Particle effects

Hey!

So I just came along this post by Danny Groleau, and want to mention that not only is he completely right, but also want to add that you can use ParticleEffects for much more than that. I primarily use them as static effects for different atmospheres, as they are cheap solutions for:

Sun-Rays

The sun rays on the right spot, little particles around the area,  all solved with
cheap particle effects.

Water (-falls, -splashes)

What a great atmosphere. The combination of the waterfall, the splashes and the light rays
makes a wonderful picture.

Decent Fog and Dust

Look at the fog and the small particles surrounding the building.

They can make the difference between a good looking game, and an awesome looking game. If you are using Unity, like I do, here's a little trick to make them look even better. For all particle effects (fog, fire, light-rays), add a small point light in exactly the color of the effect. It will appear as if the light is send out by the particles (just look at the sunrays). For water effects use some cyan. This of course can have quite an impact on the performance of your game, but since I use them as static effects, these lights are included in my lightmapping.

Thanks for reading!