Wookash Podcast Legendary Software Rendering Era | Sean Barrett
Jul 19, 2025
In this engaging conversation, Sean Barrett, a legendary graphics programmer known for his work at Looking Glass Studios and the STB libraries, shares his fascinating journey through the world of game development. He reflects on the evolution of graphics rendering, discussing innovations like texture mapping and portal engines. Barrett delves into the creation of the iconic Thief engine, revealing groundbreaking techniques in software rendering. He also touches on the impact of indie game jams and his experiences in building the STB libraries, enriching the graphics landscape.
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Early Work on Printer Software
- Sean Barrett worked on printer software post-graduation, enhancing memory allocation and graphics processing.
- He wrote a new malloc for LP Mud, improving performance over the existing one that caused long pauses.
Entry to Looking Glass Studios
- Sean applied for a job at Looking Glass Studios after a contact suggested it instead of Origin.
- He was flown in for an interview, asked about broad phase collision detection, and got hired based on his solution.
Challenges in Early Texture Mapping
- Perspective correct texture mapping requires complex divisions and subpixel precision, which was costly on '90s CPUs.
- Looking Glass didn't implement subpixel correct texture mapping, unlike Doom, impacting visual smoothness.
