Add a page listing all features supported by Godot

This closes #3727.

about/index.rst

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ About
 
    introduction
    faq
+   list_of_features
    docs_changelog
    release_policy
 

about/list_of_features.rst

@@ -0,0 +1,518 @@
+.. _doc_list_of_features:
+
+List of features
+================
+
+This page aims to list all features currently supported by Godot.
+
+.. note::
+
+    This page lists features supported by the current development version of
+    Godot (4.0.dev). Some of these features may not be available in the current
+    stable release series (3.2).
+
+Features
+--------
+
+Platforms
+^^^^^^^^^
+
+**Can run both the editor and exported projects:**
+
+- Windows 7 and later (64-bit and 32-bit).
+- macOS 10.12 and later (64-bit, x86 and ARM).
+- Linux (64-bit, x86 and ARM).
+   - Binaries are statically linked and can run on any distribution if compiled
+     on an old enough base distribution.
+   - Official binaries are compiled on Ubuntu 14.04.
+   - 32-bit binaries can be compiled from source.
+
+**Runs exported projects:**
+
+- Android 4.4 and later.
+- iOS 10.0 and later.
+- HTML5 via WebAssembly (Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Opera).
+- :ref:`Consoles <doc_consoles>`.
+
+Godot aims to be as platform-independent as possible and can be ported to new
+platforms with relative ease.
+
+Editor
+^^^^^^
+
+**Features:**
+
+- Scene tree editor.
+- Script editor.
+- Support for :ref:`external script editors <doc_external_editor>` such as
+  Visual Studio Code or Vim.
+- GDScript :ref:`debugger <doc_debugger_panel>`.
+   - No support for debugging in threads yet.
+- Visual profiler with CPU and GPU time indications.
+- Performance monitoring tools.
+- Live script reloading.
+- Live scene editing.
+   - Changes will reflect in the editor and will be kept after closing the running project.
+- Remote inspector.
+   - Changes won't reflect in the editor and won't be kept after closing the running project.
+- Live camera replication.
+   - Move the in-editor camera and see the result in the running project.
+- Use the editor in dozens of languages contributed by the community.
+
+**Plugins:**
+
+- Editor plugins can be downloaded from the
+  :ref:`asset library <doc_what_is_assetlib>` to extend editor functionality.
+- Create your own plugins using GDScript to add new features or speed up your workflow.
+- Download projects from the asset library in the project manager and import them directly.
+
+2D graphics
+^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+Vulkan renderer.
+
+- Sprite, polygon and line rendering.
+   - High-level tools to draw lines and polygons such as Polygon2D and Line2D.
+- AnimatedSprite as a helper for creating animated sprites.
+- Parallax layers.
+   - Pseudo-3D support by automatically duplicating a layer several times.
+- 2D lighting with normal maps and specular maps.
+   - Hard or soft shadows.
+- Font rendering using bitmaps (BitmapFont) or rasterization using FreeType (DynamicFont).
+   - Bitmap fonts can be exported using tools like BMFont.
+   - DynamicFont supports monochrome fonts as well as colored fonts.
+     Supported formats are TTF and OTF.
+   - DynamicFont supports optional font outlines with adjustable width and color.
+   - Support for font oversampling to keep fonts sharp at higher resolutions.
+- GPU-based particles with support for custom particle shaders.
+- CPU-based particles.
+
+2D tools
+^^^^^^^^
+
+- 2D camera with built-in smoothing and drag margins.
+- Path2D node to represent a path in 2D space.
+   - Can be drawn in the editor or generated procedurally.
+   - PathFollow2D node to make nodes follow a Path2D.
+- 2D geometry helper class.
+- Line2D node to draw textured 2D lines.
+
+2D physics
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+**Physics bodies:**
+
+- Static bodies.
+- Rigid bodies.
+- Kinematic bodies.
+- Joints.
+- Areas to detect bodies entering or leaving it.
+
+**Collision detection:**
+
+- Built-in shapes: line, box, circle, capsule.
+- Collision polygons (can be drawn manually or generated from a sprite in the editor).
