX
- Key tools: Unreal Engine (Niagara), Houdini (Vellum), Custom HLSL Shaders
- Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBqFf2mXV9Y

Created for Shapefarm and published by Kepler Interactive, Orbitals is a stylized sci-fi action title inspired by 80s anime. We joined during the initial pitch diorama through ship to build ~1,000 realtime VFX in Unreal Engine.

## In production

- Unannounced – TopDown Shooter
- Unannounced – Anime Cooperative

## Contact

For project enquiries, email milan@stringvfx.com.