Gamespy has published an interesting article gathering the masterminds of engine programming that empower the games we all love: Tim Sweeney, Chris Taylor, Stuart Moulder and others talk about everything from rendering techniques, physics and lighting up to AI. Carmack is no longer demanding more polygons, he wants smarter polygons. He wants the ability to bump map -- simulate raised textures on the surface on polygons -- and to add sophisticated lighting effects. By adding more rendering passes, designers will be able to polish their creations on a pixel-by-pixel basis.

Kevin Stephens, director of engineering at Monolith, goes on to predict the direction engines will move in the future: "One hundred passes might be a little bit extreme, but 10 or 20 passes per polygon will not be uncommon. Having the additional passes will make games look like they have more polys even if there are no additional polys." The result? Organic, realistic shapes and objects that have textures so real you feel like you can reach through your television or PC monitor to touch them. Engines And Engineering - What to expect in the future of PC games