+
+3D graphics
+^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+Vulkan renderer.
+
+- HDR rendering with sRGB.
+- Perspective, orthographic and frustum-offset cameras.
+
+**Physically-based rendering:**
+
+- Follows the Disney PBR model.
+- Uses a roughness-metallic workflow with support for ORM textures.
+- Normal mapping.
+- Parallax/relief mapping with automatic level of detail based on distance.
+- Sub-surface scattering and transmittance.
+- Proximity fade (soft particles) and distance fade.
+- Distance fade can use alpha blending or dithering to avoid going through
+  the transparent pipeline.
+- Dithering can be determined on a per-pixel or per-object basis.
+
+**Real-time lighting:**
+
+- Directional lights (sun/moon). Up to 4 per scene.
+- Omnidirectional lights.
+- Spot lights with adjustable cone angle and attenuation.
+- Adjustable light "size" for fake area lights (will also make shadows blurrier).
+- Lights are rendered with clustered forward optimizations to decrease their
+  individual cost.
+
+**Shadow mapping:**
+
+- *DirectionalLight:* Orthogonal (fastest), PSSM 2-split and 4-split.
+  Supports blending between splits.
+- *OmniLight:* Dual parabolid (fast) or cubemap (slower but more accurate).
+  Supports colored projector textures in the form of panoramas.
+- *SpotLight:* Single texture. Supports colored projector textures.
+- Shadow pancaking to decrease the amount of visible shadow acne and peter-panning.
+- PCSS-like shadow blur based on the light size and distance from the surface
+  the shadow is casted on.
+- Adjustable blur on a per-light basis.
+
+**Global illumination with indirect lighting:**
+
+- Baked lightmaps (fast, but can't be updated at run-time).
+   - Lightmaps are baked on the GPU using compute shaders.
+- GI probes (slower, fully real-time). Supports reflections.
+- Signed distance field GI (intermediate, supports dynamic lights but not
+  dynamic occluders). Supports reflections.
+- Global illumination uses a deferred pass to allow for adaptive subsampling.
+
+**Reflections:**
+
+- Voxel-based reflections (when using GI probes) and SDF-based reflections (when using signed distance field GI).
+- Fast baked reflections or slow real-time reflections using ReflectionProbe.
+  Parallax correction can optionally be enabled.
+- Screen-space reflections.
+- Reflection techniques can be mixed together for greater accuracy.
+
+**Sky:**
+
+- Panorama sky (using an HDRI).
+- Procedural sky and Physically-based sky that respond to the DirectionalLights in the scene.
+- Support for custom sky shaders.
+- Radiance can be updated in real-time depending on the quality settings chosen.
+
+**Fog:**
+
+- Depth fog (exponential or with custom attenuation).
+- Height fog (floor or ceiling) with adjustable attenuation.
+- Support for automatic depth fog color depending on the camera direction
+  (to match the sun color).
+- Optional transmittance to make lights more visible in the fog.
+
+**Particles:**
+
+- GPU-based particles with support for custom particle shaders.
+- CPU-based particles.
+
+**Post-processing:**
+
+- Tonemapping (Linear, Reinhard, Filmic, ACES).
+- Automatic exposure adjustments based on viewport brightness.
+- Near and far depth of field with adjustable bokeh simulation.
+- Screen-space ambient occlusion at half or full resolution.
+- Glow/bloom with optional bicubic upscaling and several blend modes available:
+  Screen, Soft Light, Add, Replace, Mix.
+- Color correction using an one-dimensional ramp.
+- Roughness limiter to reduce the impact of specular aliasing.
+- Brightness, contrast and saturation adjustments.
+
+**Texture filtering:**
+
+- Nearest, bilinear, trilinear or anisotropic filtering.
+- Filtering options are defined on a per-use basis, not a per-texture basis.
+
+**Texture compression:**
+
+- Basis Universal (slow, but results in smaller files).
+- BPTC for high-quality compression (not supported on macOS).
+- ETC2 (not supported on macOS).
+- S3TC (not supported on mobile/Web platforms).
+
+**Anti-aliasing:**
+
+- Fast approximate antialiasing (FXAA).
+- Multi-sample antialiasing (MSAA).
+
+Most of these effects can be adjusted for better performance or to further
+improve quality. This can be helpful when using Godot for offline rendering.
+
+3D tools
+^^^^^^^^
+
+- Built-in meshes: cube, cylinder/cone, (hemi)sphere, prism, plane, quad.
+- Tools for :ref:`procedural geometry generation <doc_procedural_geometry>`.
+- :ref:`Constructive solid geometry <doc_csg_tools>` (intended for prototyping).
+- Path3D node to represent a path in 3D space.
+   - Can be drawn in the editor or generated procedurally.
+   - PathFollow3D node to make nodes follow a Path3D.
+- 3D geometry helper class.
+
+3D physics
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+**Physics bodies:**
+
+- Static bodies.
+- Rigid bodies.
+- Kinematic bodies.
+- Vehicle bodies (intended for arcade physics, not simulation).
+- Joints.
+- Soft bodies.
+- Ragdolls.
+- Areas to detect bodies entering or leaving it.
+
+**Collision detection:**
+
+- Built-in shapes: cuboid, sphere, capsule, cylinder (only with Bullet physics).
+- Generate triangle collision shapes for any mesh from the editor.
+- Generate one or several convex collision shapes for any mesh from the editor.
+
+Shaders
+^^^^^^^
+
+- *2D:* Custom vertex, fragment, and light shaders.
+- *3D:* Custom vertex, fragment, light, and sky shaders.
+- Text-based shaders using a `shader language inspired by GLSL <doc_shading_language>`.
+- Visual shader editor.
+   - Support for visual shader plugins.
+
+Scripting
+^^^^^^^^^
+
+**General:**
+
+- Object-oriented design pattern with scripts extending nodes.
+- Signals and groups for communicating between scripts.
+- Support for :ref:`cross-language scripting <doc_cross_language_scripting>`.
+- Many 2D and 3D linear algebra data types such as vectors and transforms.
+
+:ref:`GDScript: <toc-learn-scripting-gdscript>`
+
+- :ref:`High-level interpreted language <doc_gdscript>` with
+  :ref:`optional static typing <doc_gdscript_static_typing>`.
+- Syntax inspired by Python.
+- Syntax highlighting is provided on GitHub.
+- :ref:`Use threads <doc_using_multiple_threads>` to perform asynchronous actions
+  or make use of multiple processor cores.
+
+:ref:`C#: <toc-learn-scripting-gdscript>`
+
+- Packaged in a separate binary to keep file sizes and dependencies down.
+- Uses Mono 6.x.
+   - Full support for the C# 8.0 syntax and features.
+- Supports all platforms.
+- Using an external editor is recommended to benefit from IDE functionality.
+
+:ref:`VisualScript: <toc-learn-scripting-visual_script>`
+
+- :ref:`Graph-based visual scripting language <doc_what_is_visual_script>`.
+- Works best when used for specific purposes (such as level-specific logic)
+  rather than as a language to create entire projects.
+
+**GDNative (C, C++, Rust, D, ...):**
+
+- When you need it, link to native libraries for higher performance and third-party integrations.
+   - For scripting game logic, GDScript or C# are recommended if their
+     performance is suitable.
+- Official bindings for C and C++.
+   - Use any build system and language features you wish.
+- Maintained D, Kotlin, Python, Nim, and Rust bindings provided by the community.
+
+Audio
+^^^^^
+
+**Features:**
+
+- Mono, stereo, 5.1 and 7.1 output.
+- Non-positional and positional playback in 2D and 3D.
+   - Optional Doppler effect in 2D and 3D.
+- Support for re-routable :ref:`audio buses <doc_audio_buses>` and effects.
+   - Dozens of effects included.
+- Listener3D node to listen from a position different than the camera in 3D.
+- Audio input to record microphones.
+- MIDI input.
+   - No support for MIDI output yet.
+
+**APIs used:**
+
+- *Windows:* WASAPI.
+- *macOS:* CoreAudio.
+- *Linux:* PulseAudio or ALSA.
+
+Import
+^^^^^^
+
+- Support for :ref:`custom import plugins <doc_import_plugins>`.
+
+**Formats:**
+
+- *Images:* See :ref:`doc_importing_images_supported_formats`.
+- *Audio:*
+   - WAV with optional IMA-ADPCM compression.
+   - Ogg Vorbis.
+- *3D scenes:*
+   - glTF 2.0 *(recommended)*.
+   - `ESCN <https://github.com/godotengine/godot-blender-exporter>`__
+     (direct export from Blender).
+   - FBX.
+   - Collada (.dae).
+   - Wavefront OBJ (static scenes only, can be loaded directly as a mesh).
+
+Input
+^^^^^
+
+- Input mapping system using hardcoded input events or remappable input actions.
+   - Axis values can be mapped to two different actions with a configurable deadzone.
+   - Use the same code to support both keyboards and gamepads.
+- Keyboard input.
+   - Keys can be mapped in "physical" mode to be independent of the keyboard layout.
+- Mouse input.
+   - The mouse cursor can be visible, hidden, captured or confined within the window.
+   - When captured, raw input will be used on Windows and Linux to
+     sidestep the OS' mouse acceleration settings.
+- Gamepad input (up to 8 simulatenous controllers).
+- Pen/tablet input with pressure support.
+
+Navigation
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- A* algorithm in 2D and 3D.
+- Navigation meshes with dynamic obstacle avoidance.
+- Generate navigation meshes from the editor.
+
+Networking
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- Low-level TCP networking using StreamPeer and TCP_Server.
+- Low-level UDP networking using PacketPeer and UDPServer.
+- Low-level HTTP requests using HTTPClient.
+- High-level HTTP requests using HTTPRequest.
+   - Supports HTTPS out of the box using bundled certificates.
+- High-level multiplayer API using UDP and ENet.
+   - Automatic replication using remote procedure calls (RPCs).
+   - Supports unreliable, reliable and ordered transfers.
+- WebSocket client and server, available on all platforms.
+- WebRTC client and server, available on all platforms.
+- Support for UPnP to sidestep the requirement to forward ports when hosting
+  a server behind a NAT.
+
+Internationalization
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- Full support for Unicode including emoji.
+- Store localization strings using :ref:`CSV <doc_internationalizing_games>`
+  or :ref:`gettext <doc_localization_using_gettext>`.
+- Use localized strings in your project automatically in GUI elements or by
+  using the ``tr()`` function.
+- Support for right-to-left typesetting and text shaping planned in Godot 4.0.
+
+Windowing and OS integration
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- Move, resize, minimize, and maximize windows spawned by the project.
+- Change the window title and icon.
+- Request attention (will cause the title bar to blink on most platforms).
+- Fullscreen mode.
+   - Doesn't use exclusive fullscreen, so the screen resolution can't be changed this way.
+     Use a Viewport with a different resolution instead.
+- Borderless windows (fullscreen or non-fullscreen).
+- Ability to keep a window always on top.
+- Transparent windows with per-pixel transparency.
+- Global menu integration on macOS.
+- Execute commands in a blocking or non-blocking manner.
+- Open file paths and URLs using default or custom protocol handlers (if registered on the system).
+- Parse custom command line arguments.
+
+Mobile
+^^^^^^
+
+- In-app purchases on Android and iOS.
+- Support for advertisements using third-party modules.
+
+XR support (AR and VR)
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- Support for ARKit on iOS out of the box.
+- Support for the OpenXR and OpenVR APIs.
+- Popular VR headsets like the Oculus Quest and HTC Vive are supported thanks to plugins.
+
+GUI system
+^^^^^^^^^^
+
+Godot's GUI is built using the same Control nodes used to make games in Godot.
+The editor UI can easily be extended in many ways using add-ons.
+
+**Nodes:**
+
+- Buttons.
+- Checkboxes, check buttons, radio buttons.
+- Text entry using LineEdit (single line) and TextEdit (multiple lines).
+- Dropdown menus using PopupMenu and OptionButton.
+- Scrollbars.
+- Labels.
+- RichTextLabel for :ref:`text formatted using BBCode <doc_bbcode_in_richtextlabel>`.
+- Trees (can also be used to represent tables).
+- Containers (horizontal, vertical, grid, center, margin, draggable splitter, ...).
+- Controls can be rotated and scaled.
+
+**Sizing:**
+
+- Anchors to keep GUI elements in a specific corner, edge or centered.
+- Containers to place GUI elements automatically following certain rules.
+   - :ref:`Stack <class_BoxContainer>` layouts.
+   - :ref:`Grid <class_GridContainer>` layouts.
+   - :ref:`Margin <class_MarginContainer>` and :ref:`centered <class_CenterContainer>`
+     layouts.
+   - :ref:`Draggable splitter <class_SplitContainer>` layouts.
+- Scale to multiple resolutions using the ``2d`` or ``viewport`` stretch modes.
+- Support any aspect ratio using anchors and the ``expand`` stretch aspect.
+
+**Theming:**
+
+- Built-in theme editor.
+   - Generate a theme based on the current editor theme settings.
+- Procedural vector-based theming using :ref:`class_StyleBoxFlat`.
+   - Supports rounded/beveled corners, drop shadows and per-border widths.
+- Texture-based theming using :ref:`class_StyleBoxTexture`.
+
+Godot's small distribution size can make it a suitable alternative to frameworks
+like Electron or Qt.
+
+Animation
+^^^^^^^^^
+
+- Direct kinematics and inverse kinematics.
+- Support for animating any property with customizable interpolation.
+- Support for calling methods in animation tracks.
+- Support for playing sounds in animation tracks.
+- Support for Bézier curves in animation.
+
+Formats
+^^^^^^^
+
+- Scenes and resources can be saved in :ref:`text-based <doc_tscn_file_format>` or binary formats.
+   - Text-based formats are human-readable and more friendly to version control.
+   - Binary formats are faster to save/load for large scenes/resources.
+- Read and write text or binary files using :ref:`class_File`.
+   - Can optionally be compressed or encrypted.
+- Read and write :ref:`class_JSON` files.
+- Read and write INI-style configuration files using :ref:`class_ConfigFile`.
+   - Can (de)serialize any Godot datatype, including Vector, Color, ...
+- Read XML files using :ref:`class_XMLParser`.
+- Pack game data into a PCK file (custom format optimized for fast seeking),
+  into a ZIP archive, or directly into the executable for single-file distribution.
+- :ref:`Export additional PCK files<doc_exporting_pcks>` that can be read
+  by the engine to support mods and DLCs.
+
+Miscellaneous
+^^^^^^^^^^^^^
+
+- :ref:`Low-level access to servers <doc_using_servers>` which allows bypassing
+  the scene tree's overhead when needed.
+- Command line interface for automation.
+   - Export and deploy projects using continuous integration platforms.
+   - `Completion scripts <https://github.com/godotengine/godot/tree/master/misc/dist/shell>`__
+     are available for Bash, zsh and fish.
+- Support for :ref:`C++ modules <doc_custom_modules_in_c++>` statically linked
+  into the engine binary.
+- Engine and editor written in C++17.
+   - Can be :ref:`compiled <doc_introduction_to_the_buildsystem>` using GCC,
+     Clang and MSVC. MinGW is also supported.
+   - Friendly towards packagers: in most cases, system libraries can be used
+     instead of the ones provided by Godot. The build system doesn't download anything.
+     Builds can be fully reproducible.
+- Licensed under the permissive MIT license.
+   - Open developement process with :ref:`contributions welcome <doc_ways_to_contribute>`.
+
+.. seealso::
+
+    The `roadmap <https://github.com/godotengine/godot-roadmap>`__ repository
+    documents features that have been agreed upon and may be implemented in
+    future Godot releases.

development/file_formats/tscn.rst

@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+.. _doc_tscn_file_format:
+
 TSCN file format
 ================
 

getting_started/workflow/assets/importing_images.rst

@@ -30,6 +30,8 @@ Detect 3D
 This option makes Godot be aware of when a texture (which is imported for 2D as default) is used in 3D. If this happens, setting are changed so the texture flags
 are friendlier to 3D (mipmaps, filter and repeat become enabled and compression is changed to VRAM). Texture is also reimported automatically.
 
+.. _doc_importing_images_supported_formats:
+
 Supported image formats
 -----------------------
 

tutorials/content/procedural_geometry/index.rst

@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+.. _doc_procedural_geometry:
+
 Procedural geometry
 ===================